# Names for Police **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [May 27, 2005, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-for-police/305762 "2005-05-27T14:39:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![rivulus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/839c29/32.png) [@rivulus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rivulus)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2005, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-for-police/305762/21 "2005-05-31T20:56:41Z")
Not sure if someone told me this or if I’m pulling it out of my ass, but… I always thought “fuzz” was a mispronunciation of “force”. Therefore, “police force” = “police fuzz” and “the force” = " the fuzz." Then again, I have a creative imagination. ---
**Author:** ![ookpik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/c68b51/32.png) [@ookpik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ookpik)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2005, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-for-police/305762/22 "2005-05-31T21:22:11Z")
I’ve heard of cop being short for copper, which was the material used for the shields of beat cops. Other more valuable material being used for detectives etc… Probably too recent to be valid though. ---
**Author:** ![critter42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ba0ec/32.png) [@critter42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/critter42)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2005, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-for-police/305762/23 "2005-05-31T21:30:07Z")
Regardless of the reasons why police are called what they are, why is the date of the Staff Report wrong? (Today is May 31st, btw 🙂 ) ---
**Author:** ![USMC0705](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/54ee81/32.png) [@USMC0705](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/USMC0705)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2005, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-for-police/305762/24 "2005-05-31T21:55:18Z")
> [@critter42](#): > > Regardless of the reasons why police are called what they are, why is the date of the Staff Report wrong? (Today is May 31st, btw 🙂 ) I was about to mention that. Does anybody know the origin of the name “5-0” for police? ---
**Author:** ![John\_W.Kennedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_w.kennedy/32/1031_2.png) [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2005, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-for-police/305762/25 "2005-05-31T22:04:31Z")
> [@USMC0705](#): > > Does anybody know the origin of the name “5-0” for police? The old TV show, _Hawaii 5-0_. The name was simply made up to sound “cool” for TV; there was never a “5-0” in Hawaii, or in any other state, for that matter. ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2005, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-for-police/305762/26 "2005-05-31T23:46:40Z")
> [@critter42](#): > > Regardless of the reasons why police are called what they are, why is the date of the Staff Report wrong? Lesse, thirdy days hath Septober, April, June, and No Vember. (It’s true, there’s hardly any vember at all that has 30 days.) So, that doesn’t explain it. I dunno. Possibly it’s off by the day that Joshua stopped the sun (at the bottle of Geritol.) ---
**Author:** ![elelle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f0a364/32.png) [@elelle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elelle)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2005, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-for-police/305762/27 "2005-06-01T00:33:09Z")
That was a perky post, Dex! Bottle of Geritol…snicker… Hawaii 5-0 was a neato name, but with some reasoning; 50th state. Now, please get That Song and the big wave from the show’s opening outta me skullbones… ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2005, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-for-police/305762/28 "2005-06-01T01:17:08Z")
> [@John W. Kennedy](#): > > The old TV show, _Hawaii 5-0_. The name was simply made up to sound “cool” for TV; there was never a “5-0” in Hawaii, or in any other state, for that matter. Indeed, [Hawaii has never even had a state police force.](http://www.mjq.net/fiveo/fiveofaq.htm). (BTW, on the TV show 5-O was a [state police unit](http://www.mjq.net/fiveo/) investigating, “organized crime, murder, assassination attempts, foreign agents, felonies of every type.” Before the series was aired, few knew that Hawaii was such a center of international espionage and miscellaneous wrongdoing. 😉 ) ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2005, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-for-police/305762/29 "2005-06-03T02:29:58Z")
I read an interesting fictional term for police officers, in the three Jana Brill/Mama Maxwell sci-fi novels written by Lee Killough. Police were often referred to as leos, or lions. Leo was “Law Enforcement Officer.” When you wanted to be derogatory to police you would say “Meow!” or “Here, kitty kitty.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-for-police/305762.md?page=1)