Boy oh boy

Posted by Smokey Stover on August 30, 2007

In Reply to: Boy oh boy posted by Jason on August 29, 2007

: Can anyone tell me the origin of the phrase 'Boy oh boy'?

I don't think I can. The first mention of "Boy!" as an interjection of American origin expressing shock, surprise or excitement listed by the Oxford English Dictionary dates from 1917. The OED treats "Boy!" and "Oh, boy," as equivalent. "Boy oh boy" is obviously just a variant. I don't think the other uses of "Boy" explain this use, although nowadays it's parallel to "Man oh man!" or just "Man!" used somewhat the way "Boy!" is used, but not precisely so.
SS