# Origin of slang term "Five-O" in reference to police officers **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 5, 2003, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-slang-term-five-o-in-reference-to-police-officers/179941 "2003-06-05T21:41:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![neutron\_star](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/51bf81/32.png) [@neutron\_star](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neutron_star)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2003, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-slang-term-five-o-in-reference-to-police-officers/179941/1 "2003-06-05T21:41:51Z")
I’ve always wondered about this. How old is this term and where does it come from? Also, is it “Five-O,” as in the word “oh,” or is it “five zero.” I’m also wondering how, if at all, this ties into the old tv show _Hawaii Five-O?_ In that case, does “Five-O” come from the fact that they are cops, or that Hawaii is the 50th state, or both? Does the current usage of “five-o” predate the TV show? ---
**Author:** ![Logical\_Phallacy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Logical\_Phallacy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Logical_Phallacy)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2003, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-slang-term-five-o-in-reference-to-police-officers/179941/2 "2003-06-05T21:48:36Z")
ever paid careful attention to the sound a police siren makes? 5 Distincts tones can be made out before a long pause…and then the cycles repeats. Hence five-0. ---
**Author:** ![BF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b5ac83/32.png) [@BF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BF)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2003, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-slang-term-five-o-in-reference-to-police-officers/179941/3 "2003-06-05T22:50:46Z")
IIRC, “Five-O” is derived from the show, Five-Oh. The Five-O was a fictitious special police force (state Police) that took it’s orders from the governor. I don’t know when/how this slang became another phrase for Johnny Law, the cops, the pol-eece, etc. ---
**Author:** ![BobT](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e8cbc/32.png) [@BobT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobT)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2003, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-slang-term-five-o-in-reference-to-police-officers/179941/4 "2003-06-05T23:30:49Z")
The show was “Hawaii Five-0” “Five-0” standing for Hawai’i’s status as the 50th state. ---
**Author:** ![Calladair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f07891/32.png) [@Calladair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Calladair)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2003, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-slang-term-five-o-in-reference-to-police-officers/179941/5 "2003-06-05T23:40:11Z")
[The Hawaii Five-O FAQ](http://www.mjq.net/fiveo/fiveofaq.htm) supports **BF** and **BobT** : > [@](#): > > Is there a real “Hawaii Five-O” – a state police agency? > No. Guidebooks have to keep telling tourists that Hawaii does not and never did have a state police force. > > Why was it called Five-O, anyway? > Hawaii was the fiftieth state in the union. (The original title was “The Man,” but producer Leonard Freeman changed his mind.) Same site: > [@](#): > > Is it Five-O (as in “oh”) or Five-0 (as in “zero”)? > This is a matter of debate. According to Viacom, who distribute the show, it is zero. But the Five-O soundtrack album, released in the late 60’s, uses “oh.” ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2003, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-slang-term-five-o-in-reference-to-police-officers/179941/6 "2003-06-05T23:47:59Z")
The show premiered in '68. The first cite of the term to describe generic police is in the NYT, 1983, in an article which implied that it was not uncommon and probably used before that ('83) date. It never existed before the show premiered. ---
**Author:** ![BobT](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e8cbc/32.png) [@BobT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobT)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2003, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-slang-term-five-o-in-reference-to-police-officers/179941/7 "2003-06-05T23:52:05Z")
As someone who watched the show far too much as a child, I can tell you that it was always “Five-Oh”. That’s how all the characters pronounced it. ---
**Author:** ![Calladair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f07891/32.png) [@Calladair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Calladair)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2003, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-slang-term-five-o-in-reference-to-police-officers/179941/8 "2003-06-06T00:14:29Z")
**BobT** , unless I’m misreading the question (or your response), the issue isn’t one of pronunciation. Certainly it’s pronounced five oh. But a 401k is also pronounced four oh one, typically, even though it’s a zero between the 4 and 1. So the question is whether it’s Five- **0** or Five- **o**.