15 replies to this topic

[johnny yuma]

Do other countries than Australia use this term as a noun and verb with regard to allegedly antisocial driving behaviour in dodgy cars?
In Australia I first heard the term in the 1966-68 era,and it seemed to spread from usage by Bill Tuckey and Marti Dunstan in Australian Hot Rod magazine and Sports Car World.The former was seen as catering to hoons,while the latter catered to the terribly pukka -sports car -upper middle class twits.
A University of Western Sydney researcher is interested in the "hoon" thing generally of late,and the meanings and derivations.I read somewhere a HOON had origins in The Oldest Profession where a hoon-boy ran messages for a pimp. Anyone have a theory,or know of earlier use of the term Hoon (early 60s,50s ?)to describe ratbag drivers in hot cars?

[Ray Bell]

You might direct the question straight to Tuckey...

He's in Melbourne, if you want a number you can probably get it through Chevron.

[Andrew Fellowes]

Originally posted by johnny yuma
Do other countries than Australia use this term as a noun and verb with regard to allegedly antisocial driving behaviour in dodgy cars?

When I came to Australia in 1967 from the UK it was a term that I had not heard before. It was one of several expressions that I had to ask for an explanation on. -a lot of the others are not repeatable here!

Andrew

[Hank the Deuce]

Wasn't it used in the vernacular of the Kings Cross streetwise, to describe pimps in the sixties and before?

At least Billy Thorpe used in in print thusly...

[David McKinney]

Originally posted by johnny yuma
Do other countries than Australia use this term as a noun and verb with regard to allegedly antisocial driving behaviour in dodgy cars?

Like many other Australian terms, it was used in New Zealand
Can't remember when I first heard it, but probably mid/late '60s
I wondered if it might have derived from 'hooligan'

[Ray Bell]

Not if Hank's got it right...

'Hooligans' are a long way removed from the business side of prostitution.

[David McKinney]

...but not from acting like a hooligan on the road

[Ray Bell]

Of course not...

But the word 'hoon' was supposedly linked to prostitution.

[David McKinney]

In Australia, perhaps
But not (AFAIK) in NZ
Which is why I didn't think of prostitutes at that time (at least, not in this context)

[NRoshier]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoon

[Doug Nye]

When we attended the briefing for the first of our ten Classic Adelaide Rallies back in 1997 we were much amused by the Prime Minister of South Australia not only declaring that we should confine our 'hooning' and 'larrikin' behaviour to the closed-road special stages, but further exhorting all fellow South Orstrylian competitors to do their damndest to prevent "any of these Victorian bastards here winning our Rally". 21st Century Australia now seems preciously hide-bound with bureaucracy and regulation and a million miles away from the self-reliant, dynamic and muscular society I recall from even the '80s...but you still just gotta love 'em.

Without any basis in knowledge, we merely presumed 'hoon' came from 'hound' - as in hurtling about the place untrained and unrestrained... I have known a lot of Aussies like that.

DCN

[jph]

So at least the Parlaimentary Secretary to the Treasury and Chief Whip in Her Majesty's Government is aptly named.

[johnny yuma]

Thanks for all your replies-reading them and their links leads me to the following ideas

1.HOON goes back maybe over 100 years as word for a pimp in Sydney at least.
2.Hoon didn't cross the Tasman to NZ until popularity of Australian car magazines and visitors took
it there in the 60s-never a pimp term there.
3.Hoon has the same sound as Hound IF you say hound with a Scot or Midlands (?) accent.Thus you would "set the hoonds" on people (release the hoonds) and an annoying local would be called a "hoond".
4.Question remains,who tagged hoon onto car drivers with attitude? Probably Sydney based writers,the Surry Hills/Chippendale area was publisher territory and also in the Red Light district.
5.JALOPNIK is a very amusing site from USA they fell in love with the word HOON a couple of years back and acknowledge its Australian source while running with it in the Hooning pages from anywhere.
6.HOOLIGAN according to the Concise Oxford came from the surname of a very badly behaved Irish family living in London in early 19th century.

[Ray Bell]

Originally posted by johnny yuma
.....6.HOOLIGAN according to the Concise Oxford came from the surname of a very badly behaved Irish family living in London in early 19th century.

And everyone knows how the Poms can leave letters and syllables out of words...

By George, you Rebel, I think you've got it!

[johnny yuma]

Just talking to a Devon born Pom at work-he recalled HOON being used in the Cockney parts of London in the 60s to refer to a general useless layabout type,but no pimp or car association.PERHAPS a shortening of older Yahoo term.But he also liked the hound theory.

[eldougo]

I have always been lead to believe it short for Hooligan.