Referencing Wikipedia, my most trusted source for all journalistic endeavors, a Hoya is in fact “a genus of tropical climbing plants in the family Apocynaceae,” as well as “the Japanese name for a Sea Pineapple.” Good information to know, and while I’m assuming the powers that be shot down the original Sea Pineapple mascot idea (no idea why they would, they could have constructed their stadium to look like Spongebob’s house”¦their loss), it still doesn’t explain how Georgetown decided on the bulldog they use now.
Hmmm, it appeared this mystery deserved some serious research. Unfortunately, as I waited until the last minute to write this and was never one to exert much effort in the first place, we’ll be relying on Wikipedia once again here.
According to the University, the origin of the name Hoya is”¦.wait for it, wait for it”¦.”unknown.” What the fuck? Seriously? No one knows? You’re telling me not a single person at the University thought it would be a good idea to write down where their arbitrary mascot came from? I’m honestly baffled.
After digging deeper (scrolling down the page), I discovered that urban legend points to the idea that the name may have stemmed from the Latin term “Hoya Saxa!” meaning, “What Rocks!” This is evidently in reference to the stonewall that surrounds the Georgetown campus. Impressive, I know, but having a pile of rocks as the mascot seems to have gone over about as well as the Sea Pineapple. And the bulldog? It doesn’t have a god damn thing to do with the name Hoya whatsoever. Apparently they just needed to pick something, and the bulldog is what they drew out of the hat. Cool.
So all the Georgetown fans out there, we might not have a clue what we’re talking about when we yell, “YOUR MOTHER IS A HOYA!!!,” but neither do you, and that’s pathetic.
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