MORKIN

[echokilo]

Can anyone tell me the origin of the word MORKIN - used extensively in the Midlands and Black Country to refer to an idiot or fool or "spare part" .................... have tried google to no avail!!! TIA

[Quizmonster]

Well, the word exists, but neither of the basic meanings seems to apply very directly to the one you offer. A meaning in farming is an animal that dies by accident or - in the case of a sheep - its fleece. The other meaning is a German coin of virtually no value. Of the two, the 'valueless' idea might cover the 'spare part' concept, but why a German word would find its way only to the Midlands is a bit of a mystery!

[Quizmonster]

It's just occurred to me that the word may actually be mErkin. As long ago as the 1500s, that word meant the female genitalia. (It may also mean an artificial vagina or a pubic wig!) I don't have to tell you what crude word would be used for the ladies'-bit today and I can certainly see how it might fit the definition you gave.

[echokilo]

Blimey - interesting stuff - thanks!!! Fascinating.

[jno]

I suppose you might say someone was 'as useless as a dead animal', so that could be the origin. My dictionary says merkin comes from an old word for a mop, so the meaning of pubic hair is probably older than the meaning of genitalia.

[Quizmonster]

The OED suggests merkin MAY have come from malkin, which did - amongst many other things - mean a mop, but it goes on to say "it is doubtful whether the various applications belong to the same word." Certainly, under merkin itself, mops are not mentioned there.
I still think, in response to someone's stupidity, the words, "You c-word!" fit the bill pretty well. But what the hey!

[jno]

I got the definition from the Cassell dictionary of slang. My OED says it's apparently from malkin, which it says means 'little Maud'. How poor Maud came to be a mop, and then a pubic wig, I couldn't possibly imagine.

[alexandramerris]

As a black country lass I know the answer to this one. A morkin refers to a SCARECROW. Hence 'standing there like a morkin. And yes -I know this was yaers ago but it came up on a google search and I couldnt resist answering!