Theft is usually frowned upon, but linguists will tell you that much of the English language was stolen — or borrowed — from other languages. And a student of the idioms and aphorisms that contribute to the charm of English will recognize the classic proverb “rob Peter to pay Paul.” We’ve already explored who Roger (“Roger that”) and Pete (“for Pete’s sake”) are in previous editions, and now it’s time to get to know Peter and Paul.
The usage of this idiom is pretty straightforward: It means to take something away from one person (Peter) in order to pay another (Paul), leaving the first person at a disadvantage. In another usage, it might mean to pay off one debt by taking on another. But why are the names of Peter and Paul used, rather than Wendy and Wanda, Michael and Thomas, Laverne and Shirley, or any other pleasing pairing of names?
Those who are familiar with the Bible and Christian history will have likely drawn the connection between the idiom and the biblical characters of St. Peter and Paul the Apostle, but still, the exact origins of the phrase are murky. The earliest printed appearance shows up in a 15th-century morality treatise written in Middle English: “To robbe Petyr & geve it Poule, it were non almesse but gret synne.” An overtly literal use of the phrase appeared in modern English in a 1661 document about the reformation of the Church of England — the context was discussing paying reparations to the church of St. Paul.
Those are some of the earliest examples of the phrase, but researcher Gary Martin, founder of the site Phrase Finder,suggests there are likely two reasons for why the names Peter and Paul were chosen and why the idiom has stuck around: First, nearly everyone living in the English world in the 15th century was of Christian faith, and thus familiar with the names Peter and Paul. Secondly, people love speaking in alliteration, and once that phrasing came into use, it was memorable, and the warning against “robbing Peter to pay Paul” remained in the lexicon.
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