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juju

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Etymology and origin of the English word juju

Pronunciation

  • /ˈd͡ʒuːd͡ʒu/[1]

juju1 West African charm, magic

Confidence
Disputed
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
1823 letter of R. Pierce, printed in H. Crow's Memoirs
Borrowed from
Hausa jùujúu
Ultimate origin
Hausa jùujúu

Etymology

The word for the West African charm is borrowed from Hausa jùujúu (“magical object, magic”) in the OED's entry revised in 2023.[2] Merriam-Webster and the American Heritage Dictionary call it of West African origin, akin to the source of Hausa jūjū (“fetish, evil spirit”),[3][4][5] and Collins and Dictionary.com also derive it, probably or allegedly, from Hausa.[6][7] Other dictionaries take it from French joujou (“toy, plaything”), a reduplication formed from jouer (“to play”): the Shorter Oxford calls this probable,[8] Chambers apparent,[9] the Concise Oxford possible,[10] and Etymonline reports it with "supposedly".[11]

Earliest recorded meaning

An object revered for its magical powers in West African religious traditions: 1823, in a letter of R. Pierce printed in H. Crow's Memoirs (1830).[2] The Shorter Oxford and the Concise Oxford date the word to the 17th century,[8][10] while Etymonline gives 1860[11] and Merriam-Webster 1894.[3]

Semantic evolution

From the object itself the word passed in 1837 to the magical power associated with such objects and to the system of beliefs around them.[2][3] Collins adds a taboo imposed by a juju.[6] From 1896 it also meant fortune or luck, and later the feel or atmosphere of a place, with bad juju for bad luck or a bad feeling.[2][1]

Timeline

  • 1823 – a West African object revered for its magical powers.[2] Etymonline gives 1860 and Merriam-Webster 1894.[11][3]
  • 1837 – the magical power of such objects; the beliefs around them.[2]
  • 1896 – fortune, luck; later, the atmosphere of a place.[2]

Meanings

Noun

  1. An object used in West Africa as a charm, amulet or fetish believed to have magical power.[3][6][4][2]
  2. The magical power attributed to such an object.[3][6][4][2]
  3. A taboo imposed by means of a juju.[6]
  4. Luck or the feel of a place or situation, as in bad juju: After the third flat tyre, they agreed the road had bad juju.[2][1]

Word family

  • jujuism
  • jujuist

juju2 Nigerian music

Confidence
Disputed
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
1954 Sunday Times (Lagos)
Borrowed from
Yoruba jújù
Ultimate origin
Yoruba jújù

Etymology

The word for the Nigerian popular music is borrowed from Yoruba jújù according to Merriam-Webster.[3][5] The OED calls its origin uncertain, perhaps from Hausa jùujúu (“fetish”), the source of juju1, or from Yoruba jù (“to throw”);[2] the Shorter Oxford and the Concise Oxford suggest juju¹ or a Yoruba word for "dance".[8][10] The OED also reports a suggestion that the Yoruba word first referred to a type of beaded sekere played by early juju musicians.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

A style of music that arose among the Yoruba of Nigeria: 1954, in the Sunday Times of Lagos.[2] Merriam-Webster dates it to 1982.[3]

Semantic evolution

The music itself began in the 1920s, and the word apparently first appears on a recording of 1932.[2] Its lyrics draw on traditional praise songs and proverbs,[2] and dictionaries describe it by its guitars, its drums of variable pitch, its fast beat and its vocal harmonies.[8][3]

Timeline

  • 1954 – a style of Nigerian popular music.[2] Merriam-Webster gives 1982.[3]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A style of popular music of the Yoruba people of Nigeria, with guitars, percussion and vocal harmonies.[3][8][2]

Usage notes

Since 1940, in Raymond Chandler's Farewell, My Lovely, juju has also been slang for marijuana or a marijuana cigarette.[2][11][1] Etymonline takes it as a reduplication of the middle syllable of marijuana;[11] the OED, which thinks that explanation phonologically difficult, suggests a use of juju¹, by the association of drugs with magic, perhaps reinforced by marijuana.[2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ a b c The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
  5. ^ a b Gove, Philip Babcock, ed. (1961), Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam
  6. ^ a b c d e Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
  7. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
  8. ^ a b c d e Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  9. ^ The Chambers Dictionary (2014), 13th ed., Edinburgh: Chambers
  10. ^ a b c Soanes, Catherine; Stevenson, Angus, eds. (2004), Concise Oxford English Dictionary, 11th ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  11. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
Cite this entry

“Juju.” Etymologically, 8 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/en/juju. Accessed 9 Nov. 2026.

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