Origin of this saying...

[Chelle-Fox]

*Trust me I'm a Dutchman*. Can anyone shed some light on the origin of this saying?

[Quizmonster]

Normally "I'm a Dutchman" is applied in statements such as: "If Grimsby beat Manchester United next week, then I'm a Dutchman"...in other words, it's something that is so utterly improbable as to be virtually impossible. That is, a Dutchman is the last thing I am.

I can't say I've ever actually heard: "Trust me, I'm a Dutchman", but most English sayings involving the Dutch are unkind ones...'Dutch courage' is bravery that depends on being drunk...'going Dutch' is insisting that the woman pays for herself on a date and so on. My guess, therefore, is that your phrase means: "Don't believe a word I say!"

[woofgang]

I thought it was trust me I'm a doctor??? a dutch doctor or a doctor of the hard of hearing ;-))

[Chelle-Fox]

The reason I ask, is that someone said it to me the other day...I know that normally its the *I'm a Doctor* but...the point is...my partner is Dutch and so, I was wondering why the references to Dutchmen are made at all...I think you ahve answered that though Quizmonster LOL ;)

[gilf]

It goes back a few centurys where we had a few disagreements with the Dutch with regards to sailing and stuff, which even resulted in them sailing up the Medway river and setting light to loads of our ships. Therefore the Dutch were always not to be trusted.