Alternative to "Muggle"

[+JohnE5]

I understand that is works well with kids and that it means non-geocachers. But I don't understand why it has become the standard. I don't have any children, so when I try to explain caching to my friends and family it sounds ridiculous to start talking about a term from Hairy Potter.

 

Is it time to change this term to something more serious?

 

There will those of you who will immediately say "It's just a game, its not serious" Well, football and basketball are just a game. But they are marketed seriously. Kids on the playground can play sports for fun but eventually they strive to emulate the professionals. Can geocaching follow that example?

 

I would love to see geocaching become a little more accepted and understood. It angers me to see people roll their eyes or give funny looks while I am explaining it. It sounds like a kiddy game but it's not. You can really have some interesting trips from geocaching. Keeping the kiddy terms could prevent some people that would have had a great time and contributed to the sport well, away from it.

 

Let the bash fest begin!

[Mr.Yuck]

I understand that is works well with kids and that it means non-geocachers. But I don't understand why it has become the standard. I don't have any children, so when I try to explain caching to my friends and family it sounds ridiculous to start talking about a term from Hairy Potter.

 

Is it time to change this term to something more serious?

 

There will those of you who will immediately say "It's just a game, its not serious" Well, football and basketball are just a game. But they are marketed seriously. Kids on the playground can play sports for fun but eventually they strive to emulate the professionals. Can geocaching follow that example?

 

I would love to see geocaching become a little more accepted and understood. It angers me to see people roll their eyes or give funny looks while I am explaining it. It sounds like a kiddy game but it's not. You can really have some interesting trips from geocaching. Keeping the kiddy terms could prevent some people that would have had a great time and contributed to the sport well, away from it.

 

Let the bash fest begin!

 

Eh, no bash fest here. Although you might take some for calling it a "kiddy term". Personally, I've read every single book. I am a geek though, hence my username. I don't see the term ever changing, it's dug in pretty deep in the vocabulary.

[+StarBrand]

It is what it is. No need to change it. No need to bring Harry Potter into it - just explain that a muggle is somebody that does not know of the "magic" of Geocaching. Simple enough.

 

We have created much in our own lexicon - many terms unique to our group - no need to be embarrassed by them.

 

Or.....

 

Use the formal term - "non-cacher". Personally, I like muggle better.

[+KoosKoos]

I don't see any need to "grow up" with our activity. Every hobby (even sports) has a lexicon and some of the terms sound funny to someone not participating. We searching for containers with GPS receivers...it's not really a serious endeavor.

 

If people are so turned off by the term muggle, are they ok with hearing about "treasure hunting", "high tech hide-and-seek", or "scavenger hunting"?

 

Will they roll their eyes when they find my geocache dedicated to a certain cartoon character? (it's very childish after all) Will they quit when they visit a local cache that encourages you to get your silly name from the Captain Underpants book?

 

Gauge your audience when you talk about geocaching...if they're the type of people who are SO serious about life that this just seems way too silly for them to try, just explain it as walking around with a GPS receiver trying to navigate to a predetermined location and sign logbook to say you were there. (doesn't seem nearly as fun, but it would be serious)

 

And finally, just face it that not everyone will "get" our hobby or be interested in it. I don't understand the appeal of hitting a little white ball around a golf course, but lots of folks spend every free moment doing it.

Edited May 13, 2009 by KoosKoos

[+Renegade Knight]

I understand that is works well with kids and that it means non-geocachers. But I don't understand why it has become the standard.....

 

You answered your own question. It was the right word at the right time. It started independatnly in several areas at about the same time and spread quickly once it caught fire.

 

Now it's a done deal.

 

Since the only time I use the word muggle is in cache logs, or when talking to other cachers I really don't have to worry about it.

Edited May 13, 2009 by Renegade Knight

[+uxorious]

I would love to see geocaching become a little more accepted and understood. It angers me to see people roll their eyes or give funny looks while I am explaining it. It sounds like a kiddy game but it's not. You can really have some interesting trips from geocaching. Keeping the kiddy terms could prevent some people that would have had a great time and contributed to the sport well, away from it.

 

Perhaps you should rethink your feelings about the game. It seems your underlying objection to the term Muggle is the feeling it is a kiddie term for a kiddie game.

