*The word “handcuff” is a popular corruption of the Anglo-Saxon “handcop,” i.e., that which “cops” or “catches” the hands.
Now, one of the most common of the many slang expressions used by their special enemies towards the police is “Copper”—i.e., he who cops the offending member. Strange as it may seem, handcuffs are by no means the invention of these times, which insist on making the life of a prisoner so devoid of the picturesque and romantic.*
Was browsing the Gutenberg.org free ebooks listings and read a little of “The Strand” magazine where it shows how we came up with the word cops. Surprised that for eons on the internet no ones managed to figure out where the word “cops” came from?.. give me a break: “Constable On Patrol”?? really? (rolls eyes)
“Handcops” and “Handcuffs”, despite their similarity, are unrelated, and “cop”, whatever its origin, is of the 19th century, much too late for “handcops” to be involved.
And yet, somehow, you’ve entirely missed the point of the quote. “Copper” doesn’t come from the word “handcuff”. The article says both words come from the word “cop”, which means to catch, or take. It’s a word of Anglo-Saxon origin, still in use in modern British English.
If you look a little more carefully at the internet, you’ll find that there are a good many people who’ve already found this out.
Welcome to the Board analoggueen. When commenting on a column by Cecil or one of his minions(in this case Dex), it’s helpful to post a link to the column.
Will everybody please stop baldly asserting, “‘Cop’ comes from [whatever]”? We don’t know where “cop” comes from. If you have a half-decent hypothesis, demonstrate it with evidence.