Ho ho ho

"Ho ho ho" is a textual rendition of a particular type of deep-throated laugh or chuckle. Most associated today with Santa Claus and Father Christmas, it was connected in the 17th century with the English mythological figure of Puck.

The laughter of Santa Claus has long been an important attribute by which the character is identified, but it also does not appear in many non-English-speaking countries. The traditional Christmas poem A Visit from St. Nicholas relates that Santa has:

Popular Culture

As a Canadian Postal Code

Canada Post uses the characters H0H 0H0 as the postal code for letters to be sent to Santa Claus.

The full address is:

In French, Santa's name translates as "Father Christmas", addressed as:

Since the postal code system has 'H0' set up to represent a tiny or rural village ('0') inside of the city of Montreal or Laval ('H'), H0 codes are quite rare and a seasonal allocation of H0H does not appear with any other normal postal codes.

Urban legend

There have been false urban legends claiming that use of this laugh is being discouraged in Australian malls by Westaff, a recruitment firm supplying many of the mall Santas. Supposedly, the firm claimed that the laugh, when used loudly, could be frightening to children and could even be considered derogatory to women, and recommended that a Santa lowering his voice and saying "ha ha ha" might be more welcoming. However, these legends have been proven false.

Ho ho ho (disambiguation)

Ho ho ho is onomatopoeia for laughter.

Ho ho ho may also refer to:

See also

Ho, Ho, Ho

Ho, Ho, Ho (officially titled VH1 Presents RuPaul Ho Ho Ho) is an album of Christmas music by American drag queen and singer RuPaul, released on October 28, 1997 by Rhino Records.

Album information

The album was a combination of original music, standards and comedy vignettes. Most of the traditional songs were given a campy twist. The title is a double entendre; though it is a phrase associated with Christmas and Santa Claus, the term "ho" also refers to a whore or prostitute. The album's cover features three scantily-clad versions of RuPaul, and the back cover features her legs with panties around the ankles; these are the "three ho's".

The album was tied-in to a television Christmas special from The RuPaul Show on VH1. Much of the humor on the album is of a risqué nature, making it quite different from traditionally wholesome holiday albums. For instance, the classic "All I Want For Christmas" is turned into a thumping dance song with lyrical changes requesting breast implants, a tummy tuck and rhinoplasty, so that (as she sings) "I can look real purty!", and changing the lyrics of "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" to "I Saw Daddy Kissing Santa Claus".