 

The vast majority of people I speak to about the game do not think of it as a kiddie game, even though most know that kids would love it. People roll their eyes when you tell them about any activity they think a little off their radar. Bird watching, video gaming, etc. I've seen people roll their eyes when someone talks about fishing, and even hockey. Doesn't mean they think it is childish, just foolish, to them. (Their loss. )

 

When I have used the term muggle, it seems most people I know appear to understand what I am saying. Doesn't matter if they have ever read Harry Potter or not.

 

I'm 61years old and still collect, and build plastic model kits. Far more eyes are rolled about that than about Geocaching.

[+buttaskotch]

so changing the term "muggle" to something else will stop the eye rolling??

It'll sound less geeky? Really? This I must try!

[GOF and Bacall]

Kids on the playground can play sports for fun but eventually they strive to emulate the professionals. Can geocaching follow that example?

 

Nope. First, there are no pro geocachers. Second, pro sports has not proven to be the most reliable source of roll models. Why would we want geocaching to emulate that?

 

Muggle is just a word. If you aren't comfortable using it use something else. Unaware or unknowing may work. While not an exact derivative from the original definition geophyte has a good ring to it.

[+Markwell]

It's kinda like saying...

 

A "cache" has a defintion (first in "Dictionary.com") of "a hiding place, esp. one in the ground, for ammunition, food, treasures, etc." Since we're not allowed to hide "in the ground" and we're not allowed to hide "ammunition" or "food", we should change the name "cache" to something else.

 

The term is part of our lexicon - and to try and force a change would be a very hard road to travel.

 

Imagine going to a standing in line for the Star Trek movie and when someone blurts out "I can't wait for him to say 'Beam Me Up, Scotty'". Then you turn to them and say "Though it has become irrevocably associated with the series, the exact phrase was never actually spoken in any Star Trek television episode or film. Captain Kirk comes closest to saying the phrase in the Original Series episode 'The Gamesters of Triskelion', by saying, 'Scotty, beam up'". You'd be in more danger than the only person wearing a red shirt beaming down on an away mission with Kirk and Spock.

 

References:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beam_me_up,_Scotty

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Redshirt_(character)

[+GIDEON-X]

"Is it time to change it?"----------- NO!

[+rob3k]

 

Use the formal term - "non-cacher".

 

Agree. I usually just say 'non-cacher' as that's 100% obvious what you mean and you don't get asked the follow up "What's a muggle?"

 

Or I just use dude, person, family, lady, etc. As in "I waited for a muggle guy walking his dog to clear past the cache area before making the find." I guess I also kind of think, "Maybe that guy wasn't really a muggle and he was standing there waiting for me to walk past just like I was waiting for him." I've met cachers several times when it became obvious we were both interested in the same random spot of forest.

Edited May 13, 2009 by wubbh

[+sbell111]

I guess that I don't understand why this is an issue. If you don't want to use the term, don't. Feel free to call non-geocachers something else. I suggest that you call them non-geocachers.

[+Isonzo Karst]

I dislike the word, and would like to say I've never used it; but I probably have.

 

In any case, language is not something you can control.

 

Per Renegade Knight's post, it just happened. All you can do is not use the term. I don't. I'd bet $$ that flask never has ;-)

[+Touchstone]

I tried to propose "Unwashed Masses" , but it never really caught on

 

Seriously though, it could be worse

[+TheAlabamaRambler]

We could call them "The Unenlightened".

 

or

 

we could just lighten up

 

it's a game.

 

Seriously!

[+WRASTRO]

I like the use of the word and think it is fun. I enjoy having the chance to explain it to people.

[knowschad]

Yeah, I find it a somewhat embarrassing term, but "Is it time to change it?" Even if it were, how are you going to go about that? Language has a life of its own. You can't legislate it.

 

(By the way, I hate "muggler" even more!)

[+DatCrazyMongoose]

Stealing "muggles" from Harry Potter and using it for non-geocachers is as dumb as Harry Potter itself (I'm referring to the movies, as I've never read the books). It would be interesting to do some research and see when the first use of the term can be found on the GC website.

