ahoy-hoy

Meanings

1. A greeting.

Etymology

From ahoy. In the 1870s, Scottish-born inventor Alexander Graham Bell did much development for the newly invented telephone. Bell's preferred salutation, ahoy-hoy was derived from the nautical term ahoy. A modern resurgence in the popularity of the term has resulted from its use by The Simpsons character Montgomery Burns, who answered the telephone with this word. The use of the archaic "ahoy-hoy", instead of the standard "hello", is a running joke referring to Mr. Burns's very advanced age.