# Is "supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" a real word referring to Irish hookers? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [November 27, 2013, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-supercalifragilisticexpialidocious-a-real-word-referring-to-irish-hookers/674896 "2013-11-27T04:59:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![marknyc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@marknyc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marknyc)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2013, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-supercalifragilisticexpialidocious-a-real-word-referring-to-irish-hookers/674896/1 "2013-11-27T04:59:41Z")
Mystery solved! [https://www.visualthesaurus.com/cm/wordroutes/tracking-down-the-roots-of-a-super-word/supercal31.jpg](https://www.visualthesaurus.com/cm/wordroutes/tracking-down-the-roots-of-a-super-word/supercal31.jpg) * * * LINK TO STAFF REPORT: [Is “supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” a real word referring to Irish hookers? - The Straight Dope](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2025/is-supercalifragilisticexpialidocious-a-real-word-referring-to-irish-hookers) ---
**Author:** ![JBDivmstr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b4bc9f/32.png) [@JBDivmstr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JBDivmstr)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2013, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-supercalifragilisticexpialidocious-a-real-word-referring-to-irish-hookers/674896/2 "2013-11-27T05:24:27Z")
Hmmm… According to the article in the cite you gave, you’ve misspelled the word in the thread title. In the article it is spelled “supercali_ **flaw** _jalisticexpial_ **adoshus** _”, _more_ than once. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![marknyc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@marknyc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marknyc)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2013, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-supercalifragilisticexpialidocious-a-real-word-referring-to-irish-hookers/674896/3 "2013-11-27T05:54:13Z")
I was quoting the article’s title, which is about the word in the 1964 film “Mary Poppins”. > **[Is "supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" a real word referring to Irish hookers?](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=708870)** > > Mystery solved! https://www.visualthesaurus.com/cm/wordroutes/tracking-down-the-roots-of-a-super-word/supercal31.jpg LINK TO STAFF REPORT:... It’s slightly different than the 1931 word. ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2013, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-supercalifragilisticexpialidocious-a-real-word-referring-to-irish-hookers/674896/4 "2013-11-27T12:43:01Z")
I’m confused. The Staff Report clearly mentions “super-cadja-flawjalistic-espealedojus” as “the word as we heard it” reported in the 1930s although supposedly relating to 1918-ish. Similar, but different. So, I think you’re just providing another link to the what **Eutychus** (the author of that Staff Report) uncovered? ---
**Author:** ![marknyc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@marknyc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marknyc)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2013, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-supercalifragilisticexpialidocious-a-real-word-referring-to-irish-hookers/674896/5 "2013-11-27T15:35:14Z")
No - Eutychus was unable to provide the actual cite, because he looked in the wrong paper: “The Orange Peel”. I provided the cite for the first time, from “The Daily Orange”. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2013, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-supercalifragilisticexpialidocious-a-real-word-referring-to-irish-hookers/674896/6 "2013-11-27T19:35:08Z")
At first I was confused what your cite did to confirm the word applied to Irish hookers. Then I read the article. Yes, **Eutychus** traced the origins to some unnamed Syracuse University humor magazine from the 1930’s. He then identified what he presumed was the only humor magazine there at the time, and confirmed that archive checks were unable to find anything. **marknyc** found the article to which Peter Tamony apparently referred. It is from the Syracuse Daily Orange, _not_ The Orange Peel. Kudos to **marknyc**. ---
**Author:** ![Topologist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/topologist/32/3208_2.png) [@Topologist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Topologist)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2013, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-supercalifragilisticexpialidocious-a-real-word-referring-to-irish-hookers/674896/7 "2013-11-27T21:27:54Z")
Kudos, indeed. Perhaps this is 11 years too late, but, while I agree that _Maxim_ may not be your best source for _entomological_ information, it might have been better for the Staff Report to downplay it as a source for _etymological_ information. (Would _entymological_ information, as in the report, have to do with the origin of names of insects?) ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2013, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-supercalifragilisticexpialidocious-a-real-word-referring-to-irish-hookers/674896/8 "2013-11-28T00:39:53Z")
> [@Topologist](#): > > (Would _entymological_ information, as in the report, have to do with the origin of names of insects?) No, it would mean the hookers had crabs. ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2013, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-supercalifragilisticexpialidocious-a-real-word-referring-to-irish-hookers/674896/9 "2013-11-28T15:24:01Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > Yes, **Eutychus** traced the origins to some unnamed Syracuse University humor magazine from the 1930’s. He then identified what he presumed was the only humor magazine there at the time, and confirmed that archive checks were unable to find anything. > > **marknyc** found the article to which Peter Tamony apparently referred. It is from the Syracuse Daily Orange, _not_ The Orange Peel. Kudos to **marknyc**. Ah, thanks for the explanation, and my apologies for being confused, and thanks to **marknyc** – we’ll see if **Eutychus** can amend the staff report. ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2013, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-supercalifragilisticexpialidocious-a-real-word-referring-to-irish-hookers/674896/10 "2013-11-28T15:33:06Z")
