Thread: real newb question - 'cut throat' razor?

Heya Gents,

Here's a newb question for ya:

Here and there I've heard a straight described as a 'cut throat' razor. Am I correct in assuming this is just a slang term for a straight in general and that it doesn't actually reference a particular type/style of straight?

That's it.

Not to say that somewhere, someone, at sometime, didn't use the term as part of a product name.

Hi,

It probably depends on which country you are in. In the UK, I think they mainly used to be referred to as cutthroats, in the USA as straight razors.
I like the French term Coupe-chou (cabbage cutter).

Other terms you may hear for straight razors are "Open Razors" and "Folding Razors". I am sure there are more........

Have fun,

Lynn

I've always called them cut-throats, but then again I'm from the U.K. I only call them straights on here and other US based forums so as not to confuse anyone. To me they are still cut-throats (hence my avatar, Cut-Throat Jake from Captain Pugwash)
BTW, the cabbage-cutter French thing, I thought it was a google translation mistake while looking at ebay.fr pages lol. Maybe it came from the time of the guillotine - cabbage heads etc.?

I think the name "cut-throat" also referrs to the fact that they were actually used by criminals to cut peoples' throats.

Originally Posted by CForrest

I think the name "cut-throat" also referrs to the fact that they were actually used by criminals to cut peoples' throats.

In Fleet Street, that's in London Town
When King Charlie wore the crown,
There lived a man of great renown
'Twas Sweeney Todd the Barber.

One shave from him and you'd want no more,
You'd feel his razor sharp,
Then tumble, wallop!, through the floor
And wake up playing a harp, and singing . . .

I do think someone used the name Cut Throat as a brand.

Originally Posted by majurey

In Fleet Street, that's in London Town
When King Charlie wore the crown,
There lived a man of great renown
'Twas Sweeney Todd the Barber.

One shave from him and you'd want no more,
You'd feel his razor sharp,
Then tumble, wallop!, through the floor
And wake up playing a harp, and singing . . .

Since Canada is part of the commonwealth, I'm more familiar with the term "cut throat" (lots of ex-pats live here), and wondered if it was an English slang born out of the "Sweeney Todd" story? Should I take your quoting of this poem to be the case? That it was indeed called a "cut throat" because of Sweeney Todd? Or is the term "pre Sweeney Todd"?

I think its more likely that the term originated from those sort of violent practices in general, rather than from a single person, although of course Sweeney Todd is the most infamous (and historical). But open/straight/folding razors were in use long before Sweeney Todd so I suspect they had been used to slit throats before!

According to Partridge's Dictionary of Slang, the term is dated at around C19-20, which means it's a relatively recent term. A dictionary of slang and ... - Google Books

There have been razors since the Iron Age
so I reckon the occasional use of razor to deliberately injure someone date back to then. And it still happens today BBC NEWS | UK | England | West Yorkshire | Body 'lay undiscovered on ward'