20 True Stories Behind Famous Wrestling Names
17. 'Kayfabe'
Strictly speaking, not really a name – but kayfabe is such an important term for the pro wrestling business that it’s interesting to note the origin of the word here.
It’s old school carny lingo, like much of the professional wrestler’s jargon (‘mark’, ‘work’, etc). In this case, the word ‘kayfabe’ is likely to stem from a reversal of the word ‘fake’ to ‘keh-fah’ with an additional syllable added to the end to obscure the meaning and fool outsiders listening in. That basic principle is much the same as with Pig Latin and other forms of cant and argot worldwide.
Back when the WWF had credits on the end of their TV shows, the director's name was sometimes included as 'Kaye Fabe'... a little in-joke for the boys.