 

Here is something I found on the background (pre-Potter). "Muggle" was used in the 20s/30s as a slang for marijuana and possibly to describe people who weren't "in the know" about the use of marijuana. Gee, that sounds like a term I want my kids using.

 

The following can be found on knitting.about.com...

Definition: A person who doesn't knit. Or, to put it more poetically, one who doesn't know the magic of knitting. (With apologies to J.K. Rowling.)

Pronunciation: mug-uhl

Examples: The muggles gave us strange looks when we pulled out our knitting on the subway.

 

Come on people! It's time to stop using the term. I'm going to do my part by going through all my logs and caches and deleting every mention of it.

Who's with me!?!?

[+uxorious]

Who's with me!?!?

 

certainly not me!!! I like the word.

[+wimseyguy]

I like the term, and the Harry Potter books and movies. But I don't think I have ever used it in a conversation about geocaching with non-cachers.

Perhaps you should try the same?

[+uktim]

I understand that is works well with kids and that it means non-geocachers. But I don't understand why it has become the standard. I don't have any children, so when I try to explain caching to my friends and family it sounds ridiculous to start talking about a term from Hairy Potter.

 

Is it time to change this term to something more serious?

 

There will those of you who will immediately say "It's just a game, its not serious" Well, football and basketball are just a game. But they are marketed seriously. Kids on the playground can play sports for fun but eventually they strive to emulate the professionals. Can geocaching follow that example?

 

I would love to see geocaching become a little more accepted and understood. It angers me to see people roll their eyes or give funny looks while I am explaining it. It sounds like a kiddy game but it's not. You can really have some interesting trips from geocaching. Keeping the kiddy terms could prevent some people that would have had a great time and contributed to the sport well, away from it.

 

Let the bash fest begin!

 

I'm with you up to the point where you suggest that we need an alternative. The best way of describing other people is for what they are rather than what they aren't. I've seen walkers, cyclists, bird-watchers, gardeners, farmers, parents with their children and a whole host of other folks near caches, I've never seen a muggle !

 

Referring to someone as a mere muggle is as lazy and unimaginative as logging TNLN TFTC

[+Anno Lynke]

call them muggers for stealing your cach

[+Prime Suspect]

The word, in its meaning as a person who is not of a certain class or group, has been around as part of British slang for at least 50 years.

 

Most of the words that Rowling "invented" have real-world roots.

[+Jeep4two]

Kids on the playground can play sports for fun but eventually they strive to emulate the professionals. Can geocaching follow that example?

 

Nope. First, there are no pro geocachers. Second, pro sports has not proven to be the most reliable source of roll models. Why would we want geocaching to emulate that?

 

 

I'll be right back - I need to go withdraw my 2 weeks notice - I had planned on changing careers . . . there goes that idea...

[+ncfinn]

I hate the word because I can never remember whether it is muggle or muggel.

 

I don't like the word because it was taken from a movie in which I have no interest.

 

I wish we could use a word of our own. No, I am not clever enough to suggest one.

[+Renegade Knight]

I hate the word because I can never remember whether it is muggle or muggel.

 

I don't like the word because it was taken from a movie in which I have no interest.

 

I wish we could use a word of our own. No, I am not clever enough to suggest one.

How about mud blood? Chav comes to mind. I do like unwashed masses. Ignorant slobs is pretty cool.

 

If we want a truly orginal word I supposed we could all take turns making posts by just banging on the keyboard. Something will eventlully pop out that catches our collective eye.

 

eiaov oapoeoarweasr;omsvd;omsgdoj aoieur1q4v8mvqmp9[spossvpofsd gpoiurve awpoiewrqqe- q 89yqrtg

 

Anything stand out?

[+Ambrosia]

This has come up a few times before, but I don't remember hearing about how the word muggle has been in use for decades. That's quite interesting and changes my outlook about the word just a bit.

 

Even so, I've never used the word (except once in a while it slips out of my mouth because I see it and hear it so often from cachers - sort of like a swear word may slip out when you aren't a person who swears, because you're exposed to it so often ). I say non-geocacher, although it doesn't roll off the tongue quite so easily.

 

It's true, no matter how much some of us may want the word to disapear, the word will always be here. Not only is it part of geocaching, it's part of popular culture. Can't fight something like that, I guess it's part of what makes life interesting.

