village idiot

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village idiot

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From the saying “Every village has its village idiot”, alleged to be an old Yiddish proverb.

village idiot (plural village idiots)

1. A person widely known in their community for their stupidity and ignorant behaviour.
   • 1825, The Abduction; Or, the Adventures of Major Sarney: A Story of the Times of Charles the Second, volume II, Charles Knight, page 170:

     It is true that the Doocot was occasionally appropriated to other purposes than that of a tolbooth for the sorner, the drunken gipsy, the village idiot at the change of the moon, the swearing bluegown, and the contumacious birdnester on the sabbath; […]

   • 1930, Norman Lindsay, Redheap, Sydney, N.S.W.: Ure Smith, published 1965, →OCLC, page 85:

     "So kindly keep the vainglorious enumeration of your pots for the benefit of those village idiots who compose your particular set of boozing companions."

   • 2023 March 14, Charlie Nash, “How Jordan Peterson became the internet's village idiot”, in New Statesman‎:

     Then [Jordan] Peterson transformed; whether due to a well-documented health crisis, or due to his non-stop tweeting, he has, in recent years, unwittingly become a 21st-century village idiot.

Usually used in the singular with the definite article (“the village idiot”) or preceded by another definite determiner (“its”, “our”, ...).

• village bike