Old English tord "piece of excrement," from Proto-Germanic *turdam (cognates: Middle Dutch torde "piece of excrement," Old Norse tord-yfill, Dutch tort-wevel "dung beetle"), from PIE *drtom, past participle of root *der- (2) "to split, peel, flay, tear;" thus "that which is separated ("torn off") from the body" (compare shit, v. from root meaning "to split;" Greek skatos from root meaning "to cut off; see scatology). As a type of something worthless and vile, it is attested from mid-13c. Meaning "despicable person" is recorded from mid-15c.