Origins of Expression: Bought the Farm!
We all likely know this expression unless maybe it's not popular on other ends of the globe.
"bought the farm" simply means to have died.
This expression has a quite interesting history since it's quite new and seams to have started in the 1950s. In the grand scheme of expressions this is pretty new. I would have thought that this would mean it has a clear history but this one is actually pretty muddy.
"Bought it" or 'Buy it" has actually meant 'to die' since the 1800s but there is still controversy how 'the farm' got added to all this.
One theory makes the connection that a farm is a pieces of land and so is your funeral plot and somehow because of this the expression took hold.
The next theory is about fighter pilots or military members. It claims that they often talked about a more peaceful life when they could be simple farmers and not have to deal with war. Thus this idea of being on a farm became idealize and heavenly, so when you died you would have bought your way to enjoy heaven on your farm.
The next theory tells the story of fighter planes crashing into peoples farms and houses. The farm owners would then sue to government for the damages and be awarded enough money to buy the farm.
The last theory is literally about buying a farm with your life. They said that why a solider would die, their family would receive a pension or severance cheque that would be used to pay off the mortgage on the family farm.
This last one is actually the origin I had previously known of and falsely assumed to be the actual origin.
I find it so interesting how this expression is quite new but still no one is able to pinpoint a single source of this expression.
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Interesting. Not one we hear frequently in Australia, except in US TV/movies.
"Kicked the bucket" is popular here, which is where the Bucket List came from.
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Interesting. I would have thought it might have meant once a farmer finally dies he's made enough money to buy the farm. I've never heard that expression before either.
Interesting......
I have heard the term, but, I wouldn't be able to tell you if I had read it or heard the words spoken, but probably the latter.
It sounds like something they would use during the war when a soldier dies... because now there would be enough money to buy a farm. Indeed.
Good question. I have often heard the expression and assumed that it was related to life insurance. The farmer died and was now actually able to pay off the land. Similar to the expression "being worth more dead than alive."
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