The Origin of the Slang Term “Penis” for Prisoners in 1940s Germany
During the 1940s in Nazi Germany, political dissidents, criminals, and other undesirables were often sent to overcrowded prisons and concentration camps. Among the guards and some of the population, a crude and dehumanizing slang term emerged—Schwanz (German for “tail” or slang for “penis”)—to refer to prisoners.
The origin of this term is believed to have stemmed from prison hierarchy and abuse. Inmates were often stripped naked upon arrival, a humiliating process meant to break their spirit. Guards would mockingly refer to prisoners collectively as Schwänze, suggesting that, in their powerless state, they were reduced to nothing more than their most basic physical form.
Another theory links the term to military jargon. The German army had a saying, “Der Schwanz des Heeres” (The tail of the army), used to describe logistical units that followed behind combat troops. As prisoners were often forced into labor camps, working in support roles behind the front lines, the phrase may have evolved into a crude insult, equating prisoners with the disposable, unwanted “tail” of society.
By the war’s end, the term had faded, as surviving prisoners and new leadership sought to erase the degrading language of the Nazi era. However, remnants of such slang occasionally appeared in post-war German prison culture, though with much-diminished usage and significance.