Hooker

Hooker may be:

1. A prostitute
2. A traditional sailing vessel from the west coast of Ireland. See Galway Hooker.
3. A position in rugby union or rugby league—see Rugby union positions and Rugby League positions. It is the central position in the front row of the scrum. In rugby union, the hooker also throws into the line-out.
4. A practitioner of catch wrestling. Also the title of the autobiography of the most famous catch wrestler, Lou Thesz.
5. Several famous people have had the surname Hooker:
   • Evelyn Hooker, Dr. (1907–1996) American psychologist who showed in the 1950s that gay people cannot be distinguished from straight ones by their mental state or capacity
   • Joseph Dalton Hooker (1817–1911) English botanist (son of William Jackson Hooker)
   • Joseph Hooker (1814–1879) American Civil War General, who is incorrectly credited with originating meaning #1
   • John Lee Hooker (1917–2001) American blues singer and guitarist
   • Richard Hooker (1554–1600) Anglican theologian
   • Richard Hooker, pseudonym of H. Richard Hornberger (1924–1997) Author of M*A*S*H
   • William Jackson Hooker (1785–1865) English botanist

See also: Hooker, Catch wrestling, Evelyn Hooker, Galway Hooker, H. Richard Hornberger, Ireland, John Lee Hooker, Joseph Dalton Hooker, Joseph Hooker