Yeah it’s gross, but do you have any idea why the STD gonorrhoea is nicknamed ‘the clap’?

We won’t tell anyone you read this story, don’t worry, but there are actually 👏 three 👏 theories 👏 as to how and why this has come to be.

Steering clear of how it’s spread, because that’s a story for another day, here’s the Metro with the first theory:

…it derives from the old French word for ‘brothel’, which was ‘clapier‘.

Prostitutes lived and worked in clapiers – which appropriately, given the nature and frequency of sexual activity of both inhabitants, was also the French word for rabbit nest or hutch.

Thus, the disease gained the name clapier bubo in French. The clapier part you already know about. The bubo element refers to an inflamed lymph node or infection in the groin area – so a clapier bubo refers to an infection in the groin area after visiting a brothel.

Seems fair – the French, right?

Next theory:

…The Clap has its roots in the old English word ‘clappan’, which meant to beat or to throb. This one is fairly self-explanatory – it refers to some of the more common symptoms of gonorrhoea, including painful urination and a throbbing of the penis caused by inflammation and infection.

Could have done without the symptoms, but if you are experiencing any of those you might want to have your bits looked at.

The third theory is the least likely, but we’ll plonk it here for your perusal:

The Clap denotes the sort of treatment doled out to gonorrhoea sufferers in days of yore – which involved clapping hard on either side of the penis to eject the infected discharge. Fortunately, now the treatment has progressed to a course or a single shot of antibiotics.

Modern medicine saves the day once more.

We’re not going to preach, but y’all really should be wrapping before you get clapping.

No salad no slaai, no boerie no braai, no condom no naai.

[source:metro]