 

As for people rolling their eyes when they're told about geocaching, I don't think I've ever had that experience before. Either we just have a different breed of people up here in the NW, or I'm explaining it differently. Or perhaps it's just my smile. The reactions I get run from a mild, "Well that's interesting, I never knew about that!", to an excited, "Wow, that's so cool!". When I first started telling people about geocaching years ago, most people had never heard of it. Now, quite a large percentage have at least heard about it somewhere. It's been interesting, seeing that change over the years.

[+Sol seaker]

 

If we want a truly orginal word I supposed we could all take turns making posts by just banging on the keyboard. Something will eventlully pop out that catches our collective eye.

 

eiaov oapoeoarweasr;omsvd;omsgdoj aoieur1q4v8mvqmp9[spossvpofsd gpoiurve awpoiewrqqe- q 89yqrtg

 

Anything stand out?

 

yeah, how about oar weasr? either that or sposs poiuvre.

 

I only use muggle when with geopals. One may be watching for muggles (sposs poiuvres) and shout out to the other, "muggles" when someone rounds the bend.

 

I enjoy thinking if they're kids they may think we're some harry potter witches doing magic in the forest. Gives it more of an edge than just searching for tupperware.

[+atmospherium]

I have no interest in the world of Harry Potter (exept for a pseudo-crush on Emma Watson), but I like the term muggle. I feel like a fool saying it out loud, but then I often feel like a fool anyways. It's the same with "FTF Hound" and "Radius Slave". All activities develop their own slang; I think it adds to the fun and sense of community. As a lad I was into BMX racing, and us kids were always yammering idiotic phrases like "getting rad", "gnarly endo", "bunny hop" and "whoop-de-do". I still use those terms today when reminiscing about those days of yore. Keeps me young and giddy.

 

To juggle the muggle is always a struggle.

To goggle your mug’ll just cause 'em to boggle!

 

You’ll haggle and wriggle to 'splain why you smuggle;

'twill rankle their wrinkle and giggle their doggle.

 

A fickle small dog'll bedraggle your ankle;

(Go Google "bedraggle," 'twill cause you to giggle!)

 

A muggle who’s quick'll see right through your haggle,

Your huckle and buckle won’t be worth a nickel.

 

Don't brickle or pickle or cause a boondoggle;

Just juggle the smuggle – hornswoggle that muggle!

[+The Blorenges]

Nope...

 

sposs poiuvres just doesn't roll off my tongue...

 

 

 

MrsB

[+moparots]

If we want a truly orginal word I supposed we could all take turns making posts by just banging on the keyboard. Something will eventlully pop out that catches our collective eye.

 

eiaov oapoeoarweasr;omsvd;omsgdoj aoieur1q4v8mvqmp9[spossvpofsd gpoiurve awpoiewrqqe- q 89yqrtg

 

Anything stand out?

Weasr es or sposs es

[+roziecakes]

I think the term is amusing, and usually folks who hear it for the first time when I'm explaining caching laugh out loud and say that it's fun.

 

I think if you're opposed to the term, just don't use it, but I think that most people enjoy it.

 

As for the seriousness of it, so much of our lives are already serious, this is how I have fun! I'm not too attached to it sounding "serious."

 

-Rozie

[+JacobBarlow]

I understand that is works well with kids and that it means non-geocachers. But I don't understand why it has become the standard. I don't have any children, so when I try to explain caching to my friends and family it sounds ridiculous to start talking about a term from Hairy Potter.

 

Is it time to change this term to something more serious?

 

There will those of you who will immediately say "It's just a game, its not serious" Well, football and basketball are just a game. But they are marketed seriously. Kids on the playground can play sports for fun but eventually they strive to emulate the professionals. Can geocaching follow that example?

 

I would love to see geocaching become a little more accepted and understood. It angers me to see people roll their eyes or give funny looks while I am explaining it. It sounds like a kiddy game but it's not. You can really have some interesting trips from geocaching. Keeping the kiddy terms could prevent some people that would have had a great time and contributed to the sport well, away from it.

 

Let the bash fest begin!

