Curse the underwear

In 1915, the croupiers in Barcelona were called Fiera, Ganso, Palabras, Papitu del Nas, Joanet de la Trotxa, Titiu, Manobre and Nano-petit. We know this because on February 3, 1915, the magazine Papitu published a list of nicknames for croupiers in the different cafés in Barcelona. These were the good times of the 1914-1918 war, money flowed in Barcelona and gambling took place in the bars. It was also the golden age of linguistic ingenuity. Unlike today, when everything is aired with insipid and flabby phrases, many people entertained themselves by creating personal ways of saying things that made them individual, just as tattoos make us individual. The clerks were called Cametes de sucre, the Gothic Child, the Paparra, the Cyclopedic. And to the coachmen, the Crying Boy, the Para-taula, the Half Meter, the friend Zaliva (who must have been zopas).

In this context, Papitu organized a contest of gypsy curses, which had to be as convoluted and consecrated as possible, because they were second-degree gypsy curses, parodies of gypsy curses. And if the originals were already churrigueresque and comical, the imitations had to surpass them.

'Aixís te quedéssis bald and make you de fer serve mirall's bald per a fer-te la clenxa!'

Ninety-nine have been published. Last week I promised you a bunch. Here it goes:

73. Make the only one on the sabbaths that the ironing machine that will iron the first ironed shirt that the mother's germ will wear!

It's a silly humor with a reference to the family that must have seemed to fit with the gypsy.

70. I shit on the neutral zone balls!

What was the neutral zone supposed to be? The ass?

65. Aixís you sortissin senceres pel forat de sota la cua totes los garrofes que te mejat this week!

Gypsies used to sell and shear cattle and carob beans were a good resource for inventing curses:

63. Maleïda followed the beta of the calçotets de l'home that will grow the garrofes that the donkey carrying the Most Holy Mary!

Sometimes, they take advantage of the double meaning:

50. Déu faci que menjant nous t'empassis distretament la del col!

And they combine ideas, like in the theatre of the absurd.

47. Aixís te quedéssis bald and haguéssis de fer serve mirall's baldness to fer-te la clenxa!

Often, cursing involves physical punishment.

44. Déu faci que tinguis kisses every three months!

14. Aixís tinguéssis l'ear more fier than a consumptive and if you learn to play the accordion!

The winner was number:

37. Maybe you pass a train at full speed for urinary holidays!

What a great time those people had, playing with their tongues.