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The term “jailbird” can refer to current or recently released inmates, with origins in medieval England where convicts were placed in cages. Inmates may have jobs or spend time in a courtyard, and the term “bird” can also refer to British slang for a prison sentence. Early American slang included a reference to African slaves as “blackbirds.” Today, “jailbird” is used to describe those repeatedly jailed for lesser charges.
A current inmate of a jail or jail cell is commonly called a jailbird, although the term can also be applied to those lucky souls who have recently been released from those correctional facilities. A convict who spies on his cellmates may even earn the title of canary or wood pigeon, since he has chosen to “sing” to the authorities.
The origin of the word jailbird can be traced back at least to medieval England, where convicts were often placed in iron cages suspended several feet above the ground. These cages were usually visible to passers-by, who were routinely inspired to refer to the caged occupants as convicts, as they resembled real pet birds kept in real bird cages.
While the hanging cages of prison may have given way to ground-level cells with improved sanitation and bedding, the idea of viewing a convicted felon as a caged convict continues to this day. Some released prisoners still refer to themselves as ex-convicts, which is often used as the more acceptable euphemism for “ex-convict” or “convict”.
However, the average day of an incarcerated prisoner is not entirely spent behind bars. An inmate may be assigned to a particular job within the prison walls or spend part of his day in a guarded courtyard with other inmates. Meals are generally eaten outside a prison cell, unless the prisoner is punished in solitary confinement or is in remand.
The “bird” in jailbird can also be related to British slang for a prison sentence, as in the sense of “doing the bird” for a crime. This particular usage may have fallen out of favor in modern times, but 18th- and 19th-century Britons certainly knew what it meant to “make a bird.”
Early American slang also included a reference to African slaves as “blackbirds,” which could just as easily be a reference to their captive status as much as the color of their skin.
Today, the term jailbird is considered more of a casual description of a person repeatedly jailed on lesser charges such as public drunkenness or petty theft.
