>When I went to college, the number 69 had obscene connotations, at least among
>undergraduates. It was supposed to be a euphemism for oral sex, based on the
>6 and the 9 being upside-down versions of one another.
Somebody told me this usage is not modern, and goes all the way
back to the penitentials.
I dare say they knew of the practice: but they might have found the
symbolism difficult, writing vj and ix.
But you never know about overtones...
a.c.
Anselm Cramer OSB
Monastery Librarian
Ampleforth Abbey, York
GB - YO6 4EN
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