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Before we could make a bad joke about "sour" facial expressions, we turned to the Yahoo! Search box for an answer. As it turns out, the term "limey" originally applied to British sailors. In the 17th and 18th centuries, sailors suffered terribly from scurvy, a condition caused by a lack of vitamin C. Vitamin C comes mainly from fresh fruits and vegetables, but these foods aren't exactly easy to come by when you're at sea for months at a time. So the Royal Navy prescribed lime juice for all sailors to help
ward off scurvy -- hence the appellation "limeys." As often happens, the term eventually lost its original context and was applied to all British, whether sailors or landlubbers. As to whether or not it's an insult to be called a "limey", well, that all depends on whom you ask.
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