Origin of the names "police" and "militia". Reference. Where did the offensive nickname “garbage” come from?

• Bobby is what they call police officers in England. This word appeared on behalf of one of the country's prime ministers - Robert Peel. Robert is Bob, or Bobby for short. The merit of this prime minister is that at the end of the 19th century he transformed the institution of the police, making this public institution much more effective and successful.
• “Cop is perhaps the most famous nickname for police officers in the world. And despite the fact that it is not that old. According to the compilers of Webster's Dictionary, the most authoritative explanatory dictionary in English in the USA, this word meaning “police officer” appeared in 1859. The dictionary does not explain the etymology. There are several versions of how this word appeared. The most common one is that cop is short for copper, and the first American police officers had eight-pointed copper stars. Another version: cop is simply an abbreviation for the expression “Constable on Patrol.”
• The most common nickname for police officers in France is flic. The French are still arguing about the origin of the word. It appeared in the middle of the 19th century. Initially, policemen were called flies (mouche). Then, experts believe, the French “fly” was replaced by the Dutch fliege, which then turned into flic. Much later, the French came up with the idea of ​​deciphering the word flic as Federation Legale des Idiots Casques (literally translated as “Legal Federation of Idiots in Helmets”).
• French police officers are also called poule - chickens (the Parisian police headquarters on the Quai d'Orfèvre occupies the place where poultry used to be sold). Finally, the most famous name for French police officers all over the world is “agent”, that is, simply “agent”.
• In Germany, police officers are called bulls (Bulle), in Spain, perhaps the most decent nickname for police officers is poli, in Italy, sbirro (Latin birrum - “red cloak”), after the original color of the police uniform.
• In the Netherlands, the most popular police nicknames are Jewish roots. They are called smeris (possibly from the Hebrew “to watch”) and klabak (from “dog” in Yiddish).” It is assumed that the word “dog” was used in the meaning of “bloodhound”.
• “In Australia, police officers have long been called jacks. Unlike the story with the British bobbies, this has nothing to do with the founder of the Australian law enforcement forces. At first, the Australians called their policemen gendarmes, and the average policeman was called, accordingly, John Darm. At some point, John's last name disappeared and he was renamed Jack."

Who is a “policeman”?

The word "policeman" means local resident occupied territories, serving in the fascist auxiliary police. And it is associated with the words “punisher”, “traitor”, “traitor”, “fascist”. In a country that survived the Great Patriotic War, such a name, used not only to a police officer, but to anyone else, is clearly an insult.

One of the most famous slang names for police officers (in the recent past - militia) is “garbage”. This word cannot be called respectful. However, it was born in a criminal environment, and one cannot expect respect for the servants of the law from these people.

Sometimes the name “garbage” is compared with the English phrase “my cop” - “my policeman”: if taken not as Latin, but as Slavic, it can really be read as “garbage”. But it is, of course, impossible to take such a popular “etymological theory” seriously. Borrowing a slang name from another language is possible (just remember the established custom in Russia of calling the American dollar a “buck”), but such borrowings occur through oral speech, and not through writing.

The version of borrowing from Yiddish, where the word “muser” means “communicator,” raises no less doubts.

The origin of this slang word should be sought in the Russian language, and you can point to the specific source of the offensive nickname.

Origin of the name

The custom of calling police officers “garbage” dates back to before the October Revolution.

Everyone knows the abbreviation MUR - Moscow Criminal Investigation Department. But the name of this department was not always like that. From 1866 until abolition in 1917, the service Russian police, which carried out inquiries, searches for criminals and missing persons, was called the Criminal Investigation, and in Moscow, accordingly, the Moscow Criminal Investigation. Abbreviation of this name looked like "IUS". It is from this abbreviation that the word “garbage” was formed.

IN Soviet times Other departments were created with different names and abbreviations, but the language retained its former name.

Other police nicknames

“Garbage” is not the only slang name for law enforcement officers.

No less popular is the name “cops”, the emergence of which dates back to the same era. Employees of the Moscow Detective Service wore a special distinctive sign - with the image of a hunting dog of the cop breed.

