Uncle.co.uk
The term 'uncle' has more than one meaning, even when used away from the context of the TV show, The Man From U.N.C.L.E., which was a clever acronym for the United Network Command for Law Enforcement. Dictionaries define the term 'uncle' as “The brother of your mother or father, or the husband of your aunt,” but its usage extends to several other meanings too. The second most generally used meaning is that of a close family male friend, applying almost exclusively in reference to their relationship with a child or children of that family. It is also used by single mothers introducing a new prospective male partner to their children.
Moving away from close family relationships, the term 'uncle' may also be given to a revered older male figure within a community such as a village, where all the local children call him by this name. Further away from families and small communities is the figure of Uncle Sam, who is the stern figure depicted watching over the U.S.A. He is considered to be the personification of America and in particular of the American government. 'Uncle Sam' first appeared in common useage from the time of the 1812 war, but the first use in printed form was in an 1816 book, 'The Adventures Of Uncle Sam In Search After His Lost Honour' by Frederick Augustus Fidfaddy, Esq. The now famous image of the recruitment poster, created by James Montgomery Flagg, where Uncle Sam was shown on demanding that American citizens joined the army and fought in the war, came into wide use in 1917 and was based on the English Lord Kitchener poster of some three years earlier. The same image was also used in the second world war.
There are other uses for the term 'uncle' too. “...and Bob's your uncle,” a phrase commonly used in the UK, means “and that's all there is to it”, or “and there you are,” indicating that it's a simple task easily completed, that there is nothing to it. Allegedly, this phrase can be traced back to a soldier, Lord Frederick Roberts (1832-1914) and relates to the fact that his men felt safe and secure under his command. Another English expression is “Uncle Tom Cobley and all,” indicating a great many people being spoken of. Less pleasant uses include that of 'Uncle Tom,' as in the famous book, 'Uncle Tom's Cabin' dating from the time of slavery in the U.S when the book was written as an indictment on the slave trade and the efforts of one black man to stand up for his fellow kith and kin. However, the term “Uncle Tom,” later still abbreviated to simply “Tom,” changed from meaning a martyr to the cause of fellow black Americans and degradingly came to mean a black person who had sold out to the white people. It is still used today, often in the context of describing a someone as a tale-teller.
In slang, 'Uncle' can also denote a pawn-broker, and in the playground it is called out to denote surrender between children playing games of typical child-torment.
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