Troll and trolling are slang terms used almost exclusively among

gay men Gay men are male homosexuals. Some bisexual men, bisexual and homoromantic men may dually identify as ''gay'' and a number of gay men also identify as ''queer''. Historic terminology for gay men has included ''Sexual inversion (sexology), in ...

to characterize gay,

bisexual Bisexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior toward both males and females. It may also be defined as the attraction to more than one gender, to people of both the same and different gender, or the attraction t ...

and questioning or

bi-curious Bi-curious (also bicurious) is a term for a person, usually someone who is a self-identified heterosexual, who is curious or open about engaging in sexual activity with a person whose sex differs from that of their usual sexual partners. The term ...

men who cruise or "wander about looking" for

sex Sex is the biological trait that determines whether a sexually reproducing organism produces male or female gametes. During sexual reproduction, a male and a female gamete fuse to form a zygote, which develops into an offspring that inheri ...

or potential sex partners or experiences "in a notably wanton manner and with lessened standards of what one will accept in a partner." The term can be used positively or negatively depending on the speaker, usage and intent and can describe the person or the activity. Although often referring to "an unattractive older gay man"Green, Jonatho
"The Big Book of Filth: 6500 Sex Slang Words and Phrases By Jonathon (INT) Green, 2002, pg. 244"
Retrieved on 2007-06-06. and although troll as a slur "is primarily a visual, not a behavioral" judgment,Atkins, Daw
"Looking Queer: Body Image and Identity in Lesbian, Bisexual, Gay, and Transgender Communities By Dawn Atkins, 1998, pg. 446"
Retrieved on 2007-06-06. the phrases can be used for anyone who is ''trolling'', regardless of the putative troll's age or perceived attractiveness.

Pejorative use

As a verb, "to troll" is not necessarily pejorative, with "trolling for sex" merely a synonym of '' cruising''. The same is not true of "troll" as a noun describing a person, usually an elderly or unattractive gay male (a "troll") aggressively seeking younger partners ("twinks" or "chickens"). This usage carries all of the negative connotations associated with "dirty old man" outside the gay community; editorialists in the gay press also occasionally cite this usage as evidence that a gay community which values youth and physical attraction is marginalising its elderly.

Origin and historical usage

Troll as

gay slang LGBTQ slang, LGBTQ speak, queer slang, or LGBTQIA slang is a set of English slang lexicon used predominantly among LGBTQ people. It has been used in various languages since the early 20th century as a means by which members of the LGBTQ communit ...

is amongst the

lexicon A lexicon (plural: lexicons, rarely lexica) is the vocabulary of a language or branch of knowledge (such as nautical or medical). In linguistics, a lexicon is a language's inventory of lexemes. The word ''lexicon'' derives from Greek word () ...

of the cant

Polari Polari () is a form of slang or Cant (language), cant historically used primarily in the United Kingdom by some actors, circus and fairground performers, professional wrestlers, merchant navy sailors, criminals and prostitutes, and particula ...

used in the gay subculture in Britain which has become more mainstream with transcontinental travel and

online In computer technology and telecommunications, online indicates a state of connectivity, and offline indicates a disconnected state. In modern terminology, this usually refers to an Internet connection, but (especially when expressed as "on lin ...

communication. There is still debate about how Polari originated but its origins can be traced back to at least the 19th century. The term ''troll'' may have become equated with cruising because a troll is a "creature of

Scandinavian folklore Nordic folklore is the folklore of Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Iceland and the Faroe Islands. It has common roots with, and has been under mutual influence with, folklore in England, Germany, the Low Countries, the Baltic countries, Finland and S� ...

depicted as a

devil A devil is the mythical personification of evil as it is conceived in various cultures and religious traditions. It is seen as the objectification of a hostile and destructive force. Jeffrey Burton Russell states that the different conce ...

ish

imp IMP or imp may refer to: * Imp, a fantasy creature Arts and entertainment Music * IMP (band) a Japanese boy band Fictional characters * Imp (She-Ra), a character in ''She-Ra: Princess of Power'' * Imp a character in '' Artemis Fowl: The L ...

