''Sheep-shagger'' (also spelt ''sheepshagger'' or ''sheep shagger'') is a derogatory term, most often used to refer to Welsh people, implying that the subject has sex with sheep. In a court case in Britain, the use of the term directed at a Welsh person was ruled to be a "racially aggravating" factor in a disorderly conduct offence. It has been used in South Africa to refer to Australians and by Australians and New Zealanders to refer to one another.

History

The use of the term ''sheep-shagger'' to refer to a Welsh person has arisen from the prevalence of sheep and

sheep farming in Wales Sheep farming has been important to the economy of Wales. Much of Wales is rural countryside and sheep are seen throughout the country. The woollen industry in Wales was a major contributor to the national economy, accounting for two-thirds of t ...

. It is often viewed as offensive in Wales, for the same reason as it is in South Africa to refer to Australians. In response to complaints over the use of phrase, in an Australian television advertisement for Toyota, the New Zealand Advertising Standards Authority determined the phrase was not viewed as offensive by the majority of New Zealanders.

Football

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

matches in England, supporters of Welsh teams as well as Welsh players are often called sheep shaggers in football chants from opposing fans. It is also used in Scotland to refer to supporters of Aberdeen. In 2001,

Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Caerdydd) is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1899 as R ...

signed English player Spencer Prior and jokingly included a

contract clause Article I, Section 10, Clause 1 of the United States Constitution, known as the Contract Clause, imposes certain prohibitions on the states. These prohibitions are meant to protect individuals from intrusion by state governments and to keep ...

that he would be obliged "to have a physical liaison with a sheep", in response to their fans being called sheep shaggers. The name "Sheep Shaggers" has been used for at least two football fanzines – those for

Bedford Town Bedford Town Football Club is a football club based in the Borough of Bedford, England. The club are currently members of the and play at the Eyrie in Cardington, a village on the outskirts of Bedford. They are full members of the Football As ...

and for football in Western England.

Music

Manic Street Preachers frontman James Dean Bradfield routinely dealt with sheep-related heckles from gig audiences (including shouts of "sheep shagger", bleats and stuffed toy sheep thrown onstage) with the stock response ‘Yeah, we shag ‘em, then you eat ‘em!"

Court case

In Prestatyn, Wales, the phrase was the subject of a 2013 court case, after Anthony Taaffe of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, a guest at a holiday park in

Gronant Gronant is a village in Flintshire, Wales, about 2 miles east of Prestatyn. The population, as measured by the 2001 census, is 1,595, living in 697 households. The average age of the populace is 41.4 years, slightly higher than the national avera ...

, called an off-duty policeman and security staff "a bunch of sheep-shaggers". Taaffe claimed, in his defence, that the phrase was "a term for people living in the countryside". He also admitted a second similar offence, in which he called a police officer, at the custody unit to which he had been taken, a "Welsh sheep shagger". Taaffe was fined £150 after he admitted racially aggravated disorderly behaviour.

References

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