origin of word hootnanny

Subject: origin of word hootnanny
From:
Date: 12 Aug 97 - 11:27 PM

We're holding a hootnanny on Sunday August 17th and as I wrote up the posters I realized I wanted to explain where hootnanny comes from and I didn't know! Anybody out there know the origin of the term?

Subject: RE: origin of word hootnanny
From: Whippoorwill
Date: 13 Aug 97 - 10:08 AM

The story I heard (which may be as true now as it was then), was that it came from the old joke:

What do you get when you cross an owl with a billygoat?

From there it came to mean any wondrous or unusual thing, which, when you get right down to it, is what a hootenanny is. Are. Is. Whatever.

Subject: RE: origin of word hootnanny
From: Luke
Date: 13 Aug 97 - 12:21 PM

Simply put, the term HOOTENANNY is synonymous with FOLK SONG SINGING -- which covers a wide range of music and lyrics. FOLK SONGS are often defined as "SONGS OF THE PEOPLE, BY THE PEOPLE, and FOR THE PEOPLE!" Also, a social gathering or informal concert featuring folk singing and sometimes, dancing.

SOURCE: World's Favorite HOOTENANNY sing along songs - Ashley Publ. Inc. and the Dictionary.

Subject: RE: origin of word hootnanny
From: Peter Timmerman
Date: 14 Aug 97 - 09:05 AM

In his book, the Incomplete Folksinger, Pete Seeger describes how he and Woody Guthrie came upon the word when they were travelling in Seattle in the early 1940's. He says that it originally was a word like "wingding" or "whatchamacallit" -- as in, hand me that XXXXX. It had come to mean an informal gathering of people, sort of like a potluck supper. He and Guthrie took it back to New York and started labelling their weekend folk song get togethers "hootenannies" and the name stuck. Yours, Peter

Subject: RE: origin of word hootnanny
From: dick greenhaus
Date: 14 Aug 97 - 12:24 PM

Something like Ringo Starr's response when they asked what he called his hairdo--He said, "Arthur"

Subject: RE: origin of word hootnanny
From: Whip
Date: 14 Aug 97 - 02:50 PM

Dick, that reminds me of the story where the ant asked the grasshopper, "Did you know there's a drink named after you?"

The grasshopper replied, "They got a drink named Steve?"