The "jocks" of today are all about sports, but in its beginnings, "jock" (like "jack" in English) was simply Scottish for "guy.""Jock" was a catchall phrase for men performing any number of odd jobs (hence the expression "jack of all trades"). With time and the industrial revolution, "jock" became short for "jockey" and came to mean anyone who operated machinery or rode a horse.
In 1874, the Bike Athletic Company of Tennessee decided to create an undergarment "suspensory" for the men who were being jarred while "jockeying" through the cobblestone streets of Boston on bicycles. The suspensory quickly came to be known by a more common slang name: the jock strap. Men started using it for support during all types of athletic activity, not simply bike riding.
During the early epoch of male college sports in the 1920s and '30s, "jocks" were the people who most vigorously supported athletics--especially the sporty university boys concerned with the masculinity that making the team might confer.
The word was used in a tongue-in-cheek way--people have always poked fun at anyone so concerned with being macho--but being a jock wasn't so bad. Jocks were generally considered genial and, at least in mainstream media, always "got the girl."
That started changing with the counterculture wars of the 1960s and '70s, when sports such as football came to represent all that was militaristic, imperialistic and rapacious in our society. After the Columbine school shooting in 1999, when Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris attributed some of their murderous rage to the torment they'd reported receiving at the hands of school athletes, anti-jock sentiment finally seemed to hit the mainstream.
Today, jock has lost its hazy innocence. While it is still used to describe someone who is simply into sports, the jock we've come to love to hate is overly obsessed with them, tends to malign artistic and intellectual endeavors and may on occasion like to use brute strength to bully others.
I know that even though it's a stereotype that jocks are dumb..it's kinda true...and about all the jocks hate because i spoke against them saying how they depriving intelluctuals from enhancing their learning cuz all the money from PTO goes to sports and stuff. Also the jocks think their so superior and then the expect everyone else to bow down and worship them and or something. something i refuse to do therefore they called many names and totured me as much as possible.
Posted by: Chanelle | May 26, 2009 at 07:10 PM
the jocks that i know are pretty damn smart.. ive had intellectual coversations with one of them for about an hour or so .. so thats a horrible label to put on them .. and the preppies with jocks thing.. i gues im kinda a preppie but im really athletic to and a jock liked me a lot .. so i think this is bs!!
Posted by: KeK | September 30, 2008 at 09:57 PM
I know several jocks. I am not inimidated by them at all. I actually prefer to talk to them sometimes than other people. Jocks are always popular. Always. They're always the guys that most girls like. I am very upfront with the jocks I know. I like talking to jocks because you can mess with them and they don't care. Most are good guys but all are stuck in their ways and very cocky. That is my observation of jocks I've known.
Posted by: Froggurl03 | September 19, 2008 at 07:37 AM
*sigh* the sad thing is there ARE some stereotypical people out there.
There are five stereotypical "jocks" at my skool. they hate my guts
Posted by: G | September 07, 2008 at 02:36 PM
most guys call girls jocks. why?? Is it cuz they play sports or are involved with guy sports? I do girls weightlifting and volleyball and football but im still a girly girl. But they call me a jock. what do they mean by that.????
Posted by: leslie | May 13, 2008 at 04:00 PM
most guys call girls jocks. why?? Is it cuz they play sports or are involved with guy sports? I do girls weightlifting and volleyball and football but im still a girly girl. But they call me a jock. what do they mean by that.????
Posted by: leslie | May 13, 2008 at 03:59 PM
i think all of you are wrong to judge these people. you dont even know them!
you've all fallen for the 'jock' stereotype.
i, myself, love sports
but i am also a very intellectual person
you can call me anything you want,
except an 'ass hole'
because thats the farthest thing from my personality if you know me.
and im sure if you got to know some of these people, you'd find the same.
Posted by: cass | May 09, 2008 at 08:16 PM
I have never had an intelligent conversation with any jock in my lifetime and I have never met a literate jock. They are all assholes!
Posted by: jaydee | April 24, 2008 at 12:33 PM
Thanks. He's a good boy. One year, three months and still going! XD
Posted by: The Sockmonkey | March 12, 2008 at 01:19 AM
aww.well,as long as he's good to ya,there's nothing wrong with that!i hope you guys stay together!♥
Posted by: kelly | March 11, 2008 at 06:40 PM
I know a lot of jocks that are basically assholes and I know a couple of jocks that can be really nice. I'll admit to some anti-jock sentiment, but that's because my first encounter with jocks was with the asshole kind. And as for the prep and jock coupling...well, that's not ALWAYS true. I'm a goth and my boyfriend's a jock! :D
Posted by: The Sockmonkey | March 07, 2008 at 04:07 AM
hey did you ever notice that preppies and jocks are always couples?i just thought of that......preppies make me sick..........
Posted by: kelly | February 23, 2008 at 02:46 PM
is it a whore?i'm confused!
Posted by: kelly | February 20, 2008 at 10:06 PM
so.....its a pervert in england?i'm still confused.that girl never shut up either!she practically gave me a headache!
Posted by: kelly | February 20, 2008 at 06:51 PM
type Little Britain- Vicky Pollard,in you tube then you'll know what a chav is, (little britain is sooo fucking funny!!)
Posted by: Carla | February 20, 2008 at 01:57 PM
i'm not meaning this offensively,but are you a prep?i'm just curious!
Posted by: kelly | February 19, 2008 at 06:49 PM
Forget everyone who dont like jocks they are hot dont hate cuz u cant be with one laters haters kiss kiss
Posted by: Erica | February 19, 2008 at 03:24 PM
oh.ive never heard of them.ive heard of chaps though.
p.s. i <3 england!!!!!
(even though ive never been there!)
Posted by: kelly | February 17, 2008 at 07:28 PM
well here in england we have loads.
Posted by: oooo-SEXY | February 16, 2008 at 01:35 PM
????????????what are you talking about?ive never heard of that
Posted by: kelly | February 16, 2008 at 09:31 AM
soo theres goths,emos,tree huggers,jocks,slackers,punks....how about chavs??
Posted by: OoOo-SEXY | February 15, 2008 at 12:14 PM
jocks suck!!!punk rocker guys are better anyway:-)
Posted by: kelly | February 11, 2008 at 07:27 PM
jocks get away with alot of stuff, like we have jocks at our school that get away with bad grades cause the school wants them to play on the team. once we had a jock almost get away with rape. jock suck.
Posted by: amber | January 11, 2008 at 12:43 PM
I like a jock.
Posted by: Poshy | January 08, 2008 at 07:58 PM
No comments? well jocks are jocks. its not a bad lable. it means ur athletically talented. i guess jocks are steorotypped as dumb but whatev
Posted by: no | January 06, 2008 at 08:02 PM