Does anyone know the origin of the term Hum-Bug as in: “Ah Hum-Bug” used in movies like “The Wizard of OZ”? I know the dictionary definition but I am really wondering how it cam to be. It sounds romotely German but it was very common in American lexicon during the 30’s and 40’s.
hum·bug (hmbg)
n.
- Something intended to deceive; a hoax or fraud.
- A person who claims to be other than what he or she is; an impostor. See Synonyms at impostor.
- Nonsense; rubbish.
- Pretense; deception.
My WAG is from Dicken’s and his wonderful bad guy, Ebenezer Scrooge.
Although my dictionary admits that the origin is uncertain, it does date the term to the 18th Century; a little before Dickins’ time.
The Word Detective mentions that a now obsolete word “humdudgeon” first used in 1785 was a combination of humbug and dudgeon.
dudgeon noun
Extreme displeasure caused by an insult or slight
I don’t know if this enters into it, but in England, “humbugs” are also a kind of hard candy. Maybe the word became synonymous with “deceptive” because the candy looked very nice but tasted really awful.
“Crikey! I thought Father Christmas brought me treats, but it’s just blah humbugs!”