
ahoy
Sign in to saveAhoy () () is a signal word used to call to a ship or boat. It is derived from the Middle English cry, ''. The word fell out of use at one time, but was revived when sailing became a popular sport. 'Ahoy' can also be used as a greeting, a warning, or a farewell.
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Article
34 sectionsContents
- Early forms and development
- "a, hoy, hoay"
- ahiu, â hui
- Distribution and use
- General information
- English
- First examples
- Consolidation
- The variant "ohoy"
- German, diffusion
- Research
- Early evidence in translation
- Early evidence in German source texts
- The use of ''ahoi'' in German
- Maritime context
- Watersport
- Carnival
- Military
- Candy
- Cattle drive
- Dutch
- Theories of origin
- Sources
- Ahoy in Rotterdam
- Scandinavian languages
- Forms
- Early evidence
- Finnish and Estonian
- Czech and Slovak
- Theories of origin
- nazdar, ahoj, ''čau''
- Usage in youth culture
- Teasing usage in Theresienstadt
- References
Ahoy () () is a signal word used to call to a ship or boat. It is derived from the Middle English cry, ''. The word fell out of use at one time, but was revived when sailing became a popular sport. 'Ahoy' can also be used as a greeting, a warning, or a farewell.
One or another variation on the word is found in several languages. In Czech and Slovak, ahoj is a common, colloquial greeting, while 'hoi' in Modern Dutch and Swiss German, ‘oi’ in Brazilian Portuguese and Italian, and 'Ohøj' in Danish are informal greetings equivalent to the English 'hi' or 'hey'.