who lives in dark places and 'patrols' in an endless search." "The word ''trolla'' in Swedish means ‘to charm or bewitch’."Baker, Pau
"Polari - The Lost Language of Gay Men By Paul Baker, 2002, pg. 47"
Retrieved on 2007-06-06. The linguist Paul Baker says, "As a Polari word, ''troll'' can mean ‘to walk effeminately’, or ‘to walk, seeking sex’." ''Trolling'' can be used almost interchangeably with ''cruising''.Coleman, Julie
"Love, Sex and Marriage: A Historical Thesaurus By Julie Coleman, 1999, pg. 292"
Retrieved on 2007-06-06. The word "troll" has remained unfamiliar even to many gay men in Britain, who have never heard, used, or needed to use the term. Regular customers in the same

gay bar A gay bar is a Bar (establishment), drinking establishment that caters to an exclusively or predominantly lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer (LGBTQ+) clientele; the term ''gay'' is used as a broadly inclusive concept for LGBTQ+ communi ...

might have different takes on the usage – one simply referring to cruising, another referring to a negative version of a troll as a someone who "will have your skin crawling in seconds with his lascivious looks and raunchy repartee,"Anderson, Dan
"Sex Tips for Gay Guys: Troll Dodging By Dan Anderson, 2002, pg. 44"
Retrieved on 2007-06-06. another meaning older gays who prefer to troll for younger men.Herbst, Philip H
"Wimmin, Wimps & Wallflowers: an encyclopaedic dictionary of gender and sexual orientation bias ... By Philip H. Herbst, 2001, pg. 50"
Retrieved on 2007-06-06.Downs, Ala
"The Velvet Rage: Overcoming the Pain of Growing Up Gay in a Straight Man's World By Alan Downs, 2006, pg. 94"
Retrieved on 2007-06-06. Variations on ''troll'' exist. Paul Baker asserts that ''trolley-dolly'' may be "derived perhaps from a combination of lalies and troll. A trolley-dolly (contemporary gay slang) is a gay flight attendant".Baker, Pau
"Polari - The Lost Language of Gay Men By Paul Baker, 2002, pg. 194"
Retrieved on 2007-06-06. "Trolling" is also a term used for generations among fishermen in boats, to describe the way they let a line with a hook and bait on the "fishing line" follow along behind the boat moving slowly, hoping that this slow baiting of the fish will result in a catch. In Gay sub-cultural slang usage would often be coded to seem as though the speaker was talking about "fishing behavior'" but the "gay slang" usage decodes the message to mean "cruising for sex" and luring the potential contacts atch The homosexual "cruising" could be called "trolling" to mean moving along slowly and letting potential contacts catches"have opportunity to "take the bait" i.e. connect for sex. It does also carry the implicit meaning of being a behavior done by older less desirable men seeking sex in public places, but younger people may use the term either to describe serious sexual hunting, or to make light of it, and by using the term "trolling" to put a humorous light on what is considered to be a somewhat socially questionable behavior. Report on the Life of the Male Homosexual in Great Britain by Gordon Westwood.

Etiquette

Depending on the culture the men are in, the setting, time of day (or evening), how comfortable they are about their sexuality and their intentions will all affect the trolling experience. Some men are still

coming out Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBTQ people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. This is often framed and debated as a privacy issue, ...

or even a

virgin Virginity is a social construct that denotes the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. As it is not an objective term with an operational definition, social definitions of what constitutes virginity, or the lack thereof ...

to same-sex experiences; some societies punish gays with prison, public humiliation and even death. So having the appearance of just walking through the area or using a restroom comes in handy until those there for sexual fulfillment can let their guard down as it becomes obvious everyone is there with like-minded goals. For regular areas or “troll haunts” that are frequented by a recurring group of trolls there is a general rule that "as in most gay male settings, the young, the muscular, and the unfamiliar are more sought."Leap, William
"Public Sex/Gay Space By William L. Leap, 1999, pg. 62"
Retrieved on 2007-06-06. A troll's intention will also influence actions and outcomes ranging from

casual sex Casual sex is sexual activity that takes place outside a romantic relationship and implies an absence of commitment, emotional attachment, or familiarity between sexual partners. Examples are sexual activity while casually dating, one-nig ...

in a more private area to

exhibitionism Exhibitionism is the act of exposing in a public or semi-public context one's intimate parts – for example, the breasts, genitals or buttocks. As used in psychology and psychiatry, it is substantially different. It refers to an uncontrolla ...

like masturbating to

group sex Group sex is sexual activity involving more than two people. Participants in group sex can be of any sexual orientation or gender. Any form of sexual activity can be adopted to involve more than two participants, but some forms have their own na ...

