Some words, phrases or idioms can be credited to a generation, think YOLO for Millennials or cheugy for Gen Z, and there are some common phrases that seem to surpass generations, and become part of the lexicon, like break the ice or under the weather. 

Today we’re unpacking the origins of Hump Day, and why we’ve chosen this midpoint colloquialism to represent our mission.

Let’s get into it - what are the origins of hump day?

Hump Day is not a new term. It is a play off the idiom “over the hump” and its first colloquial use was in the 1920s. So if the regular Monday to Friday working week is a hilly marathon, Wednesday is the midpoint of the week, and once you’re over the hump, you’re on the downhill cruise into the weekend – which is why Wednesday is hump day. 

By the 1950s, people began more regularly referring to Wednesday hump day, but it wasn’t yet ingrained in culture. In 1975 American artist JJ Cale released a song called “Friday” which refers to Wednesday as hump day several times and talks about getting over hump as the week is half gone. 

As with many common realities we’ve adopted (examples), the widespread use of the term “hump day” came off the back of a TV commercial, for U.S. insurance brand GEICO in 2013. In the ad, Caleb the talking camel walks through a pre-COVID, pre-open plan office environment asking his coworkers if they know what day it is…until one of the office workers finally answers him - “it’s hump day”. 

Simple stuff, but it helped cement hump day into the dictionary and earnt the ad 16 million YouTube views in five months. 

When was hump day used in Australia?

There are some uniquely Australian idioms, like “to do a Harold Holt” or “fair go”, but hump day is not one of them. 

Before fast speed internet, memes and viral moments took a bit longer to reach us. According to the Macquarie Dictionary, hump day was first used in Adelaide in the 1980s, on FM Radio with the DJs John Vincent and Grant Cameron. 

Happy hump day

So why is hump day the best day to date? According to statistics, it’s the best night of the week for a date. 2023 Open Table data has validated Wednesday as the day for dating with Wednesday night dining increasing over the last 12 months more than any other day. 

A midweek date is ideal for those with busy work and social lives. With Fridays and Saturdays ideal times to see your mates, a Wednesday date night allows you to get to know someone with much less pressure. And if the vibe isn’t right? Work the next morning is an easy out. 

This is one of the reasons why we landed on the name Humpday for our dating app. 

Are you ready to date on Humpday?