Where Did the Term Bob's Your Uncle Come From

Arthur Balfour - the nephew half of the expression Bobs your uncle. He was a law and order man nicknamed Bob and uncle was a term implying benefaction and protection.

5x13 Bob S Your Uncle The 100 Show The 100 The 100 Cast

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. It goes back to the 1880s when Lord Salisbury the Prime Minister gave a political job in Ireland to Arthur Balfour. He was a law and order man nicknamed Bob and uncle was a term implying benefaction and protection. Bobs your uncle was probably originally used with reference to former UK PM 1902-5 Arthur Balfour whose rise to political fortune had nothing whatever to do with the fact that he was the nephew of the three times previous PM 1885-61886.

The origin of the phrase is often said to be in the controversial appointment in 1887 of the young Arthur Balfour to the important post of Chief Secretary for Ireland by his uncle Lord Salisbury whose first name was Robert. Arthur Balfour was still alive then. Another educated guess at its derivation relates to the appointment in 1887 of Arthur.

Bobs your uncle is a British phrase that refers to something being simply accomplished. The poet Stephen Spender 1946 believed the expression to be cockney though its unclear on what grounds. One or other of these could conceivably have contributed to the genesis of Bobs your uncle.

This is one of the first records of the phrase in print. Bob was used from the 18th century as a generic name for a man similar to Tom Dick and Harry. Salisbury suggested that his nephew stand for the borough seat of Hertford which was under Salisburys influence in 1873.

It entered popular parlance after a musical show called Bobs Your Uncle in 1924. The phrase was in regular use in England from the 1890s and comes from the promotion in 1886 of Arthur Balfour to Secretary of State for Ireland. The phrase Bobs your uncle was coined when Arthur referred to the Prime Minister as Uncle Bob.

Bobs your uncle is said to derive from the supposed nepotism of Lord Salisbury in appointing a favourite nephew Arthur Balfour to several political posts in the 1880s. Uncle is British as well as American slang for pawnbroker and a pawnbroker is presumably a friend in need. This expression was first coined in 1887.

During the performance the expression was used in a song which was written by John P Long. Bob is a familiar form of the name Robert. The phrase Bobs your uncle was first found in print in The Angus Evening Telegraph in June 1924.

Bobs your Uncle is often used to describe something that is resolved in your favour without much effort such as Just send the form in and Bobs your uncle. Balfour went on to succeed his. The expression Bobs your uncle is first attested from 1924 when it appeared as the title of a musical revue in Dundee of all places.

Uncle is British as well as American slang for pawnbroker and a pawnbroker is presumably a friend in need. The slang phrase bobs or Bobs your uncle means everything is or will turn out all right. Its in The New Dictionary of the Canting Crew of 1699 as its all bob and other entries in the same work similarly imply that bob referred to something good.

Meanwhile uncles are often seen as. Bobs your Uncle is often used to describe something that is resolved in your favour without much effort such as Just send the form in and Bobs your uncle. The origin of the expression is widely claimed to lay its roots in 1887 when the British Prime Minister Robert Gascoyne-Cecil named his nephew Arthur Balfour Chief Secretary of Ireland.

An English General Named Robert something di so well for the Brithish troops-ie Slaughtered many many Indians natives during battle that he became a good luck phrase as in all is safe if Bobs your Uncle or if Bob was commanding your Brigade. Apparently its very simple to become a minister when Bobs your uncle. Bobs Your Uncle is a British expression meaning everything will be all right everything is arranged no worries.

Bobs your uncle. It derives from the 17th-century slang All is bob which simply means everything is good or safe. From this one can assume it was in the spoken language for a while before this.

Salisbury is widely believed to be the Uncle Bob that the expression refers to. Bobs your uncle is said to have been conceived after Balfour referred to the Prime Minister as Uncle Bob. It was in reference to a musical revue called Bobs Your Uncle that had taken place in Dundee.

2 ORIGIN Apart perhaps from its use as the title of a 1923 song of which nothing is known all the early instances of bobs yer uncle and bobs your uncle that I have found are from Scotland. Alas the identity of Bob is unknown and the early record of the phrase is sketchy affording few clues as to its origin. The earliest dates back to 1891.

Etymologists continue to argue about the roots of the phrase. It comes from the War between Inda and England over colonization. Vote for Bob - Bobs your Uncle.

In 1887 British Prime Minister Robert Gascoyne-Cecil appointed his nephew Arthur James Balfour as Minister for Ireland. From the eighteenth century on it was a common generic name for somebody you didnt know. The phrase was in regular use in England from the 1890s and comes from the promotion in 1886 of Arthur Balfour to Secretary of State for Ireland.

See answer 1 Best Answer. Bobs your uncle Follow your Uncle Bob He knows what to do. How do I get to your house.

The origins are uncertain but a common theory is that the expression arose after Conservative Prime Minister Robert Cecil known as Bob appointed his nephew Arthur Balfour as Chief Secretary for Ireland in 1887 an act of favoritism which was apparently both surprising and unpopular. The origin is said to come from the. Another educated guess at its derivation relates to the appointment in 1887 of Arthur.

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