 

In an effort to help the annoying use of the "M word" go away I have purposely never used it and always try to get my friends not to... Its probably the only thing in Geocaching I dislike... lol

[The Stoned Wookie]

I think the use of the word muggle is a bit silly. I was thinking "WTH is a muggle" the first time I read that in a cache listing. Then I found out it has something to do with the Harry Pothead series. No offense to those that like the books/movies.

 

There has to be a better term for non-cachers.

[+Gimpy13]

There will those of you who will immediately say "It's just a game, its not serious" Well, football and basketball are just a game. But they are marketed seriously.

I'm not going to bash you but I am going to wonder about the serious marketing of a pro sport. Hmm. How much did Tiger Woods make over the last ten years as a serious athlete shooting "birdies" and "bogeys"? Basketball has its "alley-oops" and its "Nellie Balls". Football? How about "Hail Mary"? That's not only not "professional" but can also be religiously offensive to some folks. And don't even get me started on "pigskin".

 

You know what? I have a good friend who is really - I mean REALLY - bothered by the word "moist". Go figure. She copes by not using the word.

 

Now, you can say "I like my cake to be fresh and damp", but it doesn't really do the job. :-)

[+solo_cacher]

And finally, just face it that not everyone will "get" our hobby or be interested in it. I don't understand the appeal of hitting a little white ball around a golf course, but lots of folks spend every free moment doing it.

 

You aren't the only one my friend...well put.

 

I think people are put off by the term 'muggle' because it may be more geeky than childish. People get the impression we are a secret society of nerds who play geeky games outdoors. "Did the chess club kick you out?" I think is the kind of thought process that most people seem to have. "Why can't you just hike and camp and go swimming like everyone else?" - oh to be 'normal' like 'most people'...that's what I strive for...

 

At this stage of the game, we geocachers are all pioneers in a sport that was really only invented a few years ago and we really haven't even tapped into the potential of the game/sport yet. 'Mainstream' is not a word I would use to describe it for sure but sooner or later it is something that just about everyone will have tried at least a few times. I see a time when the game becomes more standardized and caches become more 'accessible' to more people. Different types of geocaching and various skill levels will come about as the sport evolves and who knows when someone may try to create a 'pro' geocaching rank. It's just bound to happen.

 

That being said, I'm not sure the term 'muggle' will really even be appropriate over time. Us 'old timers' won't give it a second thought. There will come a time when someone will just assume you are looking for a cache and won't give a you second look.

[+solo_cacher]

Being a fan of the show 'Lost' I just like to refer to the 'non-cachers' as 'Others'...

 

other suggestions...

 

'public'

'non-player'

'drone'

'passer' (geopasser)

'stranger'

'bystander'

'eyes'

'noser'

'watcher'

'zombie'

'body'

 

just to name a few but where does it stop and who defines the new standard?

[+ArcherDragoon]

I hate the word because I can never remember whether it is muggle or muggel.

 

I don't like the word because it was taken from a movie in which I have no interest.

 

I wish we could use a word of our own. No, I am not clever enough to suggest one.

How about mud blood? Chav comes to mind. I do like unwashed masses. Ignorant slobs is pretty cool.

 

If we want a truly orginal word I supposed we could all take turns making posts by just banging on the keyboard. Something will eventlully pop out that catches our collective eye.

 

eiaov oapoeoarweasr;omsvd;omsgdoj aoieur1q4v8mvqmp9[spossvpofsd gpoiurve awpoiewrqqe- q 89yqrtg

 

Anything stand out?

But...wouldn't that apply to those of us without geocaching parents???

[GOF and Bacall]

I hate the word because I can never remember whether it is muggle or muggel.

 

I don't like the word because it was taken from a movie in which I have no interest.

 

I wish we could use a word of our own. No, I am not clever enough to suggest one.

How about mud blood? Chav comes to mind. I do like unwashed masses. Ignorant slobs is pretty cool.

 

If we want a truly orginal word I supposed we could all take turns making posts by just banging on the keyboard. Something will eventlully pop out that catches our collective eye.

 

eiaov oapoeoarweasr;omsvd;omsgdoj aoieur1q4v8mvqmp9[spossvpofsd gpoiurve awpoiewrqqe- q 89yqrtg

 

Anything stand out?

 

jlef

lsfhauio

haehir

osdr,

opdgyibun

drytiolb

lskdvgn

 

Who's next?

