Why does pig meat have 3 different names?

[EyesOfKohl]

Pork, ham & bacon?

Out of curiousity

 

[Rhamiel]

it has to do with the Norman conquest of England in 1066

that is why there are a lot of words with French roots in English language

the poor people raised the animals
so we have Saxon based words for the animals, cows, pigs, chickens

but French passed words for the meats, beef, pork, poultry (that last one is not really for the meat, but it is used in reference for livestock)

 

[Rhamiel]

bacon and ham are specific types of pork

like steaks and roasts are different types of beef

both ham and bacon is cured meat

 

[graciesings]

It depends on where the meat is. Ham is the pig's butt, I think bacon is the belly. Pork is a general term for pig meat but we don't use it for ham because ham has been cooked and cured very differently. Same thing for bacon! So "pork" winds up meaning ribs and shoulder.

 

[ks777]

it has to do with the Norman conquest of England in 1066

that is why there are a lot of words with French roots in English language

the poor people raised the animals
so we have Saxon based words for the animals, cows, pigs, chickens

but French passed words for the meats, beef, pork, poultry (that last one is not really for the meat, but it is used in reference for livestock)

Is that right? I didn't know it had to do with the French/Saxon roots. From my (bad) memory, I was taught this in my ancient history class, possibly even Roman history, the poor classes called them chicken and cow while the upper class called them poultry and beef, or something like that. Obviously they spoke Latin but maybe there were multiple words for animals even back then. Your explanation does make more sense.

 

[Rhamiel]

hmmm, maybe in ancient world there were different words for the animals and the meats among different classes

but in English, I think the roots for these words come from the "unsophisticated" Anglo-Saxon words (most of our modern curse words are Saxon based) and the archaic French of the Normand rulers

remember, for a few generations, the Kings and Dukes of England did not even speak English
first it was the Norman dynasty that was immediately followed by the Plantagenet dynasty, both French

now we could argue that by the late Plantagenet period (the war of the Roses) that the nobles of would have been "naturalized" into English culture (not the old Anglo-Saxon culture but a kind of amalgamation of Saxon and Normand)
but the Norman and early Plantagenet would have spoken mainly, or in some cases exclusively, French

now the online Etymology dictionary does have the word beef being of French origin and of starting circa 1300, which would have put it squarely in the Plantagenet period (which lasted until 1485)

 

[ks777]

Wow, good stuff!

 

[Lord Of The Forest]

As a rule, English's culinary and law terms come from French (from the Norman conquest), ecclesiastical, law, and scientific terms are derived from Latin (the language of Rome, and home of the Catholic Church), and words pertaining to domestic life, and our most commonly used words have Germanic roots.

If I may, I recommend the History of English Podcast to anyone interested in linguistics, history, or etymology.

 

[Barzel]

 

[Cute Tink]

I just thought it was because ham and bacon were the extra delicious versions of pork...

 

[Barzel]

There's a fourth name for pig meat, but I'd probably upset somebody if I started whistling "Bad Boys" by Inner Circle.

(I'm teasing. I don't mind law enforcement. It's the departments and bureaucratic crap I can't stand.)

 

[SnowyMacie]

I always thought it was different cuts of meat, but it's all pork. It's the same with beef; there's steak, sirloin, ribeye, etc.

 

[Rhamiel]

bacon is cured pork belly

you can get uncured pork belly or partially cured pork belly called "salt pork" which is close to bacon but a little different

like it is a cross between bacon and normal pork