The word “cop” came into the Russian criminal code in a more complex way. The borrowing took place at a time when Poland was still part of Russian Empire, the Poles called the prison guard a “cop.”

The Poles themselves borrowed this word from the Hungarian language. The word "ment" is translated from Hungarian as "cloak, cape." This was the nickname given to police officers in Austria-Hungary because they actually wore capes.

On November 12, at about 18.30, in the underground passage near the Obolon metro station, random passers-by witnessed how our police were protecting us. Three representatives of law enforcement agencies (in relation to them this word can be used exclusively categorically) agencies, clearly demonstrating that it is not for nothing that people call them “garbage”, with shouting and swearing they dispersed elderly grandmothers who were selling parsley and cucumbers. Obviously, they, as representatives state power, thus taking care that older people did not have “unearned income” other than their homeless pension, and did not evade paying taxes on their crazy parsley profits. Because in our country, perhaps, all the oligarchs pay taxes on their offshore assets, which means these grandmothers should too. And then we got drunk...

Unexpectedly, the situation took its illogical and unusual development. A young guy stood out from the crowd of passers-by who silently walked past a living example of the police caring for order in the state. He approached our valiant police, who were having fun to the fullest, and said that it was impossible to behave this way with elderly people. The cops were somewhat stunned by such impudence. But, as representatives of the law in the performance of their official duties, they politely and tactfully recommended that the guy go to hell... if he doesn’t want to be “closed.” And he, a scoundrel, not heeding the voice of reason, declared that the cops are like that themselves, since they do not respect elderly people who are old enough to be their grandmothers, and do not allow them to earn even a penny for bread.

Further events unfolded according to a scenario known in advance. The cops twisted the guy's hands and, throwing him to the ground, began kicking him, as required by the charter and service instructions. Then they handcuffed him, pulled a sweater over his head to limit his mobility and field of vision, and tried to take him outside to the street.

During this time, people gathered around. Many began to be outraged by the actions of the stern boys in uniform, and one girl began to film their actions on mobile phones. The naturally modest heroes did not like this; one of them approached the girl and hit her on the hand with the phone. The phone flew out of her hands from the impact and hit the face of an elderly woman who was standing nearby, breaking her face. Cop, with a trained eye better than any The forensic medical examiner assessed the situation and immediately stated that the girl was drunk and would now be taken to the police department, and therefore it was better to give her the phone. Having been refused, he tried to do it with gentlemanly gallantry - that is, by force. The only thing that stopped him was that the events described were filmed by about a dozen witnesses on their phones (video below).

The guy was dragged into the street and beaten along the way. People, outraged by this, tried to fight him off, demanding that the police officers show their identification. Some people started calling the police. About fifty people followed them out into the street.

The guy was thrown into the “Bobby”, but the crowd surrounded the car, blocked traffic and demanded to release the detainee. Three “heroes” tried to forcefully throw people away like Ilya Muromets of the Polovtsians in order to clear the passage, but failed. They were pushed away from the car - the spirit of Mr. Lynch, blessed memory, was in the air. Then these epic heroes rushed to the taxi standing nearby and tried to escape in it. But in vain. At this moment, one of the characters apparently screwed himself up a little - he started calling someone on the phone and shouting “Get me out of here, I’m scared!”

Here people in civilian clothes just arrived and introduced themselves as detectives from the Obolonsky District Department of Internal Affairs, among them was the deputy head of the department - he was the only one who showed his ID. While this deputy demanded that people disperse, promising that “it will be worse,” other opera men mentioned the classic song of the Lyube group - “if we break through, the opera will answer!” (With). They rudely, with swear words, proved to everyone present that a trained cop is significantly superior in level physical training an average woman, and quickly cleared the way for the car with the detainee.

