Hokey-Pokey
/ˌhoʊ.ki ˈpoʊ.ki/noun
A playful dance involving coordinated movements, or a British term for ice cream and similar frozen sweets.
Did you know?Its origin is uncertain: proposed sources include nonsense words used by street sellers, “hocus-pocus,” and the ritual-sounding Latin phrase hoc est corpus, though no single explanation is proven.
Etymological Timeline
Early Modern period
English
hocus-pocus
“A magician’s or conjurer’s formula, later meaning deceptive trickery; often proposed as one influence on hokey-pokey”
19th Century
English
hokey-pokey
“A name associated with street vendors’ cries, confectionery, or ice cream; the precise origin remains disputed”
Late 19th Century
English
hokey-pokey
“A term for a sweet or frozen confection, especially in British and Australian usage”
Early 20th Century
English
hokey-pokey
“A playful dance or song involving repeated movements”
Modern English
English
hokey-pokey
“A participatory dance, and regionally a name for ice cream or honeycomb toffee”
Explore more surprising origins