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More than 5000 entries on the history, culture and life of Britain (published in 1993 by Macmillan, now out of print)
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hooligan
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Word which suddenly appeared in press reports in the summer of 1898, referring to disorderly young men who described themselves as part of the 'Hooligan' gang or gangs. No certain explanation has been found, but the most likely link is with a music-hall song of the 1890s about the activities of a rowdy Irish family called Hooligan.
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