A Brief History of Profanity in the English Language

• Profane = "outside the temple"
• Swearing exists in all languages (and even among animal species)
• Has always been part of English, even in Bible
• Linked to many other languages (Norwegian, Swedish, and French in the case of one particular word)
• Most historians/etymologists trace its first written English use to a poem titled "Flyn flyys" (1475 AD)
• Code is used to disguise the word
• 1503: first appearance in dictionary 
• 1795-1965: not in a single dictionary
• Although additional meanings have evolved over time, and the severity and censorship of has varied throughout the years, some bad words have always been considered as such
• Some of today's swear words weren't originally considered profanity
• 14th century: Chaucer uses a swear word to mean befouled
• 1600: word became vulgar and began to signify some of today's meanings
• Additional definitions were added up to 1936