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A hobby horse (or hobby-horse) is a child's toy horse, particularly popular during the days before cars. Just as children today imitate adults driving cars, so, in former times, children played at riding a wooden hobby-horse made of a straight stick with a small horse's head (of wood or stuffed fabric), and perhaps reins, attached to one end. The bottom end of the stick sometimes had a small wheel or wheels attached. This toy was also sometimes known as a cock horse (as in the nursery rhyme Ride a cock horse to Banbury Cross). Wiktionary (a portmanteau of wiki and dictionary) is a multilingual, Web-based project to create a free content dictionary, available in over 151 languages. ...
William Wallace Denslow Copyright notice from Denslows Mother Goose of 1901 - note the use of the word, Rex even at that date William Wallace Denslow (May 5, 1856–March 29, 1915) was an illustrator and caricaturist remembered for his work in collaboration with author L. Frank Baum, especially his...
For other uses, see Mother Goose (disambiguation). ...
A hobby horse (or hobbyhorse) can be several things: A toy horse, consisting of a model of a horses head, usually wooden, attached to a stick. ...
A teddy bear A toy is an object used in play. ...
Binomial name Equus caballus Linnaeus, 1758 The horse (Equus caballus, sometimes seen as a subspecies of the Wild Horse, Equus ferus caballus) is a large odd-toed ungulate mammal, one of ten modern species of the genus Equus. ...
A nursery rhyme is a traditional song or poem taught to young children, originally in the nursery. ...
This article does not cite any references or sources. ...
A hobby horse is not always a riding-stick like the child's toy; larger hobby-horses feature in some traditional seasonal customs (such as Mummers Plays and the Morris dance in England), and they are constructed in several different ways. Mummers Plays (also known as mumming) are seasonal folk plays performed by troupes of actors known as mummers or guisers (or by local names such as rhymers, pace-eggers, soulers, tipteerers, galoshins and so on), originally in England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales (see wrenboys), but later in other parts of...
Cotswold morris with handkerchiefs A morris dance is a form of English folk dance usually accompanied with music. ...
For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ...
Traditional seasonal customs
May Day hobby horses  The 'Old 'Oss capturing a young woman during the May Day festival at Padstow, Cornwall The most famous traditional British hobby horses are probably those of the May Day 'Obby 'Oss festival in Padstow, Cornwall. They are made from a circular framework, tightly covered with shiny black material, carried on the shoulders of a dancer whose face is hidden by a grotesque mask attached to a tall, pointed hat. A skirt (made from the same material) hangs down from the edge of the frame to around knee-height. There is a small, wooden, horse's head with snapping jaws, attached to a long, straight neck, with a long mane, which sticks out from the front of the frame. On the opposite side there is a small tail of horsehair. This article is about the holidays celebrated on May 1. ...
The Old Oss capturing a passing maiden during the Mayday festival. ...
, For the Sydney suburb, see Padstow, New South Wales. ...
For other uses, see Cornwall (disambiguation). ...
There are two rival horses and their fiercely loyal bands of supporters at Padstow: the 'Old 'Oss is decorated with white and red, and its supporters wear red scarves to show their allegiance; the Blue Ribbon 'Oss (or "Peace 'Oss") is decorated with white and blue and its supporters follow suit [1]. A "Teaser" waving a padded club dances in front of each 'Oss, accompanied, as they dance through the narrow streets, by a lively band of melodeons, accordions and drums playing Padstow's traditional May Song. The 'Osses sometimes capture young women beneath the skirt of the hobby horse; often they emerge smeared with black. For other uses, see Accordion (disambiguation). ...
Children sometimes make "Colt" 'Osses and hold their own May Day parades.
At Minehead in Somerset there are also two rival hobby horses, the Sailor's Horse and the Town Horse. They appear on May Eve (called "Show Night"), on May Day morning (when they salute the sunrise at a crossroads on the ouskirts of town), 2 May and 3 May (when a ceremony called "The Bootie" takes place in the evening at part of town called Cher) [2]. Each horse is made of a boat-shaped wooden frame, pointed and built up at each end, which is carried on the dancer's shoulders. As at Padstow, his face is hidden by a mask attached to a tall, pointed hat. The top surface of the horse is covered with ribbons and strips of fabric. A long fabric skirt, painted with rows of multicoloured roundels, hangs down to the ground all round. A long tail is attached to the back of the frame. Each horse is accompanied by a small group of musicians and attendants. The Town Horse is accompanied by "Gullivers", dressed similarly to the horse but without the large frame; as at Padstow, smaller, children's horses have sometimes been constructed [3]. The horses' visits are (or were) believed to bring good luck. , Minehead is a coastal town in West Somerset, England with a population of around 10,000. ...
This article is about the county of Somerset in England. ...
Walpurgis Night in Sweden. ...
This article is about fortune. ...
