OLD-WORDS-L Archives

Archiver > OLD-WORDS > 2000-10 > 0970520483


From: Elizabeth Agar <>
Subject: RE: [OLDWORDS] "Hop-Scotch"
Date: Tue, 3 Oct 2000 08:01:23 +1100


Hi Elaine,

Hopscotch is derived from a combination of hop and scotch.

Scotch in the Shorter OED has for one of its meanings:

1450. 1. An incision, score, gash. 2. A line scored or marked upon the
ground, in the game of Hopscotch. 1677.

The above comes from an obsolete meaning for the verb to scotch -
to scratch, score, cut - late Middle English of unknown origin.

There is no reference to a common origin with the word scratch, which
is a probable blending of synonyms scrat and cratch, 1474, Middle
English but with similarities to various other languages of the time, e.g.
Middle Low German and Middle Dutch - kratsen.

Liz in Melbourne.


On Tuesday, October 03, 2000 3:56 AM, [SMTP:] wrote:
> Does anyone know the origin of the term "Hop-scotch"? I wonder if it
> started out as "Scratch"... since that is how it was played "before
> side-walks".
>
> Elaine
>

This thread: