Origin of the word: kayfabe?

[Guest TheBigBadBootyDaddy]

Everybody spouts it out all the time here, but where did it come from?  Did someone say it in pig latin while coughing?

 

Its an honest question, heck I wasnt even sure what it meant until a short time ago.  

 

Breaking character like breaking bones man

 

but, where did the word come from?

[Guest CoreyLazarus416]

It's an old carnie term, since pro wrestling was originally a carnival sideshow. It was probably used as code between the carnies so that the marks (ie. poor fools that are going to get gypped) would just think they were talking in another language.

 

If you look at it a certain way, it says "fake."

[Guest Maurizio C... Version 2]

you know why marks are called like that? because in the carny days, the promoter would go near the mark and "mark" him with something so that they knew who to accept in the ring for the strong man confrontation.