On Wednesday, December 08, 2004, at 02:29PM, Jerry Friedman <jerry_friedman at yahoo.com> wrote: .stanford.edu> wrote: > >> >> >> On Tue, 7 Dec 2004, Johne Cook wrote: >> >> > And there you have it. What swag would you like to see? > >I'm not familiar with this use of "swag". Is it a fan thing? >(The Internet is my only contact with fandom.) >From urbandictionary.com: ========================= 1. swag Promotional merchandise for a band, record label, or other entity in the music business, usually distributed at concerts. May include t-shirts, stickers, promo CDs, posters, etc. Often free, but not necessarily; a t-shirt or record purchased at a concert might still be considered swag, especially if it is a design or release that is not readily available in the mass market. Many independent record labels throw in a handful of free swag when they ship out mail-order packages (stickers, sampler CDs, etc). The chief difference between swag and regular merchandise is that its purpose is not to make a profit, but to promote the band/label, and reward its supporters by giving them something cool and unique. I picked up some great swag at the concert last night. ========================== For all entries: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=swag&r=f Someone below attributes this term to an acronym "Stuff We All Get", but I don't think that's accurate. Actually, I think that it is an older term meaning "stolen goods" as in this entry at dict.org: =========================== >From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) : Swag \Swag\, n. 1. A swaying, irregular motion. 2. A burglar's or thief's booty; boodle. [Cant or Slang] --Charles Reade. ============================ Usage of the term as first defined above has been expanded by the online community to include websites. Tongue-in-Cheek Disclaimer: I'm not a search engine, nor do I play one on TV. Usage of resources like urbandictionary.com, dict.org and google.com is highly recommended to everyone. Matthew Klahn