world's oldest profession

• oldest profession in the world, oldest profession

First appears c. 1888,^[1] coined by Rudyard Kipling as most ancient profession in the world.^[2] Alternative forms appeared in the early 1900s, present form popular by the 1930s.^[2] Similar terms with various senses (not necessarily prostitution) exist in other languages.

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the world's oldest profession (plural not attested)

1. (euphemistic) Prostitution.
   • 1888, Rudyard Kipling, “On the City Wall”, in In Black and White:

     Lalun is a member of the most ancient profession in the world.

• Some local terms have slight variants while others are strict translations with varying degrees of usage.