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Posted by on Dec 16, 2015 in TellMeWhy |

How Did Hockey Get Its Name?

How Did Hockey Get Its Name?

Hockey, perhaps the oldest of all games played with a ball and sticks, seems to have got its name from the Old French word “hoquet,” which meant a crook or a shepherd’s staff.

The curved, or “hooked” ends of the sticks used for hockey would indeed have resembled these staves. Another explanation is that the cork bungs that replaced wooden balls in the 18th century came from barrels containing “Hock” ale, also called “Hocky”.

When we speak of hockey, we are apt to think first of ice hockey. The earliest form of the sport, however, was played on a grassy field. When the game began to be played on ice, it became necessary to call it “ice” hockey to distinguish it from field hockey.

Once considered a man’s game, field hockey has become a very popular girls’ and women’s sport, in schools and clubs.

Content for this question contributed by Michael Thompson, resident of Lockport, Niagara County, New York, USA