Flipping the Bird
Maybe this will clear up some profound questions of etymology, folklore, and emotional symbolism.
The body part which the French proposed to cut off the English after defeating them was, of course, the middle finger. It is impossible to draw the renowned English longbow without the middle finger.
This famous weapon was made of the native English yew tree, and so the act of drawing the longbow was known as "plucking yew." Thus, when the victorious English waved their middle fingers at the defeated French, they said, "See, we can still pluck yew! PLUCK YEW!!"
Over the years some 'folk etymologies' have grown up around this symbolic gesture.
Since 'pluck yew' is rather difficult to say (like 'pleasant mother pheasant plucker,' which is who you had to go to for the feathers used on the arrows), the difficult consonant cluster at the beginning has gradually changed to a labiodental fricative "F."
Thus, the words often used in conjunction with the one-finger salute are mistakenly thought to have something to do with an intimate encounter.
It is also because of the pheasant feathers on the arrows that the symbolic gesture is known as "giving the bird."
And yew all thought yew knew everything!
(I feel certain this is all tongue in cheek.)
Pat
"It's easier to put on slippers than to carpet the world." (from "Stuart Saves His Family")