In the past there was also a similar hobby horse based at the nearby village of Dunster, which would sometimes visit Minehead [4]. Dunster Yarn Market Dunster is a village in north west Somerset, England, situated on the Bristol Channel coast three miles east of Minehead and 25 miles north west of Taunton. ...
The Hunting of the Earl of Rone At Combe Martin in Devon a strange custom called "The Hunting of the Earl of Rone" took place on Ascension Day until 1837, when it was banned. It was revived in 1974 and now takes place over the four days of Spring Bank Holiday. A fool and a hobby horse, accompanied by grenadiers, search the village for the Earl, who is finally captured, mounted onto a (real) donkey and paraded through the village. He is frequently shot at by the soldiers, falls from his mount, and is revived by the hobby horse and the fool, and returned to his mount. Finally, on reaching the beach, the Earl is executed and thrown into the sea. [5] View from the north-western end of the village where it reaches the sea. ...
For other meanings see Ascension (disambiguation) The Ascension is one of the great feasts in the Christian liturgical calendar, and commemorates the bodily Ascension of Jesus into Heaven forty days after his resurrection from the dead. ...
For the Bank Holiday declared in the USA during the Great Depression, see Emergency Banking Act. ...
For other uses of Jester, see Jester (disambiguation). ...
A Grenadier was originally a specialized assault trooper for siege operations, first established as a distinct role in the early 17th century. ...
Morris and other ritual dance  Morris dancers and a hobby horse: detail of Thames at Richmond, with the Old Royal Palace, c.1620  Some modern dance sides have reinterpreted the hobby horse: this hooden horse is a zebra A hobby horse is depicted in a stained glass window, dating from between 1550–1621, from Betley Hall, Staffordshire, now in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, directly below a Maypole and surrounded by what appear to be morris dancers (accession no. C.248-1976) [6]. Hoodening, also called Hodening, is an East Kent tradition vaguely related to Mumming and the Morris dance, and dating back at least to the mid-18th century. ...
For other uses, see Zebra (disambiguation). ...
The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the worlds largest and finest museum of decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 4. ...
Dancing around the maypole, in Ã…mmeberg, Sweden The maypole is a tall wooden pole (traditionally of hawthorn or birch), sometimes erected with several long coloured ribbons suspended from the top, festooned with flowers, draped in greenery and strapped with large circular wreaths, depending on local and regional variances. ...
Cotswold morris with handkerchiefs A morris dance is a form of English folk dance usually accompanied with music. ...
Some traditional English Morris dance sides (teams) have hobby horses associated with them. Some modern revival sides have extended their animal repertoire in various imaginative and appropriate ways, e.g. Pig Dyke Molly molly dancers, who wear black and white costumes and makeup, have a hobby zebra. Cotswold morris with handkerchiefs A morris dance is a form of English folk dance usually accompanied with music. ...
Molly dancing is a form of English Morris dance, traditionally done by out of work ploughboys in midwinter in the 19th century. ...
For other uses, see Zebra (disambiguation). ...
A hobby horse takes part in the ancient Abbots Bromley Horn Dance. The Abbots Bromley Horn Dance is a remarkable folk survival, taking place each year in Abbots Bromley, a small village in Staffordshire, England. ...
Other related seasonal customs
Soul-caking or Souling Some regional variants of the Local seasonal variants, performed around All Souls' Day in Cheshire, included a non-speaking character called the "Wild Horse", made from a horse's skull mounted on a short pole. The horse was played by a man, hidden under a cloth attached to the pole, who bent forward to rest the pole on the ground. He could usually snap the horse's jaws loudly to frighten onlookers. Mummers Plays (also known as mumming) are seasonal folk plays performed by troupes of actors known as mummers or guisers (or by local names such as rhymers, pace-eggers, soulers, tipteerers, galoshins and so on), originally in England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales (see wrenboys), but later in other parts of...
This article is about the Christian religious holiday. ...
For other uses, see Cheshire (disambiguation). ...
The Old Horse In parts of Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and around Sheffield there existed, into the early 20th century, a Christmas custom of going from house to house performing a short play or dramatised song called The Old Horse or T'Owd 'Oss. The horse was constructed in a similar way to the Wild Horse of the Soul-cakers and the hooden horses of Kent.
Hoodening A custom which took place in the lead-up to Christmas in eastern Kent, involving a group of ploughmen leading a Hooden Horse (a horse's head made of wood, set on a short pole, with snapping jaws operated by a person hidden under a piece of sacking). Hoodening, also called Hodening, is an East Kent tradition vaguely related to Mumming and the Morris dance, and dating back at least to the mid-18th century. ...
Mari Lwyd A similar creature, the Mari Lwyd (Grey Mare in English), also made from a horse's skull, with a white sheet attached, took part in New Year house-visiting rituals in south-east Wales. The custom has been revived in recent years. The Mari Lwyd (Grey Mare in Welsh) is a Welsh new year celebration. ...
For other uses, see New Year (disambiguation). ...
