By Betty Kirkpatrick
Scots is not lacking in ways of indicating our disapproval or contempt for others. Many of the nouns that fall into this category are either unisex or used mainly of men. However, there are exceptions to this and one of these is besom. When applied to a person these days, a besom is almost invariably female.
As is the case with many Scots words, besom has had various alternative spellings through the years. Some of these, which include bisom, bissum, boosum, bizzom and bizzum, more closely reflect the pronunciation of the word, because besom is pronounced not as the modern spelling suggests, but as biz-zum with the stress on the first syllable.
Besom carries a range of meanings. It was originally sometimes used of a woman whose morals were rather questionable and sometimes of a woman who was a bit of a slattern when it came to standards of hygiene. Nowadays, besom can be applied to a woman or girl whose attitude and behaviour we find unacceptable, to one who has annoyed us greatly, or just to one whom we thoroughly dislike. However, there can be a lighter note to besom and it can also be applied humorously or fondly to a mischievous child.
Besom is not always used of women. It can also be used to apply to an inanimate object, when it means broom – not the plant with yellow flowers, but a brush used for sweeping. The brush meaning of besom also appears in English, but there it usually applies to a rudimentary sweeping brush made from a bundle of twigs tied to a stick, the stick being known as a besom-stick or a besom-shank. In Scots, besom can also take this meaning, but it can refer also to a more sophisticated model of broom.
Besom is likely to be Germanic in origin, having come into Scots from Old English. The broom meaning of besom came first and the derogatory term for a woman probably arose from the associated idea of someone wielding a broom. Somebody such as a maidservant, whose job was sweeping up would be considered to be very low in status. The meaning went downhill after that.
A house that showed signs of being well-swept (or in these days well-hoovered) and was generally tidy could be described as besom-ticht – ticht being Scots for tight. Rather confusingly, a house that was described as besom-clean left something to be desired in the cleanliness stakes. The floors might be swept, but not washed, and dust might be lurking elsewhere. I know that look.
Figuratively, besom can be applied to anything thick and bushy. It is particularly appropriate when applied to hair. I am familiar with that look, too, particularly on a bad hair day.
Betty Kirkpatrick is the former editor of several classic reference books, including Chambers Twentieth Century Dictionary and Roget’s Thesaurus. She is also the author of several smaller language reference books, including The Usual Suspects and Other Clichés published by Bloomsbury, and a series of Scots titles, including Scottish Words and Phrases, Scottish Quotations, and Great Scots, published by Crombie Jardine.
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