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And very often they've no idea that they're swearing. 'Oh My God' was insanely popular in the 1990s even amongst people who had no belief in a deity, which rea

And very often they've no idea that they're swearing. 'Oh My God' was insanely popular in the 1990s even amongst people who had no belief in a deity, which really annoyed me even though I don't identify as a Christian. I even remember the non-Human character Kira in Deep Space 9 being assigned it in dialogue, it was really jarring. It's as if it had just been reduced to a sequence of syllables and the writers didn't think about what it meant.

Al-Khwarizmi 10y ago
It's as if it had just been reduced to a sequence of syllables And for all practical purposes, it has. Sometimes, sentences used very often lose their meaning and become interjections. "Goodbye" comes from "God be with ye", and of course it's used by atheists as well.
amelius 10y ago
I sometimes think we need religion to make sure our words keep their meaning. And I am not religious.
- wastedhours 10y ago
  Why? Language evolves naturally over time, trying to hold back that process seems a little regressive. The obvious example is the word "cool". I'm not sure there's any real benefit in holding its meaning to be "something that's cold".
coldtea 10y ago
>'Oh My God' was insanely popular in the 1990s even amongst people who had no belief in a deity, which really annoyed me even though I don't identify as a Christian OMG is not a swear word though -- it's just an expression of awe/amazement/surprise/etc.
- danellis 10y ago
  It's an oath, isn't it? So literally, at least, it is swearing.
  - coldtea 10y ago
    http://images-cdn.9gag.com/photo/a5PmrLq_700b.jpg http://images-cdn.9gag.com/photo/a5PmrLq_700b.jpg (Or that would be, if it even was an oath. But "Oh my god" is NOT an oath. "On my God", or "In the name of my god" would be that).
    - danellis 10y ago
      Oh, really? I thought it was the "_my_ God" part that was swearing an oath.
      - coldtea 10y ago
        Not every phrase with "my god" in it is an oath. Unless if you swear (promise to do something) to your god (or on your god's name). OMG is not that different from "oh man!" in use. It's for surprise. How does "swearing an oath" would be related to being surprised?
        danellis 10y ago
        I see "Oh, _my_ God" as a statement of allegiance, as opposed to just, say, "Oh, God."
        coldtea 10y ago
        I see. I see it more as kind of call (in a "vocative case"). In the sense that you find something surprising, and ask for your God (as when you fear something, etc).

Al-Khwarizmi 10y ago

It's as if it had just been reduced to a sequence of syllables And for all practical purposes, it has. Sometimes, sentences used very often lose their meaning and become interjections. "Goodbye" comes from "God be with ye", and of course it's used by atheists as well.

amelius 10y ago

I sometimes think we need religion to make sure our words keep their meaning. And I am not religious.

wastedhours 10y ago
Why? Language evolves naturally over time, trying to hold back that process seems a little regressive. The obvious example is the word "cool". I'm not sure there's any real benefit in holding its meaning to be "something that's cold".

coldtea 10y ago

>'Oh My God' was insanely popular in the 1990s even amongst people who had no belief in a deity, which really annoyed me even though I don't identify as a Christian OMG is not a swear word though -- it's just an expression of awe/amazement/surprise/etc.

danellis 10y ago
It's an oath, isn't it? So literally, at least, it is swearing.
- coldtea 10y ago
  http://images-cdn.9gag.com/photo/a5PmrLq_700b.jpg http://images-cdn.9gag.com/photo/a5PmrLq_700b.jpg (Or that would be, if it even was an oath. But "Oh my god" is NOT an oath. "On my God", or "In the name of my god" would be that).
  - danellis 10y ago
    Oh, really? I thought it was the "_my_ God" part that was swearing an oath.
    - coldtea 10y ago
      Not every phrase with "my god" in it is an oath. Unless if you swear (promise to do something) to your god (or on your god's name). OMG is not that different from "oh man!" in use. It's for surprise. How does "swearing an oath" would be related to being surprised?
      - danellis 10y ago
        I see "Oh, _my_ God" as a statement of allegiance, as opposed to just, say, "Oh, God."
        coldtea 10y ago
        I see. I see it more as kind of call (in a "vocative case"). In the sense that you find something surprising, and ask for your God (as when you fear something, etc).