What are the Origins of the Phrase “Keeping Mum”?
The phrase “keeping mum,” as in “to stay silent,” has its origins in the 14th century, and there are a number of related phrases which also use “mum,” illustrating the many ways in which a language can diverge through daily use. The concept of keeping mum also comes up in some plays on words which utilize the British slang term “mum” for “mother,” which dates to the early 1800s. Propaganda posters in the Second World War, for example, exhorted readers to “stay like dad: keep mum.
The phrase “keeping mum,” as in “to stay silent,” has its origins in the 14th century, and there are a number of related phrases which also use “mum,” illustrating the many ways in which a language can diverge through daily use. The concept of keeping mum also comes up in some plays on words which utilize the British slang term “mum” for “mother,” which dates to the early 1800s.
