Just now I was reading about the history of the neighborhood in London called Whitefriars. It seems the area had once been the object of a dispute involving jurisdiction. For a time it was officially exempt from the city's jurisdiction due to its having been the site of a monastery which provided sanctuary to criminals fleeing the law. As a result it tended to actively attract criminals and eventually became known for its general lawlessness. And the term "fence cully" came into being, to describe those who dealt in stolen goods there. I guess this became shortened to simply "fence" in modern parlance but kept its original meaning. This reminded me of the somewhat similar-sounding word "ponce", which in British slang means a person who arranges "dates" for prostitutes and lives off their earnings. Naturally it reminded me of the Korean counterpart, 포주 (pronounced "poju"). Then I tried to remember the American equivalent, but for the life of me I couldn't remember what it was. After a mental struggle I was about to look it up online, but then my mind's eye conjured up an image of a typical "hooker manager" in movies -- a man outfitted in an absurdly fancy suit, complete with hat and cane, a fur coat draped around his shoulders, posing in front of a big flashy sedan -- and suddenly the word "pimpmobile" came to me and I had it: "pimp".
Interesting how in all three languages the name of the profession starts with the "P" sound.
I guess I shouldn't forget "pander(er)" and "procurer" either.
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