Huckster

Huckster

:"A Huckster is also a character class in the role-playing game Deadlands."

A huckster is a seller of small articles, usually of cheap or shoddy quality, or one engaged in haggling or making petty bargains, that is, a certain type of peddler or hawker.

In Scotland, the term huckster referred to a person, usually a woman, who bought goods and resold them in tiny quantity to others who were too poor to buy in quantities available at market. The goods were of no worse quality, though tended to be in the poorer quality range since economy was paramount. Scots burghs often felt the need to control hucksters because they operated without a stall, on the economic fringes. In particular, they were subject of accusations of forestalling, in this case the practice of buying goods wholesale, "before the stall" and therefore before tax was paid.Fact|date=October 2007

The word was in use circa 1200 (as "huccsteress") and was spelled "hukkerye", "hukrie", "hockerye", "huckerstrye" or "hoxterye" at one time or another. The word was still in use in England in the 1840's, when it appeared as an occupation in census returns. The word is related to the Middle Dutch "hokester, hoekster" and the Middle Low German "hoker", but appears earlier than any of these. ["Oxford English Dictionary", 2nd ed. (1989), "Huckster, "n."]

The story 'The Goblin and the Huckster' by Hans Christian Andersen relates that human nature is attracted to a state of happiness as represented by poetry and to sensual pleasure as represented by jam and butter at Christmas. The huckster, through his haggling and bargaining, is seen as industrious because he possesses the jam and butter (sensual pleasure) and the student is seen as poor but happy because he appreciates the beauty of poetry above all else. Meanwhile, the huckster's talkative wife and the cask in which are stored old newspapers both have plenty of authoritative knowledge to share but are paid little attention compared to the primal desires of humankind, which constantly compete for (the goblin's) attention.Fact|date=October 2007

In science fiction fandom, the term "huckster" is used non-pejoratively to designate dealers in science fiction-related books, magazines and paraphernalia, [http://fanac.org/Fannish_Reference_Works/FandBook/FandBook.html Donald Franson, "A Key to the Terminology of Science Fiction Fandom"; National Fantasy Fan Federation, 1962.] particularly those who deal at science fiction conventions.

References

*Brown, Yvonne Galloway, and Ferguson, Rona, eds, (2002) "Twisted Sisters: Women, Crime and Deviance in Scotland Since 1400", Tuckwell Press
*Sanderson, Margaret H.B. (2002) "A Kindly Place?: Living is Sixteenth-Century Scotland", Tuckwell Press


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  • Huckster — Huck ster, n. [OE. hukstere, hukster, OD. heukster, D. heuker; akin to D. huiken to stoop, bend, OD. huycken, huken, G. hocken, to squat, Icel. h?ka; the peddler being named from his stooping under the load on his back. Cf. {Hawk} to offer for… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Huckster — Huck ster, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Huckstered}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Huckstering}.] To deal in small articles, or in petty bargains. Swift. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • huckster — index dealer, merchant, sell, trade, vendor Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • huckster — huck‧ster [ˈhʌkstə ǁ ər] noun [countable] disapproving MARKETING someone who uses forceful selling methods, especially dishonest ones: • time share hucksters waiting in hotel lobbies for unwary tourists …   Financial and business terms

  • huckster — (n.) c.1200, petty merchant, peddler (often contemptuous), from M.Du. hokester peddler, from hoken to peddle (see HAWK (Cf. hawk) (v.1)) + agent suffix ster (which was typically feminine in English, but not in Low German). Specific sense of… …   Etymology dictionary

  • huckster — [n] peddler colporteur, costermonger, hawker, pitchperson, salesperson, seller, street seller, street vendor; concepts 347,348 …   New thesaurus

  • huckster — ► NOUN 1) a person who sells small items, either door to door or from a stall. 2) N. Amer. a person who uses aggressive selling techniques. ► VERB chiefly N. Amer. 1) promote or sell aggressively. 2) bargain. DERIVATIVES hucksterism …   English terms dictionary

  • huckster — [huk′stər] n. [ME hokestere < MDu hoekster < hoeken, to peddle, akin to Ger hökern: see HAWKER1] 1. a peddler or hawker of wares, esp. of fruits, vegetables, etc. 2. an aggressive or haggling merchant, esp. one who uses questionable methods …   English World dictionary

  • huckster — hucksterism, n. hucksterish, adj. /huk steuhr/, n. 1. a retailer of small articles, esp. a peddler of fruits and vegetables; hawker. 2. a person who employs showy methods to effect a sale, win votes, etc.: the crass methods of political hucksters …   Universalium

  • Huckster — Recorded as Hucker, Huckster and Huxter, this unusual name is medieval and English. It is in a sense occupational and relates to the famous travelling fairs and markets of the period before the coming of the railways in Victorian times. It… …   Surnames reference

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