X
Well attestedNamed from the place

Mexican wave

noun · first attested 1986

British television named it for Mexico; American crowds had done it for years.

The ripple of spectators standing and sitting that travels around a stadium.

Mexico·Mexico

23.0000°N -102.0000°W · Q96

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Record

Relationship
Named from the place
Confidence
Well attestedThe place link is the standard scholarly account.
Attested
1986
Part of speech
noun

Explanations here are written for this atlas. Dictionary text is not copied; the sources are linked so the claim can be checked.

How it traveled
  1. Step 1

    Mexico

  2. In English

    Mexican wave

The entry

Broadcasts of the 1986 World Cup in Mexico gave the stunt its British name, and it stuck across the Commonwealth. In North America it is simply the wave, traced to college and professional games in the early 1980s.

Also pinned to Mexico

3 more from the same place

Mexico

9 more words from Mexico

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