Sigmund Freud
The Austrian neurologist who invented psychoanalysis and made the unconscious mainstream — even though most of his clinical claims have not aged well.
Origin
Freud (1856–1939) trained as a doctor in Vienna and developed psychoanalysis as a talking cure for what he called 'hysteria.' He proposed that the mind is structured around unconscious drives (id, ego, superego), that childhood sexuality shapes adult character (the Oedipus complex), and that slips of the tongue reveal hidden wishes. Modern clinical psychology has largely moved on from his specific theories; his cultural footprint, however, is enormous — every modern story about hidden motives, repression, or unresolved childhood owes him a royalty.
Modern usage
'Freudian slip' is a household phrase for any accidentally revealing mistake. 'Phallic symbol,' 'Oedipus complex,' 'penis envy,' 'projection' — all his coinages, now ordinary English. 'A cigar is just a cigar' (the apology against over-interpretation) is the one line everyone attributes to him; it is not certain he ever said it.
In the wild
She called him by her ex's name — a real Freudian slip.— common usage
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