Green’s Dictionary of Slang

(orig. US) a euph. for Christ! excl.; usu. in mild oaths.

1681		Otway Soldier’s Fortune I i: O crimine! who’s yonder?
1693		Southerne Maid’s Last Prayer in Plays II (1774) III. i: O crimine! I see I must be plain with thee: but did you observe how civil he was to me?
1700		Farquhar Constant Couple IV ii: Murdered my brother! O crimini!
1789		J. O’Keeffe Highland Reel 43: Boys, when I play, cry oh, crimini.
1816		W. Scott Antiquary in Waverley (1855) II 93: A monument of a knight-templar on each side of a Grecian porch, and a Madonna on the top of it! – O crimini!
1827		Egan Anecdotes of the Turf, the Chase etc. 290: Oh! crimini, did he not cotch it?
1841		Comic Almanack Sept. 280: Oh! lawk; oh! dear; oh! crimeny me; what a downright sin and a shame.
1843		H.C. Lewis Swamp Doctor’s Adventures in Hudson Humor of the Old Deep South (1936) 81–6: Ouch! criminy, but it hurts.
1848		Bell’s Life in Sydney 4 Nov. 2/5: ‘Oh, cri! my! oh! oh! blow it! no!’ cried James.
1848		Bartlett Dict. Americanisms 98: crimany. Interj. of sudden surprise. — Forby’s Vocabulary. Used in low language in the United States.
1850		W.C. Hall ‘Mike Hooter’s Bar Story’ Spirit of the Times 26 Jan. (N.Y.) 581: Jeemeny, criminy! – if you’d only bin whar I was!
1855		Fife Herald 15 Nov. 4/7: Oh! Cricky, Criminy! Ain’t I happy?
1857		Hereford Times 12 Sept. 8/1: ‘Ah! and there is a duck there as weighs forty pounds.’ ‘Jeminy Criminy!’ was the reply.
1863		John o’ Groat Jrnl 24 Sept. 3/2: We had hot potatoes! Oh, Jiminy Criminy! — weren’t they nice!
1867		G.W. Harris Sut Lovingood’s Yarns 248: Lordy criminy! how bad my toes wer itchin now.
1878		Aberdeen People’s Jrnl 29 June 3/5: O jiminy criminy. What a riminy piminy story of riminy.
1881		Burnley Exp. 24 Sept. 7/6: [He] slammed the stove door shut and said he hoped he might be essentially criminy jiminy tee-totally gol twisted to jude.
1883		Taunton Courier 15 Aug. 3/3: Jiminy Criminy, isn’t it cold!
1888		‘’Arry on St. Swithin’ in Punch 4 Aug. 49/1: As to cricket, oh, criminy crikey!
1894		S. Wales Echo 8 Dec. 4/1: ‘Did you ever see sich a lot. By Crimey, they might be bloomin’ dooks, they might’.
1899		H. Garland Boy Life on the Prairie 408: Criminy! that’s a deadner on us.
1900		Boy’s Own Paper 1 Dec. 137: Oh, crimmini!
1907		P. Fitzpatrick Jock of the Bushveld 299: Go-sh! – Da-ll! Cr-r-r-i-miny!
1907		D. Stewart Shadows of the Night in Illus. Police News 15 June 12/1: ‘Crimany — crikey! here’s a go!’’.
1913		J. London Valley of the Moon (1914) 356: I’ll put a hole through you, by criminy.
1913		Hays Free Press (KS) 2 Aug. 2/3: Wal, by crimus! pigs is what you shall have.
1924		P. Marks Plastic Age 34: ‘Criminy!’ he exclaimed as he wriggled down the aisle to a seat by Hugh, ‘I was sure worried.’.
1949		R. Park Poor Man’s Orange 239: ‘Criminy!’ Hughie dived into his plate and held up a leg dripping with gravy.
1969		P. Theroux Murder in Mount Holly (1999) 86: ‘Criminy sakes,’ said Miss Ball. ‘I can’t do it for the life of me.’.
1975		L. Rosten Dear ‘Herm’ 185: Criminy, Leo, you have to be kidding!
1978		T. O’Brien Going After Cacciato (1980) 245: Criminny! Think of something.
2000		F. Kellerman Stalker (2001) 84: Criminy!