Date: Mon, 4 Mar 1996 14:47:54 -0500
From: Jerry Miller millerj[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]FRANKLINCOLL.EDU
Subject: Re: Hoya
Tom Creswell asked:
Can anyone tell me why the Georgetown U. athletic teams are called the Hoyas?
As far as I can tell, hoya is the name of a plant species--a strange name to
apply to an athletic team.
Tom: I researched this years ago for an article on strange team nicknames
(and don't have the material in front of me). As I recall, it comes from a
Latin phrase, "Hoya saxa," which translates "what rocks." How Georgetown
came to derive a team nickname from that escapes me (and maybe them, too).
Jerry Miller