HODL started as a drunk typo in 2013. Here's the full story

December 18, 2013. Bitcoin had just crashed from $1,100 to $600 in a matter of days. A forum user named GameKyuubi sat down at his keyboard, by his own admission a bit drunk, and posted a thread called "I AM HODLING."

He didn't try to fix the typo. He explained that he knew he was a bad trader, that he'd lose to people who actually knew what they were doing if he tried to time the market, so he'd decided to just sit on his Bitcoin and wait. The community ran with it. The word never went away.

"Hold On for Dear Life" was invented after the fact to explain a word that already existed. Classic backronym.

The funny thing is that his reasoning was actually solid. He identified his own weakness, and the best solution he came up with was to do nothing. That's essentially passive long-term investing applied to crypto, and for Bitcoin specifically the track record has backed it up every single time, through every crash that was supposed to be the end.

The most rational strategy in crypto came from a drunk guy who couldn't spell on a Tuesday night in 2013. Feels right.