hocus pocus - Wordsmith.org

You are not logged in. [Log In] Wordsmith.org » Forums » General Topics » Q&A about words » hocus pocus

Topic Options

#1045 - 03/31/00 03:19 PM hocus pocus
rhinocita stranger Registered: 03/31/00 Posts: 2 Loc: CA	A history teacher of dubious reputation once told me that "hocus pocus" comes out of the medieval Catholic church, and originated as a corruption of the phrase "Hoc est meum Corpus" ("This is my body") by illiterate priests who couldn't remember the few words of Latin they'd been taught. Anyone have any feedback on that?
Top

#1046 - 04/03/00 01:44 AM Re: hocus pocus
Keith stranger Registered: 04/03/00 Posts: 1 Loc: CA	Hocus Pocus does indeed, seem to be from a faux Latin, but of far more recent origin. Both the OED and my 1919 websters agree on a 17th century origin, associated with a juggler, perhaps called Hocus Pocus, who used a fake latin chant to obscure what he was doing and confuse the audience.
Top

Previous Topic

Index

Next Topic

Moderator: Jackie

Forum Stats

8423 Members
16 Forums
13686 Topics
209751 Posts

Max Online: 3341 @ 12/09/11 02:15 PM

Newest Members

teepee, smoothcriminal86, janbra, junebug, Stephen A
8423 Registered Users

Top Posters (30 Days)

LukeJavan8	87
jenny jenny	66
wofahulicodoc	53
endymion6	45
BranShea	35
Rhubarb Commando	35
Buffalo Shrdlu	19
zmjezhd	16
Jackie	15
Faldage	14

May
Su	M	Tu	W	Th	F	Sa
			1	2	3	4
5	6	7	8	9	10	11
12	13	14	15	16	17	18
19	20	21	22	23	24	25
26	27	28	29	30	31

Disclaimer: Wordsmith.org is not responsible for views expressed on this site. Use of this forum is at your own risk and liability - you agree to hold Wordsmith.org and its associates harmless as a condition of using it.


	Wordsmith Talk		About Us \| What's New \| Search \| Site Map \| Contact Us

Wordsmith Talk