Maternal insult

A maternal insult (also referred to as a "yo mama" joke) is a reference to a person's mother. This is through the use of phrases such as "your mother" or other variations, often used to insult the target by way of their mother.  "Your mother" can be combined with most types of insults, although suggestions of promiscuity are common. One of the purposes of these insults is to incite violence. Slang variants such as "yo mama", "yo momma", "ur mom", "yer ma", "ya mum", "your mum", "ya mudda" or "your mom" are sometimes used, depending on the local dialect. 

Historic examples
In the Bible, King Joram is greeted by the rebel Jehu with an angry expression about Joram's mother:

When Joram saw Jehu, he said, "Is it peace, Jehu?"
And he answered, "What peace, so long as the harlotries of your mother Jezebel and her witchcrafts are so many?"

William Shakespeare used such a device in Act I Scene 1 of Timon of Athens:
Painter: "Y'are a dog."
Apemantus: "Thy mother's of my generation. What's she, if I be a dog?"

(In this example, the implication is that the mother is a "bitch".)

The world's oldest yo momma joke was written about 1,500 BC. It loses much in the translation but was found in Iraq on an ancient tablet:

'' “...of your mother is by the one who has intercourse with her. What/who is it?

(No answer)”

While it cannot be completely deciphered, it is clear some comment is being made about somebody's mother.

 Related pages 
Insult

 References 

 Other websites 
Yo Momma  - MTV television show involving the mother-insult style of insult comedy]

Category:Slang
Category:Cultural anthropology
Category:Humor