Slang Terms for Law Enforcement (Part I)

Unless you live in an uninhabited wilderness or you happen to be reading this from a post-apocalyptic future when society no longer exists, you probably see law enforcement officers on a regular basis. Hopefully not in a professional manner, mind you, as most people don't especially enjoy encountering the police. Even if you haven't done anything wrong there's something unnerving about The Law. Maybe that's why we have myriad nicknames for them. . .

Cops: There is some debate as to whether this is an acronym for Constable on Patrol, or is a shortened form of 'copper' inspired by the copper badges worn by police in the past. A more likely explanation is that the term means "One who captures or snatches," derived from the Latin word capere from which we also take the word capture. Maybe I'm old school, but a term that not only originates in Latin, but also makes sense, can only be a Good thing.

The Fuzz: Does anyone actually use this term anymore? For that matter, did anyone ever actually use it in a non-ironic sense? As for where the term might come from, it might possibly be inspired by the static noise from two-way radios used in police cars, but that's speculation. Of course, these days police use mobile phones as much as two-ways, and radio sound quality has improved, so that's hardly relevant anymore. It always was a fairly Bad term, anyway.

Bobbies: This one is strictly British, and comes from Robert Peel, who founded the London Metropolitan Police in 1829. Incidentally, at the time people also referred to the police as Peelers, but thankfully that term didn't stick around so much. As well, apparently auxiliary officers in the UK were at one time referred to as 'hobby bobbies' which is hilarious. Rhyming nicknames are almost always Good.

The Po-Po: It's ambivalence time. While I personally find the term amusing, it doesn't exactly show much creativity. In fact, it shows laziness and unnecessary abbreviation, so it's about par for the course with American youth/hip hop culture, which is where the term originated. For that matter, it's pretty much where the term still is, since I don't exactly hear the term in everyday conversation — not that I talk about law enforcement on a regular basis, mind you. In any case, the simple fact that I want to use the term, even though it's stupid, is probably enough to tip this one to Ugly.