Talk:foobar

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foobar etymology[edit]

Isn't this word from the German word furchtbar? ~ heyzeuss 18:41, 23 November 2011 (UTC)[reply]

I've never heard of any connection to furchtbar myself. The only etyl I've ever run across is the one given -- the FUBAR acronym, much as for SNAFU. Military life just seems to give rise to acronyms and initialisms; another fun example is Charlie Foxtrot. -- Eiríkr Útlendi │ Tala við mig 18:56, 23 November 2011 (UTC)[reply]
FUBAR, as an acronym, might be a back formation from WWI and WWII when American and British soldiers had a lot of personal contact with their German counterparts. Being unable to pronounce furchtbar, the anglophones parroted foobar instead. I'll have to ask my grandfather because he used to guard POWs. ~ heyzeuss 06:23, 24 November 2011 (UTC)[reply]
The Jargon File suggests a link to furchtbar, claiming that foobar probably came before FUBAR. Smurrayinchester (talk) 13:38, 1 March 2012 (UTC)[reply]
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