What is "hoi polloi"

1837, from Greek hoi polloi (plural) "the people," literally "the many" (plural of polys; see poly-). Used in Greek by Dryden (1668) and Byron (1822), in both cases preceded by the, even though Greek hoi means "the," a mistake repeated often by subsequent writers, who at least have the excuse of ignorance of Greek.

n. 1 The common people; the masses. (qualifier: Used with or without the definite article.) 2 (context proscribed English) The elite.

n. the common people generally; "separate the warriors from the mass"; "power to the people" [syn: multitude, masses, mass, people]

Hoi polloi (, hoi polloi, "the many") is an expression from Greek that means the many or, in the strictest sense, the majority. In English, it has been corrupted by giving it a negative connotation to signify deprecation of the working class, commoners, the masses or common people in a derogatory or, more often today, ironic sense. Synonyms for hoi polloi, which also express the same or similar distaste for the common people felt by those who believe themselves to be superior, include "the great unwashed", "the plebeians" or "plebs", "the rabble", "the masses","the dregs of society", "riffraff", "the herd", "the canaille", "the proles" (proletariat), "sheeple", and " peons".

The phrase probably became known to English scholars through Pericles' Funeral Oration, as mentioned in Thucydides' History of the Peloponnesian War. Pericles uses it in a positive way when praising the Athenian democracy, contrasting it with hoi oligoi, "the few" ( Greek: , see also oligarchy).

Its current English usage originated in the early 19th century, a time when it was generally accepted that one must be familiar with Greek and Latin in order to be considered well educated. The phrase was originally written in Greek letters. Knowledge of these languages served to set apart the speaker from hoi polloi in question, who were not similarly educated.

Hoi Polloi (1935) is the 10th short film released by Columbia Pictures starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges ( Moe Howard, Larry Fine and Curly Howard). The comedians released 190 short films for the studio between 1934 and 1959.