Yahoo Was Invented by Jonathan Swift
A yahoo is a crude or boorish person. The word was coined for a race of brutish creatures in Gulliver's Travels.
A yahoo is a crude, boorish or violent person. Jonathan Swift invented the word in *Gulliver's Travels* in 1726 for a race of filthy human-like creatures ruled by intelligent horses called Houyhnhnms. The satire was aimed at humanity itself, and the name entered English as an insult within a few decades. A separate *yahoo* is an exclamation of delight, unrelated and simply imitative of a shout.
- A boorish person. *A bunch of yahoos.*
- An exclamation. *Yahoo!*
- Gulliver's Travels โ the source. *Swift's 1726 book.*
- Houyhnhnm โ the rational horses. *Houyhnhnms.*
- Coined 1726. *By Jonathan Swift.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | yahoo | A yahoo. |
| Plural | yahoos | Yahoos. |
| Interjection | yahoo | Yahoo! |
| Source | Gulliver's Travels | 1726. |
| Author | Jonathan Swift | Swift. |
- A crowd of yahoos blocked the road.Insult.
- Swift coined it in 1726.Origin.
- The Houyhnhnms ruled them.The book.
Words invented in novels
- Yahoo โ Jonathan Swift, 1726
- Lilliputian โ from the same book
- Robot โ Karel ฤapek, 1920
- Cyberspace โ William Gibson, 1982
- Catch-22 โ Joseph Heller, 1961
Coined by Jonathan Swift in *Gulliver's Travels*, 1726, as the name of a race of brutish creatures.
Who invented the word yahoo?
Jonathan Swift, in Gulliver's Travels of 1726, for a race of filthy human-like creatures ruled by rational horses.
Is the exclamation the same word?
No. Yahoo as a shout of delight is separate and simply imitative.