Origin of term The word hobby is glossed by the OED as "a small or middle-sized horse; an ambling or pacing horse; a pony." The word is attested in English from the 14th century, as Middle English hobyn. Old French had hobin or haubby, whence Modern French aubin and Italian ubino. But the Old French term is apparently adopted from English rather than vice versa. OED connects it to "the by-name Hobin, Hobby", a variant of Robin" (compare the abbreviation Hob for Robert). This appears to have been a name customarily given to a cart-horse, as attested by White Kennett in his Parochial Antiquities (1695), who stated that "Our ploughmen to some one of their cart-horses generally give the name of Hobin, the very word which Phil. Comines uses, Hist. VI. vii." Another familiar form of the same Christian name, Dobbin has also become a generic name for a cart-horse. OED stands for Oxford English Dictionary Office of Enrollment & Discipline This page concerning a three-letter acronym or abbreviation is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...
Middle English is the name given by historical linguistics to the diverse forms of the English language spoken between the Norman invasion of 1066 and the mid-to-late 15th century, when the Chancery Standard, a form of London-based English, began to become widespread, a process aided by the...
Old French was the Romance dialect continuum spoken in territories corresponding roughly to the northern half of modern France and parts of modern Belgium and Switzerland from around 1000 to 1300. ...
White Kennett (1660-1728) was an English bishop and antiquary born at Dover in August 1660. ...
Philippe de Commines (or de Commynes or Philip de Comines) (1447-1511) was a French-speaking Fleming in the courts of Burgundy and France, a diplomat, and a writer, and he has been called the first truly modern writer (Charles Augustin Sainte-Beuve) and the first critical and philosophical historian...
Samuel Johnson, Dictionary of the English Language, 1755, glosses "A strong, active horse, of a middle size, said to have been originally from Ireland; an ambling nag." For other persons named Samuel Johnson, see Samuel Johnson (disambiguation). ...
Hoblers or Hovellers were men who kept a light nag that they may give instant information of threatened invasion. (Old French, hober, to move up and down; our hobby, q.v.) In mediæval times their duties were to reconnoitre, to carry intelligence, to harass stragglers, to act as spies, to intercept convoys, and to pursue fugitives. Henry Spelman (d. 1641) derived the word from "hobby".
- "Hobblers were another description of cavalry more lightly armed, and taken from the class of men rated at 15 pounds and upwards." - John Lingard: The History of England, (1819), vol. iv. chap. ii. p. 116.
The Border horses, called hobblers or hobbies, were small and active, and trained to cross the most difficult and boggy country, "and to get over where our footmen could scarce dare to follow." - George MacDonald Fraser, The Steel Bonnets, The Story of the Anglo-Scottish Border Reivers. Father John Lingard (1771-1851) was a Roman Catholic priest and the author of The History Of England, From the First Invasion by the Romans to the Accession of Henry VIII, an 8-volume work published in 1819. ...
This 15th century depiction of Charlemagne and Pope Adrian I shows a well-bred Medieval horse with arched neck, refined head and elegant gait. ...
George MacDonald Fraser, OBE (born 2 April 1926 in Carlisle) is a British author of both historical novels and non-fiction books. ...
A major pastime of Henry VIII (1491–1547) was that of horse racing. In those days, horses were known as hobbies. The term "hobby" then became to be associated with any pastime.[citation needed] For other uses, see Hobby (disambiguation). ...
Other meanings From "hobby horse" came the expression "to ride one's hobby-horse", meaning "to follow a favourite pastime", and in turn, the modern sense of the term Hobby. The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman (or, more briefly, Tristram Shandy) is a novel by Laurence Sterne. ...
Portrait of George Cruikshank Wood engraving published in Harpers Weekly newspaper March 16, 1878 A Young George Cruikshank George Cruikshank (September 27, 1792—February 1, 1878) was an English caricaturist and book illustrator. ...
The term is also connected to the draisine, a forerunner of the bicycle, invented by Baron Karl von Drais. In 1818, a London coach-maker named Denis Johnson began producing an improved version, which was popularly known as the "hobby-horse". [1] A draisine is a light auxiliary rail vehicle or trolley. ...
For other uses, see Bicycle (disambiguation). ...
Karl Drais ca 1820, then still a baron Karl Drais (April 29, 1785 – December 10, 1851) was a German inventor and invented the Laufmaschine (running machine), also later called the velocipede, draisine (English) or draisienne (French), or nick-named, dandy horse. ...
The artistic movement, Dada, is possibly named after a French child's word for hobby-horse.[2] DaDa is a concept album by Alice Cooper, released in 1983. ...
References - ^ David V. Herlihy, Bicycle, Yale University Press, 2004; pp. 31-38.
- ^ Marc Dachy, Dada & les dadaïsmes, Paris, Gallimard, "Folio Essais", n° 257, 1994.
See also Hoodening, also called Hodening, is an East Kent tradition vaguely related to Mumming and the Morris dance, and dating back at least to the mid-18th century. ...
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