by Emily Coppella
January 12, 2022
This is the first instalment in our series: Canadian English in Canadian Television.
Perhaps the most infamous fictional Canadians on television are brothers, Bob and Doug McKenzie, who hosted the 鈥淕reat White North鈥 segment on SCTV. These toque and plaid-wearing pals have been making Canadians laugh for years due to their poor lack of judgment and goofy commentary on Canadian culture. Did you know for the Canadian content they required at the time?
Scattered throughout their skits is the term, 鈥渉oser,鈥 which is framed as a lighthearted insult. According to the , it鈥檚 a 鈥渟lang word for a Canadian of limited intelligence and little education. Almost always a white man, a hoser is, to some extent, the Canadian equivalent of American terms like 鈥榟illbilly鈥 and 鈥榬edneck鈥 鈥 though without the overtly racist connotations of the latter word鈥. The defines the Canadian meaning of 鈥渉oser鈥 as 鈥渁n unsophisticated, especially rural, person.鈥
Although it is believed to have existed before the 1980s, it wasn鈥檛 really until Bob and Doug appeared on small screens across Canada that the term really took off (pun intended 鈥 another Canadian saying they often use is 鈥渢ake off!鈥). Rick Moranis (Bob) and Dave Thomas (Doug) are considered hosers, not only because they call each other so, but because the majority of their comedy is centred around their inability to understand anything beyond their small world.
Some believe 鈥渉oser鈥 grew out of the insult 鈥渓oser" or is due to the verb 鈥渉ose,鈥 and its meaning to deceive or swindle. Despite the elusive origin of the word, we can thank Bob and Doug for creating what SCTV called the 鈥渟ocial phenomenon鈥 of 鈥淗osermania鈥. 鈥淗oser鈥 is one of the most iconic terms found in Canadian English and we have Canadian media to thank.