I’ll kick this over to Ed, too – he needs to know for edit. ---
**Author:** ![watchwolf49](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e9c0ed/32.png) [@watchwolf49](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/watchwolf49)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2013, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-supercalifragilisticexpialidocious-a-real-word-referring-to-irish-hookers/674896/11 "2013-11-28T16:24:10Z")
Wow, a word to hate men with … explains why it’s so long. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2013, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-supercalifragilisticexpialidocious-a-real-word-referring-to-irish-hookers/674896/12 "2013-11-28T18:31:31Z")
> [@Topologist](#): > > Kudos, indeed. > > Perhaps this is 11 years too late, but, while I agree that _Maxim_ may not be your best source for _entomological_ information, it might have been better for the Staff Report to downplay it as a source for _etymological_ information. (Would _entymological_ information, as in the report, have to do with the origin of names of insects?) Insectuos relationships. Per Joyce. Oy, my second obnoxious uncited Finnegans Wake ref in SD on earwig/ear/hearing (overheard sounds of sex)/family relationships in one day. Hat trick coming? ---
**Author:** ![Powers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Powers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Powers)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2013, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-supercalifragilisticexpialidocious-a-real-word-referring-to-irish-hookers/674896/13 "2013-12-02T20:12:52Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > Yes, **Eutychus** traced the origins to some unnamed Syracuse University humor magazine from the 1930’s. He then identified what he presumed was the only humor magazine there at the time, and confirmed that archive checks were unable to find anything. > > **marknyc** found the article to which Peter Tamony apparently referred. It is from the Syracuse Daily Orange, _not_ The Orange Peel. Kudos to **marknyc**. I should point out that the _Daily Orange_ is not, I don’t believe, a humor publication. As far as I know, it was and is the student newsmagazine of record on campus. Such publications often contain light-hearted, if not satirical, content, but certainly not to the level of the also-common campus humor magazines. So the (original) supposition that this must have been a humor magazine would appear to be unfounded. Powers &8^] ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2013, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-supercalifragilisticexpialidocious-a-real-word-referring-to-irish-hookers/674896/14 "2013-12-02T20:49:47Z")
Peter Tamony apparently made an incorrect description of the original source in his comment in Volume 47 of _American Speech_. Thus the complication in running down his source. ---
**Author:** ![Topologist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/topologist/32/3208_2.png) [@Topologist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Topologist)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2013, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-supercalifragilisticexpialidocious-a-real-word-referring-to-irish-hookers/674896/15 "2013-12-02T21:59:52Z")
> [@Powers](#): > > I should point out that the _Daily Orange_ is not, I don’t believe, a humor publication. As far as I know, it was and is the student newsmagazine of record on campus. Such publications often contain light-hearted, if not satirical, content, but certainly not to the level of the also-common campus humor magazines. So the (original) supposition that this must have been a humor magazine would appear to be unfounded. I can attest to that. My parents met while working on the _Daily Orange_ (at a later period of time than the one in question) and the rest, as they say, is history. ---
**Author:** ![Powers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Powers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Powers)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2013, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-supercalifragilisticexpialidocious-a-real-word-referring-to-irish-hookers/674896/16 "2013-12-03T18:52:23Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > Peter Tamony apparently made an incorrect description of the original source in his comment in Volume 47 of _American Speech_. Thus the complication in running down his source. I’m a little surprised that looking to non-humor SU publications of the time wasn’t next on the list, despite the incorrect description. Hindsight is 20/20, of course… Powers &8^] ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2013, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-supercalifragilisticexpialidocious-a-real-word-referring-to-irish-hookers/674896/17 "2013-12-03T20:40:09Z")
That’s the value of a good cite: people know exactly what you mean, versus having to guess from your sloppy and possibly inaccurate or poorly remembered description of what you mean. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2013, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-supercalifragilisticexpialidocious-a-real-word-referring-to-irish-hookers/674896/18 "2013-12-03T21:56:10Z")
Or you could just say “supercalifragilisticexpialidocious”, and then everyone will know exactly what you mean. ---
**Author:** ![marknyc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@marknyc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marknyc)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2014, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-supercalifragilisticexpialidocious-a-real-word-referring-to-irish-hookers/674896/19 "2014-01-07T23:10:17Z")
Any chance we can get the staff to amend the original report?