The history of coaching starts off back in a small 14th century Hungarian village located on the main road along the Danube between Vienna and Budapest. These two great cities needed well-built, fast vehicles that would carry more than two people over the bumpy roads of the day in as much comfort as was then possible.
And so it was that the important post-town of Kocs gave its name to the new vehicle type. It was there that they began to build superior wagons, carts, and carriages. One of the best of these multi-horse carts was called, in Hungarian, “kocsi szekér” or a “wagon from Kocs”.
This Hungarian coach was highly praised because it was capable of holding 8 men, used light wheels, and could be towed by only one horse. Its design was so compact, elegant, and sturdy that it spread throughout Europe.
The German-speaking Viennese started to call this vehicle a ‘Kutsche’, which is how they heard Hungarians saying the name of their little carriage-making town. From Vienna these lively vehicles travelled to Paris and the French, adapting the Austrian word, called it a ‘coche’. When it arrived in Rome in Italian, it was a ‘cocchio’.
Eventually, the English called it a coach. So it was that the first coaches took VERY IMPORTANT PEOPLE from where they were – to where they wanted to go.
Our modern use of the word “coach” is actually a metaphor. “Coach” was applied first in education, not athletics.
In 18th century England, the term was used as a verb by students of tutors preparing them for exams. The slang reference for tutors became “coach” because tutors quickly and comfortably carried students to their goal of passing their exams.
