Blowing a raspberry

"Bronx Cheer" redirects here. For the Law & Order episode, see Bronx Cheer (Law & Order).

A man blowing a raspberry

Blowing a raspberry or strawberry or making a Bronx cheer is to make a noise signifying derision, real or feigned. It is made by placing the tongue between the lips and blowing, making a sound redolent of flatulence. In the terminology of phonetics, this sound can be described as an unvoiced linguolabial trill [r̼̊]. It is never used in human language phonemically (i.e., to be used as a building block of words), but it is widely used across human cultures.

Nomenclature varies: in the United States, Bronx cheer is sometimes used; otherwise, there and in other English-speaking countries, it is known as a raspberry, rasp or razz – the origin of which is an instance of rhyming slang, in which the non-rhyming part of a rhyming phrase is used as a synonym. In this case, "raspberry tart" rhymes with "fart". It was first recorded in 1890.

A Raspberry Pattern or The Raspberry Pattern represents the form that the mouth takes as it produces a noise similar to that created by flatulence, similar to that of gas as it is passed through the rectum.

The term "Bronx cheer" is used sarcastically because it is not a cheer; it is used to show disapproval. The term originated as a reference to the sound used by some spectators in Yankee Stadium, located in the Bronx, New York City.

Etymology

Blowing a raspberry comes from the Cockney rhyming slang "raspberry tart," fart. Rhyming slang was particularly used in British comedy to refer to things which would be unacceptable to a polite audience, particularly on the BBC.^{[citation needed]}

In popular culture

• One of the most famous uses of the Bronx cheer is in the song "Der Fuehrer's Face", from the Disney animated film of the same name, as recorded by musical comedian Spike Jones in 1942. Jones shows his disdain for Adolf Hitler with the repeated refrain "We Heil! (Bronx cheer) Heil! (Bronx cheer) Right in Der Fuehrer's Face!"
• The Golden Raspberry Awards, a parody of the Oscars, are designed to dishonor the worst films, actors, directors, etc.
• On the television sitcom All in the Family (1971–1979), the character Archie Bunker (Carroll O'Connor) would blow a raspberry frequently, usually when he did not know what to say after being confronted with an uncomfortable truth.
• George Carlin, on his 1972 album Class Clown, refers to this action as the "bi-labial fricative".
• In 1978, the former members of the BBC radio comedy show The Goon Show – Peter Sellers, Harry Secombe, and Spike Milligan – released an album entitled The Goons' Unchained Melodies. One of the final songs was entitled "The Raspberry Song", in which Eccles blows a raspberry throughout the song.

Zrbtt

"Zrbtt", also spelled "zerbet" or "zerbert", is a term coined by Bill Cosby's character Heathcliff Huxtable in an episode of The Cosby Show. In the original episode, the spelling was explicitly given as "Z-R-B-T-T". It is described as the act of pressing one's lips on a soft area of another person's flesh, such as their facial cheek, and blowing, producing a noise similar to that created by flatulence. Unlike blowing a raspberry, which is meant as an insult and a sign of disrepect, a Zrbtt is considered a sign of respect and affection, and was referred to as a "wet kiss."

See also

• Bilabial trill
• Joe Btfsplk
• Golden Raspberry Awards
• Linguistic universal
• The Phantom Raspberry Blower of Old London Town

References

Notes

External links

• Video of raspberry blowing at 500 frames per second, taken with a high speed camera
• Video of one long raspberry