, fulfilling a

sexual fantasy A sexual fantasy, or erotic fantasy, is an Autoeroticism, autoerotic mental image or pattern of thought that stirs a person's Human sexuality, sexuality and can create or enhance sexual arousal. A sexual Fantasy (psychology), fantasy can be crea ...

or even the

voyeuristic Voyeurism is the Sexual attraction, sexual interest in or Human sexual activity, practice of watching other people engaged in intimate behaviors, such as undressing, Human sexual activity, sexual activity, or other actions of a private nature. ...

thrill of watching someone else have public sex. Some are looking to: perform

fellatio Fellatio (also known as fellation, and in slang as blowjob, BJ, giving head, or sucking off) is an oral sex act consisting of the stimulation of a human penis, penis by using the mouth. Oral stimulation of the scrotum may also be termed ''fellat ...

either directly or through a

glory hole A glory hole (also spelled gloryhole and glory-hole) is a hole in a wall or partition, often between public toilet cubicles, public shower cubicles or sex video arcade booths and lounges, for people to engage in sexual activity or to observe ...

, receive it, or switch roles; perform or receive

anal sex Anal sex or anal intercourse principally means the insertion and pelvic thrusting, thrusting of the Erection, erect human penis, penis into a person's Human anus, anus, or anus and rectum, for sexual pleasure.Sepages 270–271for anal sex inform ...

; participate in

or a

BDSM BDSM is a variety of often Eroticism, erotic practices or Sexual roleplay, roleplaying involving Bondage (BDSM), bondage, Discipline (BDSM), discipline, dominance and submission, sadomasochism, and other related interpersonal dynamics. Given ...

experience even including

gang bang A gang bang is a sexual activity in which one person is the central focus of the sexual activity of several people, usually more than three, sequentially or simultaneously. The term generally refers to a woman being the focus; one man with ...

s; or simply to watch others perform sex acts.De Vries, Brian and Herdt, Gilbert H
"Gay and Lesbian Aging: Research and Future Directions By B. (Brian) De Vries, Gilbert H. Herdt, 2004, pg. 94"
Retrieved on 2007-06-06. A regular public bathroom at a college, public library, shopping mall, train station or even a public park could be a higher risk trolling venue while more private venues like nightclubs, bars,Mann, William J

Retrieved on 2007-06-06. offices and even churches add to the sexual excitement for some escalating the experience with more taboo environments. For some potentially getting caught is almost better than the sex itself.

Legal concerns

Public sex is often illegal, but enforcement varies from lax and rarely enforced to the aggressive pursuit of

entrapment Entrapment is a practice in which a law enforcement agent or an agent of the state induces a person to commit a crime that the person would have otherwise been unlikely or unwilling to commit.''Sloane'' (1990) 49 A Crim R 270. See also agent prov ...

, even at disproportionate financial expense to the police force.Otton, Garry
" Cruising: A Private Inconvenience by Garry Otton, ScotsGay Magazine, January 1995"
Retrieved on 2007-05-18. Victims of other crimes, such as

mugging Mugging (sometimes called personal robbery or street robbery) is a form of robbery and street crime that occurs in public places, often urban areas at night. It involves a confrontation with a threat of violence. Muggers steal money or person ...

assault In the terminology of law, an assault is the act of causing physical harm or consent, unwanted physical contact to another person, or, in some legal definitions, the threat or attempt to do so. It is both a crime and a tort and, therefore, may ...

/ gay bashing, during cruising also see varying support from police in different regions, from supportive to dismissive and insulting. Cases of police brutality against gay men found cruising cause further distrust of law enforcement in the gay community, although it is used on the Internet often.

References

External links

A Sex Stop on the Way Home by Corey Kilgannon, New York Times, September 21, 2005Polari British gay slangCruising for Sex .com
, '' Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund''; also availabl
here.
Additionally published a
"Little Black Book: This one will keep you ''out'' of trouble"
in

PDF Portable document format (PDF), standardized as ISO 32000, is a file format developed by Adobe Inc., Adobe in 1992 to present documents, including text formatting and images, in a manner independent of application software, computer hardware, ...

format; also availabl
here.
An article that gives legal advice on

cruising for sex Cruising for sex or cruising is walking or driving about a locality, called a cruising ground, in search of a sex partner, usually of the anonymous, casual, one-time variety. Published: 11-14-2007 Published: 9-21-2005 Article from NYT about a ...

. Note that if one actually carries this article on one while cruising it could possibly be used as evidence of

intent An intention is a mental state in which a person commits themselves to a course of action. Having the plan to visit the zoo tomorrow is an example of an intention. The action plan is the ''content'' of the intention while the commitment is the '' ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Troll (Gay Slang) 19th-century neologisms Age-related stereotypes Gay slang Imps LGBTQ-related slurs Slang terms for men Trolls in popular culture Ugliness