Spoonerism

A Spoonerism is a play on words in which corresponding consonants or vowels are switched (see metathesis), named after the Reverend William Archibald Spooner (1844–1930), Warden of New College, Oxford, who was notoriously prone to this tendency. Some of his famous (and possibly apocryphal) quotes from the chapel include "The Lord is a shoving leopard," "It is kisstomary to cuss the bride," and "Mardon me padam, this pie is occupewed. Can I sew you to another sheet?." (Pardon me, madam, this pew is occupied. Can I show you to another seat?) The spoonerism is a now legendary 'slip of the tongue.'

Spoonerism in other languages

Spoonerism in Finnish

Spoonerisms are prolific in a few other languages. For example, the quirks of the selection of phonemes lend themselves well to this purpose. Finnish sananmuunnokset ('word transformations') are mainly used in jokes. Before transformation a Finnish spoonerism is something innocent and after transformation something obscene. A Finnish spoonerism is usually performed by telling the innocent version and letting the listener figure out the outcome.

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Spoonerism in French

The French contrepèterie is also facilitated by a strong Rabelaisian tradition for coarse, if witty, humour. Contrepéteurs excel in finding in seeming innocuous phrases the elements for the lewd and humorous. For example, les nouilles cuisent au jus de canne : les couilles nuisent au cul de Jeanne (which translates roughly as, the noodles cook in cane juice : the testicles hurt Jeanne's ass).

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Spoonerism in German

The German Schüttelreim ('shake rhyme') is a rhyme where the initial consonants (or even the following vowels) of the last two stressed syllables are exchanged with one another. For example, Es klapperte die Klapperschlang', ? bis ihre Klapper schlapper klang. (by Heinz Erhardt) - The rattlesnake rattled, until her rattles sounded flabbier.

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