After the heroic escape of "Bobik", the opera began to demand the crowd to disperse, threatening and swearing. When asked to introduce himself and show his ID, one of them said: My name is Viktor Yushchenko! In response to the remark that this was not true, the false Victor neighed like a horse, obviously feeling like not only the president (that is, the all-powerful king), but also the famous humorist Petrosyan. The deputy head of the Obolonsky District Department of Internal Affairs did not react in any way to the behavior of his subordinates, which indicates hard work and lack of complexes. Sorry, about a clear understanding of the requirements of laws and official instructions by an authorized person.

At the same time, the guy who stood up for the grandmothers in the crossing was taken to some yard, pulled out of the car and thrown onto the asphalt. One of the policemen pressed his knees on the handcuffs so that they cut the skin on his hands to the bone. “Well, you shaggy guy, are you silent now?!” asked the defender of order and law. After which he stood with his feet on the detainee’s back and began to twist his arms upward. Then the poor fellow was stretched face-first across the asphalt and the abuse continued.

At the police station, the arrested person was photographed, his data was recorded, and his fingerprints were taken. His name was Galkin Vladislav Alexandrovich, born in 1985. Galkin was taken to the hospital, where a doctor briefly examined him and, without conducting any tests, allowed him to be taken back to the department.

There Vladislav was beaten again, and then ordered to empty everything from his pockets and taken to a cell. During the night, Galkin was beaten several more times. In the morning, his mind clouded from the beatings, he was forced to sign protocols and explanations and was sent to the “homicide” department. They asked where his things were. Galkin replied that they were taken by those who brought him here. After phone call one of those who mocked Vladislav appeared - he brought mobile phone and a wallet from which about 200 hryvnia inexplicably disappeared. The cop was very indignant that the unscrupulous Galkin forced him to return, and he, an honest policeman, could have already had time to drink beer...

The consequence of this undoubtedly indicative and cautionary tale it became that the investigator of the prosecutor's office of the Obolonsky district of Kiev Nedilko A.V. filed a case against Galkin under Part 2 of Article 342 (Resistance to an employee law enforcement agency in the performance of his official duties) and Part 2 of Article 345 (Intentional infliction of beatings, light or moderate bodily harm on a law enforcement officer or his close relatives in connection with the performance of his official duties).

At Galkin’s trial, the judge asked: why do you need a lawyer, you admitted your guilt anyway? In response to Vladislav’s statement about bullying and forced testimony against himself, the judge called the investigator. The investigator expressed outrage. No, really! How dare this long-haired guy demand a lawyer guaranteed by law after his testimony was kicked out of him?!

But this story is not the first and, I’m afraid, not the last. Recently, the Court of Appeal of the Kharkov Region acquitted tractor driver Mikhail Zhidenok, who shot a cop in his own yard in the fall of 2006. Infoporn has already written about this. However, the story of Zhidenok is an exception rather than a rule. The situation with the atrocities committed by the police has long gone beyond the limits of common sense. The people called upon to protect us from criminals often act no worse than the maniacs in low-budget Hollywood action films. And everyone who resists them risks either being tortured to death or going to prison, and for a very long time. The line between bandits and cops has blurred.

And it is no longer known who should be feared more.

And it is also not known which of them should be shot first, like wild animals.

Vladimir Boroday, Infoporn

Eyewitness videos.

Once upon a time, detective workers introduced themselves as “Trash so and so” - and there was nothing offensive in that

In a country where, as they say, half were imprisoned and half were guards, a peculiar prison slang could not help but arise. He firmly entered the life of society. In Russia, an interlocutor can slip into prison jargon quite suddenly, no matter who he is - an academician or a simple worker.

Two versions of a bad word

The jargon for “garbage” that is now used to describe police officers dates back to when they were the police. There are two versions of the origin of the word “garbage” as a designation for law enforcement officers.

In Tsarist Russia this word had no offensive meaning. In those days, the detective department of the Moscow police was called the Moscow Criminal Investigation (ICC). Right up until the revolution, the capital’s police officers presented themselves this way: such-and-such garbage. It was meant: M Oskovskoe U governing body WITH exquisite ABOUT departments R Russia or M Oskovsky U head WITH search ABOUT operative R worker

Since 1917, the ICC has received a more euphonious name, but the word has already taken hold in folk speech. It meant not only an employee of a law enforcement agency, but also became synonymous with a scoundrel, a careerist and an unprincipled person.

