Derived from the code switched Greek and Latin phrasal chant "Hoya Saxa!" (meaning "What (great) Rocks!"), which gained popularity at the school in the late nineteenth century. Even though "Hoya Saxa!" is an example of code-switching, since the phrase includes only a Greek adjective and a Latin noun, said adjective must be viewed as modifying the noun, which noun then controls the phrase as pertains to grammatical number and gender. Saxa, the phrasal noun, is the nominative plural form of the Latin neuter noun saxum, "(a) stone/(a) rock", and so means "stones"/"rocks"". Hoya in the phrase is an English transliteration of the Greek determiner οἵα (hoîă), the neuter nominative plural form of οἷος (hoîos), which introduces exclamatory independent phrases and is translated into English as "what (great)...!" Because of the foregoing, we can discern that the phrase "Hoya Saxa!" in its entirety means "What (great) rocks!" The chant was initially used in support of the college athletic teams, assumedly meaning something along the lines of "Look how hard and tough our (athletic) fellows are!" The name "Hoyas" came into use in the 1920s as a term decontextualized from the phrasal chant and applied as an identifier of Georgetown University students and alumni, who were thenceforth collectively known as "Hoyas". Compare Hokie.

honey plant