An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Annotated/Hokuspokus

by Friedrich Kluge

Hokuspokus, masculine, ‘hocus-pocus,’ Modern High German only. It became current in England, where a book on conjuring, with the title ‘Hocus Pocus junior,’ appeared in 1634 A.D. The early history of this apparently fantastic and jocose expression is still obscure; its connection with the phrase used in the celebration of mass, ‘hoc enim est corpus meum,’ cannot be established.