According to the second version, the word “garbage,” like other criminal vocabulary, comes from Odessa. The port city is known for its ancient and rich criminal tradition, as well as its influential Jewish community. A huge amount of slang vocabulary was formed in Odessa Jewish criminal circles.

Everyone known concepts“fraer”, “hillock”, “nishtyak” have roots in Hebrew. The word “garbage” also traces its origins from there. It is derived from the Hebrew word moser, meaning a person who communicates something.

This word also means an informer, someone who “snitches” to law enforcement agencies on his friends and loved ones. Both in the Russian gendarmerie and in the Soviet police, the services of seksots were in demand. The word “garbage” as a designation for a police representative passed on to them.

Hungarian cops

The slang expression “cop” has become another name for the profession that offends law enforcement officers. The word “cop,” as well as “garbage,” entered the circle of Russian criminals even before the revolution. This word is mentioned in a secret manual on criminal jargon, released by the Moscow Criminal Investigation Department back in the late 20s. According to the reference book, the word “cop” among the “thieves” means a prison guard or police officer.

Philological specialists believe that “cop” penetrated into the language of Russian criminals from the Polish criminal “feeling”. This is a synonym for the word "garbage". “Ment” came into the Polish language, in turn, from Hungary. In the Hungarian language there is a word “mente”, meaning a raincoat worn by the Hungarian gendarmes.

Russian writer Vladimir Dal in his famous “ Explanatory dictionary” pointed out that the word “mentik” is the outer jacket of the hussars. Together with the Polish convicts, the nickname “cop” came to our country. They began to call guards, police officers or policemen

Despite the latest reform of domestic law enforcement agencies, you can still hear the word “garbage” on screens or in ordinary conversation, which is used to derogate police officers. Popular films made him famous among ordinary citizens who had nothing to do with the criminal world.

An offensive nickname is not used in a conversation with a representative of the authorities. It is used in conversation when you want to emphasize the incompetence of police officers. Where did this nickname come from?

Historians' version

Experts involved in the study of the criminal environment in Russia claim that the disparaging nickname used to be common official name criminal investigation agents. The abbreviation ICC stands for Moscow Criminal Investigation. His agents were simply called GARBAGE. This name did not carry any disparaging connotations.

Criminal investigation existed in Moscow from 1866 until the Revolution. The Soviet government considered his work unnecessary and disbanded him. Unfortunately, the number of crimes increased significantly at this time and a similar body had to be created again. New structure received another name - the Moscow Criminal Investigation Department. The last word changed, but the term “garbage” had already taken root in the criminal environment, so it remained.

In the USSR, many concepts changed their meaning. The word “garbage” began to be applied to criminal investigation officers capable of the most vile acts. There are always such people in any law enforcement agencies. They curry favor with management and can commit any meanness in order to move up the career ladder. A synonym for this term means household waste, so the association with them is obvious.

Odessa version

It’s not for nothing that at one time this “pearl” by the sea was considered the most criminalized place in the country. This was facilitated by its favorable location, the presence of a port, a mild climate and the presence of a large Jewish community.

Many slang words and phrases originate from the southern “Palmyra”. There were many criminal groups here that “worked” not only in the city and region, but influenced the entire country.

Due to the characteristic ethnic composition the criminal environment used a certain amount of foreign words. Most have Yiddish and Hebrew origins, such as “nishtyak” or “shmon”. Now they are known far beyond Odessa.

In the Hebrew language there was a word muser (moser). It denoted a person who cooperates with the authorities and informs on his friends and neighbors. The offensive expression took root in Odessa and began to be used as a curse word.

Another synonym

IN modern Russia There is another expression for a police officer - “cop”. It has Polish roots. Most of the country was part of the Empire, so many words from Polish language. Wardens in local correctional institutions wore “mentiks” - special raincoats made of thick fabric. This is where their nickname “cop” came from, which, together with the convicts, came to indigenous Russia and took root here.