Roger


Roger is a masculine given name and a surname. The given name is derived from the Old French personal names Roger and Rogier. These names are of Germanic origin, derived from the elements hrōd, χrōþi and gār, gēr . The name was introduced into England by the Normans. In Normandy, the Frankish name had been reinforced by the Old Norse cognate Hróðgeirr. The name introduced into England replaced the Old English cognate Hroðgar. Roger became a very common given name during the Middle Ages. A variant form of the given name Roger that is closer to the name's origin is Rodger.

Slang and other uses

From up to, Roger was slang for the word "penis". In Under Milk Wood, Dylan Thomas writes "jolly, rodgered" suggesting both the sexual double entendre and the pirate term "Jolly Roger".
In 19th-century England, Roger was slang for another term, the cloud of toxic green gas that swept through the chlorine bleach factories periodically.
"Roger" is a standard procedure word in two-way radio communication, meaning that a message has been received. This usage originated during World War II, during which time British and American military spelling alphabets used "Roger" to represent the letter "R", which itself was the abbreviation for "Received". While the NATO phonetic alphabet replaced "Roger" with "Romeo" in 1949, "Roger" has remained standard as the abbreviation for "Received", and it has become recognizable as such to laypeople.
includes the word as a verb to mean sexual intercourse, e.g., "took her home and rogered her."
Hodge, a word meaning farm labourer or English rural dweller, is derived from Middle English "Hoge", a nickname of Roger.

Spellings

The following forenames are related to the English given name Roger:
  • Alt.
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People

Given name

Medieval period

''See also, and for people with these names''

Kings and rulers

Others

Modern era

Surname

Fictional characters

Animal

  • Roger (kangaroo), Australian kangaroo with an extraordinary physique, aka "Ripped Roger"