Tell me more ×
Sports Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for participants in team and individual sport activities. It's 100% free, no registration required.
up vote 11 down vote favorite

My daughter and I were playing softball and on the next field were a bunch of guys playing cricket. She asked me Why is Cricket called Cricket? I had no idea and figured this was a good place to find out.

share|improve this question
Not sure if this is on-topic here, cf. sports.stackexchange.com/questions/28/… (maybe EL&U would be a better fit). – Mormegil May 5 '12 at 11:03

closed as off topic by Michael Myers♦ Jun 28 '12 at 17:12

Questions on Sports Stack Exchange are expected to relate to sports within the scope defined in the FAQ. Consider editing the question or leaving comments for improvement if you believe the question can be reworded to fit within the scope. Read more about closed questions here.

1 Answer

up vote 8 down vote accepted

According to Wiktionary and BBC News, the game and the word might originally be from Belgium (and “There is no way to relate the term to any existing English word”):

Perhaps from a Flemish dialect of Dutch met 'with' de 'the' krik ketsen 'to ricochet', i.e. "to chase a ball with a crook".

The Online Etymology Dictionary explains it this way:

1590s, apparently from O.Fr. criquet "goal post, stick," perhaps from M.Du./M.Flem. cricke "stick, staff," perhaps from the same root as crutch.

share|improve this answer

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.