In
British English slang, a toff is a stereotype for someone with an aristocratic background or belonging to the
landed gentry
The landed gentry, or the ''gentry'', is a largely historical British social class of landowners who could live entirely from rental income, or at least had a country estate. While distinct from, and socially below, the British peerage, th ...
, particularly someone who exudes an air of superiority. For instance,
the Toff, a character from the series of adventure novels by
John Creasey, is an upper class crime sleuth who uses a common caricature of a toff – a line drawing with a
top hat,
monocle,
bow-tie and cigarette with a holder – as his
calling card
''Calling Card'' is the sixth studio album and eighth album overall by Irish singer/guitarist Rory Gallagher. A 1976 release, it was his second of four albums released on Chrysalis Records in the 1970s. Deep Purple/Rainbow bass guitarist Roger ...
.
The word "toff" is thought to come from the word "tuft", which was a gold
tassel worn by titled undergraduates at the
University of Oxford or the
University of Cambridge. The Anglo-Saxon word "toforan" has a meaning of "superiority".
Ian Kelly's book, ''Beau Brummell: The Ultimate Dandy'', page 159, says it derives from the brown liquid that dripped from an upper class gentleman's nose after taking
snuff.
Hoorah Henry has a similar meaning.
See also
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Nobby
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Plebs
In ancient Rome, the plebeians (also called plebs) were the general body of free Roman citizenship, Roman citizens who were not Patrician (ancient Rome), patricians, as determined by the capite censi, census, or in other words "commoners". Both ...
*
Toffs and Toughs
References
Slang terms for men
English culture
Stereotypes of the upper class
Social class in the United Kingdom
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