English schmuck is from Yiddish שמאָק (shmok) 'prick, dick; jerk, unpleasant person'. It has an unsure etymology. Many have noticed that German Schmuck 'jewel' looks similar to the English spelling, and has an interesting meaning (cf. English family jewels), but it is problematic. A u in German corresponds to a u (or an i) and not an o in Yiddish: cf. German Fuß 'foot' with Yiddish fus ~ fis, or German gut 'good' with Yiddish gut ~ git. (The English word is pronounced with a schwa, but the Yiddish one is pronounced definitely with an o.) Pther etymologies connect Yiddish shmok with an Old Polish word smok 'grass snake, dragon' or a Czech word meaning 'fool'. he latter doesn't explain how a generic word for 'fool' came to be a specialized word for a body part. The other taboo words for the penis in Yiddish are (daytshmerish, or high register) shvants (cf German Schwantz 'tail; penis' and Latin penis 'tail; penis') and vulgar pots. (Yiddish pots can be used for the body part or a term of abuse. It is usually associated with German Putz 'clean' (cf. Putzfrau 'charlady, cleaning lady'), but has the same phonological problem as shmok. Because shmok and pots tend to be associated with their term of abuse meanings, the body parts are usually refered to with endearing diminutives: shmekl and petsl. (The u ~ i varience is for the two major dialect groups of Eastern Yiddish (spoken in the Pale), the Lithuanian (roughly NE Yiddish) and the Polish (roughly SE and divided into other dialect groups). It is well-known by non-linguists, and I have heard a song that is made up entirely using words that show the varience sung by a polaks and a litvaks. Here's an article that discusses this in passing.)

[Edited for correction and minor style issue.]


Ceci n'est pas un seing.