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Usenet Posted 21 years ago
Usage
Top 'o the hat to you
This isn't really a question of usage, but about origin. Why did the custom of tipping the hat originate? And, for that matter, do people do it any more ? My guesses, in order of likelihood, are:
1. It was a substitute for bowing.
2. It was a way to show one's hairstyle
3. It let out the fleas.
4. It kept the hairlice from suffocating.
It seems to be a bizarre, irrational custom, possibly an inexplicable Fortean Phenomenon, like frogs falling from the sky.
1. It was a substitute for bowing.
2. It was a way to show one's hairstyle
3. It let out the fleas.
4. It kept the hairlice from suffocating.
It seems to be a bizarre, irrational custom, possibly an inexplicable Fortean Phenomenon, like frogs falling from the sky.
Top answer
[nq:1]This isn't really a question of usage, but about origin. Why did the custom of tipping the hat originate? And, ...
- [nq:1]This isn't really a question of usage, but about origin.
- Why did the custom of tipping the hat originate?
- And, ...
- suffocating.
- [/nq] I thought it was a carry-over from the days of knights in armor.
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33 Answers
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[nq:1]This isn't really a question of usage, but about origin. Why did the custom of tipping the hat originate? And, ... suffocating. It seems to be a bizarre, irrational custom, possibly an inexplicable Fortean Phenomenon, like frogs falling from the sky.[/nq]
I thought it was a carry-over from the days of knights in armor. Tipping the visor to show the face was an indication of peaceful appr
I thought it was a carry-over from the days of knights in armor. Tipping the visor to show the face was an indication of peaceful appr
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[nq:1]I thought it was a carry-over from the days of knights in armor. Tipping the visor to show the face was an indication of peaceful approach.[/nq]
Could be. That seems a reasonable derivation.
Perhaps tipping the hat, or cap, was a way of showing that one was not carrying a concealed gun on one's head.
I suppose that shaking hands has the same implication. By displaying an open pal
Could be. That seems a reasonable derivation.
Perhaps tipping the hat, or cap, was a way of showing that one was not carrying a concealed gun on one's head.
I suppose that shaking hands has the same implication. By displaying an open pal
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[nq:2]This isn't really a question of usage, but about origin. ... an inexplicable Fortean Phenomenon, like frogs falling from the sky.[/nq]
[nq:1]I thought it was a carry-over from the days of knights in armor. Tipping the visor to show the face was an indication of peaceful approach.[/nq]
I believe I have read that explanation, as well as the gesture of obeisance. However, it doesn't rea
[nq:1]I thought it was a carry-over from the days of knights in armor. Tipping the visor to show the face was an indication of peaceful approach.[/nq]
I believe I have read that explanation, as well as the gesture of obeisance. However, it doesn't rea
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[nq:1]I believe I have read that explanation, as well as the gesture of obeisance. However, it doesn't really go any ... betters as was a common gesture in England as late as the 19th Century. Perhaps even into the 20th C?[/nq]
Was tugging the forelock ever really done? Somehow it seems like something invented by the Python group. How did bald peasants indicate obeisance? Tug an eyebrow?
Was tugging the forelock ever really done? Somehow it seems like something invented by the Python group. How did bald peasants indicate obeisance? Tug an eyebrow?
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[nq:2]I believe I have read that explanation, as well as ... late as the19th Century. Perhaps even into the 20th C?[/nq]
[nq:1]Was tugging the forelock ever really done? Somehow it seems like something invented by the Python group. How did bald peasants indicate obeisance? Tug an eyebrow?[/nq]
Maybe they didn't live long enough to get bald. Or, maybe they took off their hats and rubbed the
[nq:1]Was tugging the forelock ever really done? Somehow it seems like something invented by the Python group. How did bald peasants indicate obeisance? Tug an eyebrow?[/nq]
Maybe they didn't live long enough to get bald. Or, maybe they took off their hats and rubbed the
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Tony Cooper typed thusly:
[nq:2]I believe I have read that explanation, as well as ... as the 19th Century. Perhaps even into the 20th C?[/nq]
[nq:1]Was tugging the forelock ever really done? Somehow it seems like something invented by the Python group. How did bald peasants indicate obeisance? Tug an eyebrow?[/nq]
The gesture is made, even if the gesturer has no hair. In fact, there's
[nq:2]I believe I have read that explanation, as well as ... as the 19th Century. Perhaps even into the 20th C?[/nq]
[nq:1]Was tugging the forelock ever really done? Somehow it seems like something invented by the Python group. How did bald peasants indicate obeisance? Tug an eyebrow?[/nq]
The gesture is made, even if the gesturer has no hair. In fact, there's
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[nq:1]Tony Cooper typed thusly:[/nq]
[nq:2]Was tugging the forelock ever really done? Somehow it seems ... group. How did bald peasants indicate obeisance? Tug an eyebrow?[/nq]
[nq:1]The gesture is made, even if the gesturer has no hair. In fact, there's no need for the peasant to ... a cap and you have no hair, you make the same action in the air just above your right eyebrow.[/nq]
Se
[nq:2]Was tugging the forelock ever really done? Somehow it seems ... group. How did bald peasants indicate obeisance? Tug an eyebrow?[/nq]
[nq:1]The gesture is made, even if the gesturer has no hair. In fact, there's no need for the peasant to ... a cap and you have no hair, you make the same action in the air just above your right eyebrow.[/nq]
Se
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[nq:1]I suspect the tipping of the hat had no more obscure origin than a custom relating to removal of headgear. ... In some cultures it is appropriate to cover the head as a sign of respect, in others to uncover it.[/nq]
That sounds as good an explanation as any. As a schoolboy who didn't like wearing the school cap, I was told that the whole point of wearing it was so that I could lift it wh
That sounds as good an explanation as any. As a schoolboy who didn't like wearing the school cap, I was told that the whole point of wearing it was so that I could lift it wh
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[nq:2]I suspect the tipping of the hat had no more ... as a sign of respect, in others to uncover it.[/nq]
[nq:1]That sounds as good an explanation as any. As a schoolboy who didn't like wearing the school cap, I was ... odd to see the President returning a military salute by saluting back, even though he's in civilian clothes and hatless,[/nq]
George W. Bush's salute has been criticized b
[nq:1]That sounds as good an explanation as any. As a schoolboy who didn't like wearing the school cap, I was ... odd to see the President returning a military salute by saluting back, even though he's in civilian clothes and hatless,[/nq]
George W. Bush's salute has been criticized b
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[nq:2]In the UK Services a salute can be given or ... ahead until the senior person salutes or (if bare-headed) speaks.[/nq]
[nq:1]When in the RAF (in the middle of last century) I was taught that when passing an officer walking in ... the head was the appropriate form of salute if the saluting hand was occupied or one was wearing a raincape.[/nq]
It sounds as if we may have been contempor
[nq:1]When in the RAF (in the middle of last century) I was taught that when passing an officer walking in ... the head was the appropriate form of salute if the saluting hand was occupied or one was wearing a raincape.[/nq]
It sounds as if we may have been contempor
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