shamus

shamus
shamus "police officer, detective," 1920, apparently first in "The Shamus," a detective story published that year by Harry J. Loose (1880-1943), a Chicago police detective and crime writer; the book was marketed as "a true tale of thiefdom and an expose of the real system in crime." The word is said to be probably from Yiddish, lit. "sexton of a synagogue," from Heb. shamash "servant;" influenced by Celt. Seamus "James," as a typical name for an Irish cop.

Etymology dictionary. 2014.

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  • Shamus — Finnigan Publisher Synapse Software Designer …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Shamus — may refer to: * Shamus (name), a slang term for a private detective * Shamus (computer game), a 1980s computer game * Shamus (film) , a 1973 film starring Burt ReynoldsSee also: *Seamus …   Wikipedia

  • Shamus — Разработчик Кэтрин Матага Издатель Synapse Software Дата выпуска 1982 Жанр аркада, шутер Носители cassette, cartridge, floppy disk Платформы Atari 8 bit, VIC 20 …   Википедия

  • Shamus — m Anglicized spelling of Séamus (see SÉAMAS (SEE Séamas)). It has sometimes been used in Ireland, but is now rare …   First names dictionary

  • shamus — ☆ shamus [shā′məs, shä′məs ] n. [prob. blend of SHAMAS & Ir Séamas, James] Slang 1. a policeman 2. a private detective …   English World dictionary

  • shamus —    An American slang term for a policeman or private detective. ‘Shamus’ is a phonetic spelling of Seamus, the Irish form of James, a name which would have been common amongst the predominantly Irish police force in the USA in former times.… …   A dictionary of epithets and terms of address

  • Shamus (name) — Shamus ( shaw mus, shay ) [http://www.thefreedictionary.com/shamus] (archaic) was an American slang term for a police officer or private detective, probably from the Yiddish shamess , meaning caretaker ; it may also have been influenced by the… …   Wikipedia

  • Shamus (film) — Shamus is a 1973 American film starring Burt Reynolds and Dyan Cannon. Reynolds stars as Shamus McCoy, a hard drinking New York private detective hired to locate $10,000 worth of diamonds stolen during a ram raid.… …   Wikipedia

  • Shamus Culhane — est un réalisateur, producteur, scénariste et monteur américain né le 12 novembre 1908 à Ware dans le Massachusetts aux États Unis, décédé le 2 février 1996 à New York (États Unis). Sommaire 1 Biographie 2 Filmographie 2.1 …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Shamus (computer game) — [ frame|right|The Commodore 64 version of Shamus .] Shamus is a computer game written by William Mataga and published by Synapse Software. Originally developed for the Atari 8 bit computer system in 1982, it later appeared as a title for the… …   Wikipedia

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