We probably all have a little spam in at least one of our email inboxes--those unsolicted messages offering to boost our staminia or enhance various parts of our anatomies. But what does an offer from Tortoiseshell S. Factual for the "Cheapest AND The Best!!!!!" have in common with pork and ham in a can?
According to the OED, to "spam" is "To flood (a network, esp. the Internet, a newsgroup, or individuals) with a large number of unsolicited postings, or multiple copies of the same posting. Also intr.: to send large numbers of unsolicited messages or advertisements,"1and cites the earliest usage for the verb as 1991 (although it applied to programing and not internet communications at the time). Fortunately, page 3 of the introduction of Anti-Spam Measures: Analysis and Design provides us with a bit more background:
"The eytmology of the word "spam" is, usually, explained by using an old skit from Monty Python's Flying Circus comedy program...In the sketch in question, a restaurant serves all its food with lots of Spam, which is canned meat and an acroymn for 'Shoulder of Pork and Ham.' The waitress repeats the word several times in describing how much Spam is in dishes on the menu. When she does this, a group of Vikings in the corner start singing a chorus of "SPAM SPAM SPAM..." at increasing volunes in an attempt to drown out other conversations. As 'unsolicited buld e-mail' disturbs Internet communication likewise, it was termed "spam."2
The wikipedia article on "Spam (electronic)" has a few more examples and a more detailed history. You can also watch the orignal Monty Python skit on YouTube.
1 Spam, v. In the Oxford English Dictionary online. Retrieved December 5, 2008, from http://library.depaul.edu/CheckURL.aspx?address=http://dictionary.oed.com/entrance.dtl
2 Schryen, G. (2007). Anti-Spam Measures: Analysis and Design. Berlin: Springer.
Photo credit: Galore, Janet. spam. 2006. <http://www.flickr.com>
