mec

This term appeared in the 19th century. According to one hypothesis, it would come from the old term meg (apocope of mégot), which formerly designated smokers. It is also the acronym of mis en cause (mec), an expression present on the walls of police stations in France to indicate the room where the persons under investigation are installed before being heard. But mec is attested as early as 1848 in the sense of 'individual' and in 1870 in the sense of 'pimp'. Henriette Walter's hypothesis (le français dans tous les sens) remains the most plausible: mec is the abbreviation of maquereau in its ancient pronunciation /mɛk.ʁo/ and the meaning having evolved, it is mac which took over to designate a pimp. It can also be noted that Honoré de Balzac gives 'meg' as a synonym for 'god' in Parisian slang, in Splendeurs et misères des courtisanes.