Talk:Rebel yell

.wav of rebel yell?
The site and file seem authentic enough but without being an expert I didn't want to attach them to the article. I thought I'd leave it here on the talk page in case anyone is interested.

http://www.26nc.org/History/RebelYell/main.htm

--Bad carpet 02:32, 25 January 2006 (UTC)
 * Fair enough but I gather there are about as many versions of the rebel yell as there are people who can/want to do it so we should recognize this isn't a definitive version. AllanHainey 08:24, 25 January 2006 (UTC)

Possible Origin
At my school I was watching a documentary on the Civil War, and it stated that at the First Battle of Bull Run (I believe), when it seemed the confederates were going to be defeated, Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson showed up and told his troops to scream wildly while charging into battle. I'm not sure of the accuracy of this statement, but I felt that it should be mentioned. Thanks. --66.156.22.110 22:03, 30 April 2006 (UTC)

User yes you are correct, when Jackson commanded is brigade on Henry House Hill during the first battle of Bull Run he told his troops to "yell like furies". —Preceding unsigned comment added by 166.66.16.116 (talk) 10:09, 2 September 2008 (UTC)

Dubious
The sentence "The students at Texas A&M University have a 'Whoop' yell that is based on the rebel yell." Seems about as likely to be factual as the statement "The stuents at Texas A&M University have found the kingdom of Prester John." Not very likely. If no one knows what the yell sounded like, how can they have a yell "based on" it. Just a thought. Pygmypony 07:37, 10 October 2007 (UTC)

As a graduate of A&M familiar with the Corps of Cadets, I can say that it is common belief that the "whoop" is based on the rebel yell. If pgymypony knew anything about Texas A&M he would know that Lawrence Sullivan Ross was a past president of the University and would have intimate knowledge of the rebel yell. It is likely that many of the students in the early 1900's fathers and grandfathers were also familiar with the rebel yell. If all you can do to refute the statement is speculate, this dubious label should be removed.Wtexas (talk) 07:24, 11 April 2008 (UTC)


 * Get a proper citation and we'll stick it back in. Like most college traditions, however, it probably arose in the 1920s and it was probably given the backstory to make it more authentic.  I have a slew of Aggie friends and the "Whoop!" sounds nothing like the descriptions and snippets of possible "rebel yell" that exist. TuckerResearch (talk) 03:46, 11 July 2008 (UTC)


 * Thanks, Tucker. This is the sentiment I was trying to convey. I could have phrased it better, I suppose. Pygmypony (talk) 16:27, 19 December 2008 (UTC)

Highland Parallel ?
There isn't as much scope these days for wild yelps or battle cries as there used to be ! But one thought from my own personal recollection can be found at less-formal ceilidhs throughout Scotland - in particular the Highlands. While a Scottish dance band is playing or a piper playing a reel or if the gathering is dancing, you will hear male participants "hooching (ch as in loCH)". Sometimes they say the word "hooch" high-pitched, but it is often a gutteral yelp with no defined word, which starts lower and ends as a high-pitch scream. It can be typically a "Hee-yoooowww" ! or a "whoooooch" ! It certainly peps up the gathering if a few guys are doing this through a fast dance ! I've done it many times myself ! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.154.249.58 (talk) 08:40, 2 February 2008 (UTC)

I support this origin, more particularly the screaming that war yelling that took place during a dreaded highland charge may also be a possible origin for the rebel yell. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 166.66.16.116 (talk) 10:12, 2 September 2008 (UTC)

There is a problem with identifying the origin of the Yell with the Scottish highlanders. The Celtic influence in the South was mostly of Lowland Scot and Scots-Irish origins. The Highland influence was limited, in the main, to coastal Carolina and did not come through the American Revolution very well as can be seen in the case of Flora Macdonald's family. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Dudhglas (talk • contribs) 22:13, 15 December 2009 (UTC)

Agreed. The Southern US was populated by a mixture of English (Anglo-Saxon), Lowland Scottish (Anglo-Saxon) and "Scots-Irish" who were a roughly even mix of English and Lowland Scottish planters. The Irish influence was still small in America at that point, and most of the Scottish highlanders settled in Canada. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 78.149.255.98 (talk) 15:22, 25 May 2011 (UTC)

Hang on
Is it me or does the recorded rebel yell sound like homer simpson on fire?

Andrew Chung (talk) 13:26, 29 February 2008 (UTC)

Andrew, try listining to the simulation at this site http://historypublishingco.com/articles.html Wtexas1 (talk) 18:48, 11 April 2008 (UTC)
 * The audio in the link stopped for me; here is a Youtube link to the same source. The sound is similar to a terrified animal about to be slaughtered. If you have a rural background, and have heard pigs about to be slaughtered, you may know what I mean. Now that I have heard the sound, it reminds me of the Aztec death whistles which have been excavated and played by archaeologists (I heard one on CNN). --Ancheta Wis (talk) 17:30, 18 October 2009 (UTC)

Article or talk of North/Union war cry/cries?
I believe I remember once hearing or reading about how the "Union" war cry was a deeper, "more manly" (from the standpoint of someone who fought for the north) and less shrill/effeminate "shout". Besides quoting sources for this if anyone can, this makes me wonder, if such a Union battle cry was the precursor to the modern U.S. army hoo-hah &/or the U.S. marines ooh-rah? Nagelfar (talk) 06:27, 9 March 2008 (UTC)

Name Change
The name of this page shold be changed to "Confederate Yell." I'm from the south, and even though most of us are not confederate sympathisers, we don't like being called "Rebels." —Preceding unsigned comment added by Mhhm27 (talk • contribs) 18:51, 14 February 2009 (UTC)
 * Are there any sources for calling it "Confederate Yell"? I've never heard that term before.   Will Beback    talk    04:37, 15 February 2009 (UTC)
 * I'm also from the south, and a descendant of a Confederate soldier, and I don't find it objectionable to call it by the commonly accepted name.Pygmypony (talk) 10:01, 4 November 2009 (UTC)

Video from the 1930s?
It may have been transferred to video, but isn't it more likely that it was recorded on film? 87.244.84.42 (talk) 20:57, 5 November 2012 (UTC)

Yee-Haw!
The first paragraph under the heading "Sound" includes the suggestion that the Rebel yell is portrayed in movies and video games (without citations) as a "Yee-Haw". I'd like to point out two problems with that.

To my understanding, Yee and Haw are part of a command set, used for driving cattle or steering ganged horses. The Wikipedia entry for the Yee-Haw commands is here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gee_and_haw

Gee-Haw and Yee-Haw are assumed to be the same thing; as the commands are for livestock, the spelling is more flexible than the pronunciation.

Yee-Haw is used as an exclamation, rather than conflicting commands in the modern era, indicating cheer or other positive emotive excitement. Assuming "battle cry used during charges to intimidate the enemy and boost morale" whenever someone shouts "Yee-Haw" in common media clearly demonstrates that Yee-Haw is not used as a battle cry where basic research has been done.

What I'm asking for here is that at least one movie and video game should be cited to validate the particular sentence that claims "Yee-Haw" has been used as a war cry in media, as well as a the clarification and link for Gee-Haw for educational clarity. 98.209.228.228 (talk) 17:42, 15 May 2014 (UTC)

Why isn't this called the Rebel Yell/P?
Just listen to it. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 220.101.38.242 (talk) 05:18, 8 September 2019 (UTC)