Browse phrases beginning with:
[A][B][C][D][E][F][G][H][I][J][K][L][M][N][O][P][Q][R][S][T][U,V][W][X,Y,Z]
Your name is mud
Meaning
You are unpopular.
Origin
John
Wilkes Booth broke his leg while escaping after shooting Abraham Lincoln in 1865.
Booth was given medical help by Dr. Samuel Mudd, who didn't then know
about the assassination. Mudd was convicted of being Booth's
conspirator, although some historians argue that he was innocent of any murderous intent.
Actually, whether Mudd was innocent or not is of little consequence in regard to the origin of this phrase. It was in general circulation before Lincoln was assassinated. This comes from John Badcock's (a.k.a. 'J. Bee’) Slang - A dictionary of the turf etc., 1823:
"Mud - a stupid twaddling fellow. ‘And his name is mud!’ ejaculated upon the conclusion of a silly oration, or of a leader in the Courier."
The phrase appears to be one of the many that, when a news story arises, match the gist of the story and later become associated with it.