Snug as a bug in a rug

[Lacey2709]

Where did snug as a bug in a rug originate from?

[Clanad]

I don't know if this is the origin of the phrase, however, the Stratford Jubilee,' a play of 1769, carries this line: 'If she (a rich widow) has the mopus's, I'll have her as snug as a bug in a rug.' Mopus is a lost word meaning money." From "The Dictionary of Cliches" by James Rogers.

Further,  When William Shakespeare was alive (around the 1600s) instead of saying snug as a bug in a rug, people would say "snug as pigs in pease-straw".

[Mommavic]

I wouldn't mind knowing this one since I was brought up with the phrase and am now saying it to my son.

[Foxglove]

It's connected with bed bugs which were rampant until about half way through the 20th century. It denotes a nice warm place to snuggle into as that's the kind of place where bed bugs would flourish. Think also of the phrase "Night night, sleep tight and watch the (bed) bugs don't bite." By the way "sleep tight" refers to the bed: the matress would lie on slats made of some kind of material which would sag unless tightened regularly.