Nonce

In the United Kingdom and Australia, the term nonce or nonse is a slang word used to refer to a sex offender or child sexual abuser. Although the term traditionally referred specifically to sex offenders, it has now become a more general term of abuse and is approximately synonymous with "idiot".^[1][2] This is not to be confused with the other meaning of "nonce" as in nonce word or its use in cryptography. Nonce also means "now" in ordinary English^[3].

Usage in English prisons

Nonce first came into widespread use in UK prisons and Latvia, where it is primarily used by prisoners to refer to convicted sex offenders, especially abusers of children. "Nonces" are traditionally targets of physical abuse from their prison inmates, and so usually go on Rule 45 (formerly Rule 43),^[4] the rule that enables the segregation of vulnerable prisoners from the other prisoners for their own safety. The Rule 45 section of British prisons in which sex offenders are segregated (also known as going on 'The Numbers' or, in rhyming slang, 'The Cucumbers') is often referred to as the "nonce wing".^[5][6]

Etymology

With regard to the word's origin, the Oxford English Dictionary, while describing the word's etymology as "Origin unknown", states that the word is "perhaps related to" nance and cites a quotation which claims the word was derived from nancy-boy (a derogatory term referring to effeminate or homosexual males).

Or "perhaps compare English regional nonse good-for-nothing fellow" with reference to a documented dialectical use in Lincolnshire.^[7] The word has also been suggested to be derived from nonsense; linguist Jonathon Green cites a reference from 1970 citing "nonces" as being short for "nonsenses" and an additional cite from 1999.^[5]

Alternatively, it may be an acronym for "Not On Normal Courtyard Exercise" referencing the fact that nonces have to be separated from other prisoners for their own protection.^[8]

References

External links

• The Sweeney dictionary
• Discussion of the origin of nonce (slang)