Cuckold - Cultural Usage of Horn Metaphor

Cultural Usage of Horn Metaphor

In many countries "horns" are a metaphor for suffering the infidelity of a partner, not limited to husbands in modern usage. The gesture of the horned hand can be used to insult the cuckold.

• In Bulgarian, the word used is рогоносец, literally "one who wears horns", and the act of being unfaithful is termed слага рога, literally "to attach horns"
• In Vietnamese, the word "bị cắm sừng" ("get attached with a horn") is used. It can be used for both sexes.
• In Czech and Slovak languages, the word "paroháč" ("antlered one") is used, along with the phrase "nasadit parohy" ("nasadiť parohy" in Slovak) — "to put antlers on somebody".
• In Estonian the phrase is "sarvi tegema" ("to make antlers to somebody").
• In Greek, the term is "κερατάς" meaning "horned one".
• In Hungarian, the term is "felszarvazni", meaning "to put horns (on somebody)".
• The Italian equivalent is cornuto, sharing the same double entendre with the English word cornuted, asserting both featuring horns and cuckolded. Its use is playful and lightheartedly derisive, with little or no particular efficacy in scorning someone during confrontations as it is lacking earnest damning credentials, potentially leading all parties to a chuckle and smothering the feud at its inception. A pervasive metaphor parodies the use of cornuto to great effect: il bue che dà del cornuto all'asino, meaning the ox labelling the donkey cornute, equivalent to pot calling the kettle black.
• In Polish, the word "rogacz" ("horned one") is used, along with the phrase "przyprawiać rogi" ("to put horns on somebody").
• In Portuguese, the terms corno ("horn") and cornudo or chifrudo ("horned") are used to spite or mock the cheated male partner. The expression corno manso ("tamed horn") is used to indicate those men who, although cheated by their partners, come to accept it as a fact of their lives — or when the man not only knows but also appreciates witnessing his partner having pleasure with someone else as a form of sexual fetishism. Some individuals may even be proud of being called cornos mansos.
• In Romanian, is încornorat, meaning "wearing horns".
• In Russian, the word used is рогоносец ("rogonosets"), literally "one who carries horns", and the act of being unfaithful is termed наставить рога ("nastavit' roga", lit. "to attach horns" ).
• In Bosniak, Croatian, Montenegrin and Serbian the word "rogonja/рогоња" has a similar meaning ("the one who carries horns" or "the horned one"), and the phrase used is "nabiti rogove" ("to put horns on somebody") or "natačinjanje rogova/натачињање рогова" (lit. "putting the horns on").
• The Spanish word cornudo is used in some areas to describe a male partner whose female partner is sexually unfaithful. The word cabrón which means "male goat" is also used to indicate those men who, although cheated by their partners, come to accept it as a fact of their lives. One who cheats on another is said to "Put the horns on" the other (ponerle los cuernos, or in Caribbean dialects, pegarle los tarros).
• In Swedish the word hanrej and has its roots in the old Germanic language.
• In Trinidad and Tobago and also Grenada, the term "horn" is used in conjunction with cuckolds, or anyone of either sex who has a cheating spouse. Other uses include "to horn" (to sleep with someone else's spouse), "horning" (the act of cheating on your spouse), "horner-man" (a man who is sleeping with someone else's spouse) and "horner-woman" (a woman who is sleeping with someone else's spouse), "to get horn", "to take (a) horn". It is usually used in a pejorative sense. Numerous calypsoes have been written about the topic; the most famous being "Horn Me Sandra" by the calypsonian known as Lord Kitchener.
• This horn analogy extends to Turkey, where the cuckolded husband is termed boynuzlu, "horned one". But it also includes the females who are cheated on.
• In China, green hats mean that the person is a cuckold. It is considered a cultural faux pas to give green hats to a Chinese person. American businesses should avoid giving green hats to Chinese clients.
• In the Middle East the term refers mainly to a husband whose wife is unfaithful with his consent. The term 'Father of Horn ابو قرون ابا قرن' is also used in some countries in the Persian Gulf area. But the word الدَّيُّوْث is the correct/appropriate and mostly used in the Arab world as it's linked to the Islamic Sharia.