Mud Duck

Mud duck is a lesser-known slang expression, used for insulting women, mocking their aesthetic appearance, similar to the phrase Swamp Donkey, while the titular affront is also well known in the states of Wisconsin, Iowa and North Dakota as a reference to residents of Minnesota.

In its former use, the phrase is a reference to the story of the Ugly Duckling, with the mud part referring to the lots of makeup, to ease the burden on the eyes, while in the latter use of the expression, “Mud duck” is a play on the Minnesota moniker, the Land of Ten Thousand Lakes.

While the origins of the slang use of “Mud duck” in either case is shrouded in mystery, the first documented case of the phrase can be found in the 1883 Proceedings of the Newport Natural History Society, which mentions “Mud duck” as an alternative name for the ring-necked duck.

An overlap may be observed, as the same species of duck frequents the Great Lakes region for breeding.

An early mention of “Mud duck” as a slang phrase can be found in the 1985 Dictionary of American English, by Frederic G. Cassidy.

Thanks to the introduction of the internet, “Mud duck” had the opportunity to spread across the globe, especially as an insult to women, endorsed by countless Incels.

It was first defined on Urban Dictionary on December 9^th, 2002, with several entries following in the subsequent years.

Throughout the 2000’s and the 2010’s, “Mud duck” remained an underdog insult in cyberbullying, with a cryptic meaning to those, who are not versed in the Deep Magic.

• Urbandictionary.com – mudduck
• Idioms.thefreedictionary.com – Mud duck – Idioms by The Free Dictionary
• Waywordradio.org – Mud Ducks