Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. (also pap) an affectionate name used by a woman to her husband, lover or pimp; occas. man-to-man (see cite 1945, 1978).

1895		J.E. Howard ‘I’m Looking For A Bully’ 🎵 Gaze into your Papa’s eyes and say to me Goo Goo.
1907		B. Fisher A. Mutt in Blackbeard Compilation (1977) 4: Don’t worry about it, Papa, I know it has been a lesson to you.
1926		Van Vechten Nigger Heaven 85: She’s just naturally full o’ pep and she bounces the papas off their rails.
1939		Bandanna Girls ‘Part Time Papa’ 🎵 See him on the corner, dressed up mighty fine / He’s not thinkin’ of you baby, he’s just countin’ off your time / He’s a part time papa, don’t mean nobody no good.
1944		C. Himes ‘Let Me at the Enemy’ in Coll. Stories (1990) 46: If you ever loved your everloving papa send me ten bucks.
1945		C. Himes If He Hollers 52: ‘That’s right,’ I said. ‘Try a fool’ They grinned. ‘You got it, Papa’ .
1949		Monteleone Criminal Sl. (rev. edn) 171: pap A whore monger.
a.1954		‘Mexicana Rose’ in D. Wepman et al. Life (1976) 43: I’m sorry, pretty papa, I could have made you rich.
1978		R. Charles Brother Ray 90: A record! Man, that was the ultimate! [...] Yes, we’ll cut a record, Mr. Lauderdale. Good God Almighty! Just show us the way, Papa.
1987		in Delacoste & Alexander Sex Work (1988) 78: Hey Mister Papa-san.
1990		L. Goodison Baby Mother and King of Swords 53: She always said the same thing when she came through the gate, ‘Papa, ah come’.

2. oneself.

1928		R. Fisher Walls Of Jericho 88: Boy, she’s got what it takes, and papa don’ mean maybe!
1957		C. Himes Imabelle 114: Come on, Baby, don’t give papa any trouble.
1965		C. Himes Rage in Harlem (1969) 116: [as 1957].
1971		B. Malamud Tenants (1972) 31: No siree, man. That stays with papa. I have my briefcase for that.

3. (US Und.) a Lincoln automobile.

1931		Irwin Amer. Tramp and Und. Sl. 141: Papa.–A Lincoln automobile, more or less the ‘old man’ of the American automobiles from the standpoint of size and cost.
1950		Goldin et al. DAUL 152/1: Papa. A Lincoln automobile.

4. a masculine lesbian.

1941		G. Legman ‘Lang. of Homosexuality’ Appendix VII in Henry Sex Variants.
1965		K. Worthy Homosexual Generation Ch. xvi: A Papa: Female homosexual who takes the man’s part exclusively.

5. an older homosexual man.

1953		T. Runyon In For Life 98: As so often happens [...] Papa had been untrue to her [i.e. a male prisoner].
1979		Maledicta III:2 232: Other names and words [are] papa (daddy, jocker, etc.).
1992		Bentley & Corbett Prison Sl. 59: Dad also Daddy A homosexual’s lover, who owns or controls him [...] (Archaic: papa).