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Discussion Groups / English Usage / November 2006BrE: What ho!
Hello: The only definition I was able to cull for "What ho!" is "an exclamation of calling." Is there more significance to it? ----- Yes, Jacky was past her prime, whatever that may have been. ... "What ho!" said Leonard, greeting the apparition with much spirit, and helping it off with the boa. [a boa of feathers] Jacky, in husky tones, replied, "What ho!" E. M. Foster, Howard's End, p. 60 ------ Thanks. Marius Hancu >Hello: > >The only definition I was able to cull for "What ho!" is "an >exclamation of calling." > >Is there more significance to it? No, not in its basic form. Any greeting can be given special significance by intonation. "What ho!" is a somewhat dated phrase. Think of it as a cheery version of "Hi!". >----- >Yes, Jacky was past her prime, whatever that may have been. ... [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] >Thanks. >Marius Hancu  SignaturePeter Duncanson, UK (in alt.usage.english) > "What ho!" is a somewhat dated phrase. Think of it as a cheery > version of "Hi!". Thank you. Marius Hancu >> "What ho!" is a somewhat dated phrase. Think of it as a cheery >> version of "Hi!". It may also help if you think of Bertie Wooster saying it. It was a "silly-a.s-about-town" expression. It's still in occasional use today - though very much in a deliberate echo of that era. Regards Jonathan > >> "What ho!" is a somewhat dated phrase. Think of it as a cheery > >> version of "Hi!". [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > It's still in occasional use today - though very much in a deliberate > echo of that era. I use it myself every now and then in that way, largely because it rhymes with my nickname for my son. But in some places it survives naturally in the déclassé form "Worro!" (I'm not sure where, but perhaps Liverpool?) Cf. "Wotcher!" from "What cheer?" SignatureMike. >I use it myself every now and then in that way, largely because it >rhymes with my nickname for my son. But in some places it survives >naturally in the déclassé form "Worro!" (I'm not sure where, but >perhaps Liverpool?) Cf. "Wotcher!" from "What cheer?" On a completely different tack, cf. also North American street jargon "What's up?" and "What's happening?". The latter is an almost exact equivalent of the traditional Kiswahili greeting, "habari gani?"-- by happenstance or not I cannot say. SignatureMW >>>>"What ho!" is a somewhat dated phrase. Think of it as a cheery >>>>version of "Hi!". [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > naturally in the déclassé form "Worro!" (I'm not sure where, but > perhaps Liverpool?) Cf. "Wotcher!" from "What cheer?" I'm dubious about that last one. I've always assumed "Wotcher" was short for "What'yer doing?" SignatureRob Bannister > I'm dubious about that last one. I've always assumed "Wotcher" was short > for "What'yer doing?" OED2's entry for "Wotcher, int.:" Colloq. corruption of 'what cheer?' (cheer n. 3b), a familiar greeting. 1894 A. Chevalier Humorous Songs 4 'Wot cher!' all the neighbours cried, 'Who're yer goin' to meet, Bill?' 1899 North-China Herald 13 Nov. 962/3 (Advt.), 'Wot Cher, Mate?' may be a rough form of salutation. 1928 Granta 2 Nov. 71 (caption) Wotcher! 1954 J. Masters Bhowani Junction xxxii. 279 Howland waved violently to Victoria+and shouted, 'Wotcher, Vicky!' 1977 'J. Gash' Judas Pair iii. 38 'Watcha, Lovejoy.' 'Come in, Tinker.' 1980 'J. Gash' Spend Game xvi. 162 'Hello, Lovejoy.' 'Wotcher, love.' (PS -- _What Cheer_ is the title of one of my favorite books, being light verse compiled by David McCord.) Aloha ~~~ Ozzie Maland ~~~ San Diego >>I'm dubious about that last one. I've always assumed "Wotcher" was short >>for "What'yer doing?" [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > Colloq. corruption of 'what cheer?' (cheer n. 3b), a familiar > greeting. The quotations fail to convince me of the origin. I sometimes think lexicologists make up etymologies. SignatureRob Bannister > The quotations fail to convince me of the origin. I sometimes think > lexicologists make up etymologies. They certainly like a spectacular closure to their arguments:-) Marius Hancu >>>I'm dubious about that last one. I've always assumed "Wotcher" was >>>short for "What'yer doing?" >> OED2's entry for "Wotcher, int.:" >> Colloq. corruption of 'what cheer?' (cheer n. 3b), a familiar >> greeting. > > The quotations fail to convince me of the origin. I sometimes think > lexicologists make up etymologies. Because "wotcher" is so late that you feel they're probably unrelated? They cite "What cheer?" back to ca. 1440, glossing it as literally "What is your state or mood?" and listing it in with "be of good cheer". "Cheer" itself in this sense is cited to before 1300. SignatureEvan Kirshenbaum +------------------------------------ HP Laboratories |"The Dynamics of Interbeing and 1501 Page Mill Road, 1U, MS 1141 |Monological Imperatives in 'Dick Palo Alto, CA 94304 |and Jane' : A Study in Psychic |Transrelational Modes." kirshenbaum@hpl.hp.com | Calvin (650)857-7572 http://www.kirshenbaum.net/ >>>>I'm dubious about that last one. I've always assumed "Wotcher" was >>>>short for "What'yer doing?" [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > "What is your state or mood?" and listing it in with "be of good > cheer". "Cheer" itself in this sense is cited to before 1300. The time gap is remarkable. I am not trying to deny "cheer" or more modern "cheers" as greetings, and the "what cheer" sounds quite convincing, but "Wotcher" has more uses than just "How are you": eg Wotcha doing? Wotcha do that for? (did elided) Wotcha think of that? So it seems natural to me that it would also be short for "What are you up to?" (cf How's tricks?). SignatureRob Bannister >>> "What ho!" is a somewhat dated phrase. Think of it as a cheery >>> version of "Hi!". [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > It's still in occasional use today - though very much in a deliberate > echo of that era. Long pedigree. In OED it has the nap hand of cites - Chaucer, Spenser, Marlowe, Shakespeare and Scott. Fortunately the Leftpondians found a way to have fun with it: "1937 in Amer. Speech (1938) XIII. 239/1 At the time of their installation the elevators at the Ritz Carlton were considered the What-ho-iest in town. " I suspect the "silly a.s" usage was a deliberate mockery of Shakespeare. I think Bertie also said stuff like "What cheer" and "Mine host". SignatureJohn Dean Oxford >"What ho!" is a somewhat dated phrase. Think of it as a cheery >version of "Hi!". Yes, but in contemporary rap music it might be used as a question: "What ho?" "Yo mama" SignatureMW Melbourne, Australia |
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