Taffy (ethnic slur)

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Taffy is a sometimes pejorative term for a Welsh person or thing. It may be derived from the Welsh forename "Dafydd" ("David"), or a reference to the River Taff in Cardiff, Wales.

A version of an old anti-Welsh English nursery rhyme begins:

Taffy was a Welshman, Taffy was a thief,

Taffy came to my house and stole a leg of beef.

I went to Taffy's house, Taffy wasn't in,

I jumped upon his Sunday hat and poked it with a pin.

Another version runs:

Taffy was a Welshman, Taffy was a thief,

Taffy came to my house and stole a leg of beef.

I went to Taffy's house, Taffy wasn't home,

Taffy was at my house and stole a knuckle bone.

Yet another version runs:

Taffy was a Welshman, Taffy was a thief,

Taffy came to my house and stole a leg of beef.

I went to Taffy's house, Taffy was in bed,

I took a marrow bone and hit him on the head.

A slightly ruder version goes:

Taffy was a Welshman, Taffy was a cheat,

Taffy came to my house, and pissed upon the seat,

I went to Taffy's house, Taffy was in bed,

So I climbed in through the window, and kicked him in the head,

[At least one source] attributes this use of Taffy as a reference to Amaethon, who steals from Arawn in the 6th century poem "Cad Goddeu".

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