Meaning
What does Frog march mean?
Frog march also known as perp-walk means when someone is forcefully pushed or marched forward taken by the arm from behind or the side.
Origin
What's the origin of Frog march?
The noun phrase “frog marched” first showed up in Britain at the end of the 19th century. This historical term was described by the Oxford English Dictionary as
“A method of moving a resistant person (such as a prisoner), in which he or she is lifted by the arms and legs and carried in a prone position with the face pointing towards the ground”
Spread & Usage
How did Frog march spread?
The first example of the term in print can be found in an 1871 issue of the Evening Standard in London and soon crossed the Atlantic and appeared in an 1874 issue of the Daily Evening Bulletin in San Francisco.
By 1930 the expression has evolved into a verbal phrase with its current meaning.
In 2002 former ambassador Joseph C. Wilson claimed, he wished to see columnist Robert Novak “frog-marching” after accusing Wilson’s wife to be an undercover CIA agent.
Americans seemed not to understand the term clearly so David Montgomery wrote an explanatory article on the term in The Washington Post.
Since then the use of the phrase has increased rapidly and can be found in articles and even on social media platforms such as Reddit and Twitter, mostly in political contexts.
