Fico
/ˈfiːkoʊ/noun
An obscene hand gesture made by placing the thumb between the index and middle fingers.
Did you know?The gesture was historically called the “fig sign” and was associated in Mediterranean cultures with sexual symbolism, fertility, and warding off the evil eye.
Etymological Timeline
Classical Latin
Latin
ficus
“Fig tree or fig fruit”
Late Latin
Latin
ficus
“Fig; the source of Romance forms for the word”
Medieval Italian
Italian
fico
“Fig”
16th Century
Italian
fare le fiche
“To make the fig gesture, a vulgar or insulting sign”
Late 16th Century
English
fico
“An obscene gesture, borrowed from Italian”
Modern English
English
fico
“A hand gesture formed by putting the thumb between the first two fingers”