There is an old adage that states that prostitution is the world’s oldest profession. While there is no way to prove that this saying is true or false, it is not completely without base. Prostitutions first recorded instance is in the Sumerian records dating back to approximately 2400 B.C [1]. So while prostitution may not have been the first profession in history it was not far behind whichever one was. While it has had a variety of different names throughout its long history from harlot, whore, and prostitute, one name in particular hooker, has some controversy behind the name.
Since no one knows where the term hooker originated, or how it came to be used to mean a prostitute three different ideas on its roots have arisen. The first opinion is that the word hooker comes from a prostitute’s ability to bring in or “hook” clients. The second opinion is that it comes from the neighborhood of Corlears Hook in New York City. The final opinion on the origin of the term is that it has to do with General Joseph Hooker and the Army of the Potomac during the American Civil War. All three positions have evidence to support their claim making all three equally likely.
The people who support the idea that prostitutes are called hookers because of their ability to bring in or “hook” clients claim that they are the right origin of the word because of a book that was published in 1859. This book was titled the Dictionary of Americanisms and was published by John Bartlett, a historian and linguist. In this book he says that the definition of hooker is a strumpet, which is another word for prostitute [2]. While this theory supports that the definition of hooker was used for their ability to hook clients, it does not have much evidence to support it. In fact in the definition of hooker in the Dictionary of Americanisms it also mentions the neighborhood of Corlears Hook as the origin of the word. This leads into the second possible origin of the word, whose supporters claim it comes from a small neighborhood on the Hudson Bay.
The neighborhood of Corlears Hook has a very fascinating history that contributes to its claim as the origin of the word hooker. The neighborhood got its name from a Dutch family, the Van Corlears, who owned the farm that was taken over to build the City of New York. The second half of the name, hook, became introduced because it is on a point where the river bends. When the English came into control of the city they changed the name to Crown Point, but shortly after it returned to being known by its original name. When it was first established it was not known for being a place to find prostitutes and other disreputable folks, the area started out as a shipyard and industrial area where many immigrants moved for work. The influx of immigrants coming to the area caused bars and brothels to start opening and by the mid-19th century the neighborhood had become known as a red light district and became known as just “the hook” among the populace. It became a very popular place for sailors to visit on shore leave due to the vast number of bars and brothels that were in the area [3]. The neighborhood did not stay a brothel for long, by the early 20th century people had become displeased with the state of the neighborhood and decided to clean it up. Today the one disreputable neighborhood of Corlears hook is filled with parks and sport fields and offers a place for residents of New York City to relax. Few of them realize that this neighborhood once held countless brothels and is one of the possible origins of the word Hooker.
The final possible origin of the word comes from General Joseph Hooker, the general in charge of the Army of the Potomac in D.C. during the civil war. In D.C. there was a neighborhood known as Murder Bay. It was very similar to Corlears Hook in the fact that it was a neighborhood known for its countless brothels, bars, and gambling dens [4]. The name Murder Bay came about because it became common for people to be killed in the neighborhood for various reasons. During the Civil War General Hooker gave his soldiers free reign of the neighborhood as a way to keep up moral among the troops. This caused the area to change from being called Murder Bay to being called Hookers Division, and once Hooker left the area it became known as just The Division. The support for this being the origin of the word hookers comes from the idea that the prostitutes belonged to General Hooker’s Army, this idea lead to people calling them Hookers or more properly “Hooker’s”.
All three of these origins of the word hooker have some evidence to support their claim. Whether that claim is one of the hookers hooking clients, a disreputable neighborhood in New York, or a disreputable army guarding the nation’s capital. All three also have evidence that goes against their claim. For the first meaning, there is no written evidence that shows this is the case, just an evolution of the word based on its original meaning. The second claim has some evidence against it because according to an Ngram from Google Books the word hooker began to rise in the late 19th century after the civil war and Hooker’s Division had moved into D.C. Finally the claim of General Hooker loses credibility because there is written evidence in the Dictionary of Americanisms that claims that Corlears Hook is the origin. The origin of the word hooker is clouded in mystery and has no clear answer. It will be a topic that is debated among historians and linguists alike until more evidence comes forward to support one of the claims. Yet as time goes on this becomes more and more unlikely so in the end it is up to each person to decide which of the three is the origin of the word.
[1]"Historical Timeline - Prostitution - ProCon.org." ProConorg Headlines. http://prostitution.procon.org/view.timeline.php?timelineID=000028 (accessed May 7, 2014).
[2]Miley, Mary. "History Myths Debunked." History Myths Debunked. http://historymyths.wordpress.com/tag/hooker-word-origins/ (accessed May 8, 2014).
[3]"Ephemeral New York." Ephemeral New York. http://ephemeralnewyork.wordpress.com/tag/the-origin-of-the-word-hooker/ (accessed May 8, 2014).
[4]O'Neill, Claire. "History Of The Word 'Hooker'?: Pictures Of People And The Nouns They Become." NPR. http://www.npr.org/blogs/pictureshow/2010/10/27/130872552/lifenouns (accessed May 8, 2014).