[+Nature Kids]

Here is something I found on the background (pre-Potter). "Muggle" was used in the 20s/30s as a slang for marijuana and possibly to describe people who weren't "in the know" about the use of marijuana. Gee, that sounds like a term I want my kids using.

 

If ya don't have any muggles, then who's gonna muggle the cache's?

 

If Muggle has such a bad incantation, then Cache should be changed too, because it has more definitions for drugs than Muggle. Check out Urban Dictionary definitions for Caching...........

[+mrbort]

I think "muggle" is sort of quaint/quirky/vaguely amusing but don't use it and feel vaguely embarrassed when having to explain what it means to those I'm trying to introduce to the hobby... not sure why though. Could be that in my little brain the term evokes that kneejerk response against implicit elitism (even though I totally know that it's not used in an elitist fashion and is just a part of the common caching vernacular) or that since it's sort of silly, I worry that people will, by association think the hobby is stupid. Either way, I don't really care and since it's so ingrained into the vocabulary, can't really do anything other than not use it

[+Harry Dolphin]

Harry Potter is only for kiddies? I haven't been a kiddie in many decades! And I love the Harry Potter series!

[knowschad]

If ya don't have any muggles, then who's gonna muggle the cache's?

 

Excellent point! We must also consider the verb.

 

The cache has been 'publiced' ? Nawww..

The cache has been 'non-playered' ? Nawww..

The cache has been 'droned'? well... MAYbe.

The cache has been 'passered' (geopassered)? 'eh

The cache has been 'strangered'? ? Nawww..

The cache has been 'bystandered'? I don't think so

The cache has been 'eyesed'? Huh?

The cache has been 'nosered'? Yeah, that one might work

The cache has been 'watchered'? ? Nawww..

The cache has been 'zombied'? Zombies eat things, they don't muggle them. Whoops... sorry about that word!

The cache has been 'bodied'? Let me sleep on it.

[+mrbort]

Come to think of it, I think that perhaps my embarrassment when explaining the term comes from the fact that it's not that creative and also has undertones that geocaching is some sort of Harry Potter role playing game in disguise And I certainly don't want to leave an inkling of that in the head of people who are still trying to wrap their heads around the idea of a global treasure hunt

 

Much as I love the series, I don't want to put on a Snuggie and go running around the woods

[knowschad]

If ya don't have any muggles, then who's gonna muggle the cache's?

 

Excellent point! We must also consider the verb.

 

The cache has been 'publiced' ? Nawww..

The cache has been 'non-playered' ? Nawww..

The cache has been 'droned'? well... MAYbe.

The cache has been 'passered' (geopassered)? 'eh

The cache has been 'strangered'? ? Nawww..

The cache has been 'bystandered'? I don't think so

The cache has been 'eyesed'? Huh?

The cache has been 'nosered'? Yeah, that one might work

The cache has been 'watchered'? ? Nawww..

The cache has been 'zombied'? Zombies eat things, they don't muggle them. Whoops... sorry about that word!

The cache has been 'bodied'? Let me sleep on it.

[+Renegade Knight]

If ya don't have any muggles, then who's gonna muggle the cache's?

 

Excellent point! We must also consider the verb....

 

I'm partial to maggoted.

 

The Cache has been maggoted.

 

Sadly, that never caught on.

[+Western Mass Clan]

 

Is it time to change this term to something more serious?

 

 

How about instead of something serious, we go with something more ominous ... like "THEM".

 

Example:

 

Cacher 1: Act natural, here come some muggles.

Cacher 2: No ... Oh my God ... It's one of ... THEM!

Cacher 1: Who?

Cacher 2: THEM! You know, they're like the Men in Black and Freemasons ... COMBINED!!

Cacher 1: You're completely nutters, you know?

[+brenda&&rew]

And finally, just face it that not everyone will "get" our hobby or be interested in it. I don't understand the appeal of hitting a little white ball around a golf course, but lots of folks spend every free moment doing it.

 

Perfect point... AND there is some pretty weird names associated with golf as well... a bogey? Birdie? How weird is that?

Another sport with strange names... figure skating... triple sow cow.. how much more strange can that be compared to muggle.

