Lawmaker looks at 'Hoosier' origin

Star staff report

 
Origin of "Hoosier"
Here are some of the theories for the origin of the word "Hoosier":

- When a visitor hailed a pioneer cabin in Indiana or knocked upon its door, the settler would respond, "Who's yere?" And from this frequent response Indiana became the "Who's yere" or Hoosier state. No one ever explained why this was more typical of Indiana than of Illinois or Ohio.

- That Indiana rivermen were so spectacularly successful in trouncing or "hushing" their adversaries in the brawling that was then common that they became known as "hushers," and eventually Hoosiers.

- There was once a contractor named Hoosier employed on the Louisville and Portland Canal who preferred to hire laborers from Indiana. They were called "Hoosier's men" and eventually all Indianans were called Hoosiers.

-A theory attributed to Gov. Joseph Wright derived Hoosier from an Indian word for corn, "hoosa." Indiana flatboatmen taking corn or maize to New Orleans came to be known as "hoosa men" or Hoosiers. Unfortunately for this theory, a search of Indian vocabularies by a careful student of linguistics failed to reveal any such word for corn.

- Indiana Historical Bureau

A Shelbyville lawmaker and his wife have come up with an illustrated children's book that attempts to answer the age-old Indiana question, "What is a Hoosier?"
Republican Luke Messer wrote "Hoosier Heart," and his wife, Jennifer Messer, illustrated the 32-page work. The Messers are visiting schools around the state as the attend book signings.
"Three young Indiana natives, Emma, Ava and Ben learn what it means to be a Hoosier as they journey through the state learning about Indiana's special people, places, popular culture and history," a news release says.

"'Hoosier Heart' concludes its journey with the official Indiana Historical Bureau's description of the origin of the word Hoosier."

Messer is former director of the Indiana Republican Party, but the book has received bipartisan advance praise, including from Democratic U.S. Sen. Evan Bayh.

"This wonderful book instills in young Hoosier Hearts a love for Indiana's rich heritage," Bayh said.

And from Democratic Mayor Bart Peterson: "Hoosier Heart tells a wonderful story about the state we all know and love."

The book is available at www.evapublishing.com and some bookstores.

Copyright 2006 IndyStar.com. All rights reserved