Why do swear words in many languages have sexual connotations?
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most profanity is about disrespecting boundaries. sexual topics and bathroom stuff aren’t supposed to be discussed in polite company, so it’s natural that people wanting to get a point across, shock or insult people, etc. are going to forcefully break that taboo as a way of doing so.
likewise sacred topics aren’t supposed to be discussed lightly, “taking the lord’s name in vain” basically means talking about the sacred without the proper reverence. “profanity” basically means violating the sacred.
most languages have a mix of sexual, bathroom, and sacred swear words, along with slurs and such. some focus on some more than others. english has a mix, continental french tends to be more sexual/scatological (e.g. “merde” which is equivalent to “shit”), whereas canadian french profanity is very sacred-themed (“tabarnak,” means “tabernacle,” etc.)
it’s all about talking about things that society doesn’t think people should talk about
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