[+TheAlabamaRambler]

From http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Muggle#Prior_usages

 

J. K. Rowling said she created the word "muggle" from "mug", an English term for someone who is easily fooled. She added the "-gle" to make it sound less demeaning and more "cuddly."[1] The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ...

 

Prior usages

 

There are several uses of the word "muggle" or "muggles" prior to its use in the Harry Potter novels, arranged in chronological order:

 

* "Muggle" is the name of the antagonist in Lewis Carroll's 1854 short story "Wilhelm von Schmitz."

 

* "Muggles" was a slang term for marijuana in the 1920s and 1930s, associated with the jazz scene.[2]

 

* Muggles is a tune recorded by Louis Armstrong and his orchestra in 1928.

 

* "Muggles" is used in a 1946 book Raggedy Ann in the Snow White Castle.[3]

 

* "Muggles" is a character from Carol Kendall's first Minnipins novel The Gammage Cup (1959).[4] She acts as an initially-unwitting and confused participant in challenging the narrow-minded orthodoxy of the powers that be in Valley Between the Mountains. However, it is her down-to-earth thinking and personal integrity and support from her friends that give them the ability to think outside the square. It is this that gives them the capacity to save their community from an external threat, the Mushroom people. The book's chapters are headed with a series of "Muggles' Maxims" which provide the moral and intellectual spine for the story.

 

* "Muggle" is used once to refer to a spliff in Zap Comics No. 0 (published 1971).

 

* "Muggles" are a race in "RAH" (later retitled "The Legend of Rah and the Muggles"), a 1984 book by Nancy Stouffer. She claimed that she owned the trademark for the word "muggle", and sued Rowling and her publishers. In 2002, the case was dismissed.[5]

 

* "Muggle-Wumps" is a family of monkeys in "The Twits", a novel by Roald Dahl first published in 1980.[6]

 

Cannabis (also known as marijuana[1] or ganja[2] in its herbal form and hashish in its resinous form[3]) is a psychoactive product of the plant Cannabis sativa L. subsp. ... For other uses, see Jazz (disambiguation). ... Muggles is the title of a recording by Louis Armstrong and His Orchestra, recorded in Chicago on December 7, 1928. ... Year 1928 (MCMXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Gammage Cup is a childrens book by Carol Kendall about a group of Minnipins from the town of Slipper on the Water. ... A spliff. ... Zap Comix is the best-known of the underground comics that emerged as part of the youth counterculture of the late 1960s. ... Nancy Kathleen Stouffer, also known as N. K. Stouffer, is an author who wrote childrens books in the 1980s. ... Nancy Stouffer. ... The Twits is a childrens book written by Roald Dahl and illustrated by Quentin Blake. ... Roald Dahl (IPA: ) (13 September 1916 – 23 November 1990) was a UK novelist, short story author and screenwriter of Norwegian parentage, famous as a writer for both children and adults. ...

Later usages

 

The word "muggle" or "muggles" is is used in other contexts, most of which are similar to the sense used in the Harry Potter series of books:

 

* "Muggle" was added to the Oxford English Dictionary in 2003, where it is said to refer to a person who is lacking a skill.[7]

 

* "Muggle" is used in more-common English by those in small, specialised groups (such as hacker culture;[8] and Pagans, Neopagans and Wiccans[9]) to refer to those outside the group.

 

* "Muggle" (or geomuggle) is used by geocachers to refer to those not involved in or aware of the sport of Geocaching. A cache that has been tampered with by non-participants is said to be "muggled"[10][11].

 

* "Mister Muggles" is the name of the Bennet family dog in the NBC drama, Heroes, first aired in 2006. Mister Muggles is a pomeranian.[12]

[+Pork King]

If ya don't have any muggles, then who's gonna muggle the cache's?

 

Excellent point! We must also consider the verb.

 

The cache has been 'publiced' ? Nawww..

 

Not to sound lie one of THEM, but the correct form of this would be "publicked". C + ing or ed, add K.

An example of this is when "traffic" turns to "trafficking"

 

The way you spelled it, it looks like 'pub-lice'd. Ew.

 

Also, while i agree that "muggle" does sound a little silly, many different clubs, groups, and even professions have their own lexicon that would sound silly to outsiders.