Terminology: Why is a chouette called "chouette" (meaning "owl" in French)?

[Roland Scheicher]

I wanted to know why playing Backgammon with three or more persons is
called "chouette"?

Since there maybe others who are interested in this topic I want to
write down a few lines. A good point to start at is Webster's Third
New International Dictionary, which says:

>> chouette [French from "faire la chouette" = to play a lone hand at
cards, lit., to act like a barn owl], from "chouette" = barn owl,
[...] a method of scoring by which more than two persons can
participate in a two-handed game (as backgammon), one player [= the
man in the box] accepting the bets of all other players on the result
of a game between himself and one other active player [= the captain].
<<

However, this method of scoring does not only apply to Backgammon, it
is a quite general procedure, which may be adapted for several card
games like Gin-Rummy or Ecarté. In essence, Baccarat-Chemin de fer or
Craps (in its original social version) are two-handed games, where the
roles of the players change according to a chouette-like procedure.
Although Backgammon chouette seems to be its commonest form today, it
might have been derived from playing Piquet (an ancient card game) or
jeu de Paume. The Dictionnaire de L'Académie française, Cinquième
édition, 1798

http://encyclopedie.inalf.fr/cgi-bin/ACAD1798.pg.sh?POBJECT=255 says:

>> On dit au jeu de Piquet, Faire la chouette, pour dire, Jouer seul
contre deux ou contre plusieurs.<<

Now, what about the owls (= les chouettes) at Backgammon? On an
interesting web page

http://cyrille.deliry.free.fr/birds/kia.html

dealing with the etymology of French phrases, I found the following
lines:

>> Par contre si vous participez à une partie de jeu de Paume,
l'expression " faire la chouette ", vient bien de l'oiseau. Il s'agit
de jouer seul contre plusieurs adversaires, ainsi l'oiseau de nuit qui
égaré de jour se fait poursuivre par plusieurs autres oiseaux peu
amicaux à son égard.<<

However, I'm in doubt, whether the zoological statement were true (is
it?), but I think it is at least a plausible explanation of this
phrase. I'm looking forward to your comments on this.

Regards
Roland

[MLeifer]

According to the online dictionary at gammoned.com...

The Chouette got its name from the french bird (screech owl) that tends to be
attacked by all the other birds.

Mel Leifer
Gammon Links
http://www.chicagopoint.com/links.html

[Martin Short]

I read in a backgammon book "backgammon of today" by Longacre dating
back to 1930 that chouette got its name from that french owl because
that particular bird is often attacked by all the other birds.. much
like how the box is attacked by all of the remaining players in the
game.

martin
http://www.gammoned.com/home.html

roland_s...@yahoo.de (Roland Scheicher) wrote in message news:<aa4aac58.02031...@posting.google.com>...

[Mark Denihan]

I would like to think it's derived from staying up all night with big round
eyes

"Martin Short" <flyg...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
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[DD Wright]

Roland Scheicher wrote:

> I wanted to know why playing Backgammon with three or more persons is
> called "chouette"?

When chouette was first invented it had no name. It was only played by a
hand full of brave men. (In those days woman were not allowed to handle
dice.) One of the early pioneers was a French guy who had a weak bladder.
When ever he was in the box under heavy cube pressure and by chance rolled
the mother of all bad rolls, he would urinate on himself. It wasn't long
before his backgammon mates started taunting him, saying "Shoe wet!" He
thought people were complementing him, comparing him to a wise old owl.
So as time went on the game became know as Shoe Wet, but universally
mis-spelled as Chouette.

[Li Chou]

Mark Denihan wrote:

> I would like to think it's derived from staying up all night with big round
> eyes
>

Yes, I stay up with round eyes all night
then chop chop their heads off at morning's light.

Then they not so big!

Li Chou

[spurs]

funneeeeee!
however...... may have a grain of truth.....
French shoe is "chaussure"
Corrupted to chouette? (the noun is actually female en francais... la
chaussure)
cant get mouille (wet) in there but still............. : )
praps the bad roll makes one "more ill"?

--
----- spurs º¿º

Roy @ Oxnard, California
spur...@verizon.net
www.dock.net/spurs

"Making a living is NOT the same as making a life"
Roy Passfield...1999
"DD Wright" <sonic...@earthlink.net> wrote in message
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