American paddywagon, Duluth, Minnesota, 1909

Paddywagon and Black Maria are slang terms for either a police car, or a police vehicle used to transport large groups of people who have been arrested. Image File history File linksMetadata No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File linksMetadata No higher resolution available. ... Duluth is the county seat of St. ... Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor of the United States Federal Protective Service. ... For other uses, see Arrest (disambiguation). ...

The word paddywagon is of American origin. The precise origin of the term is uncertain and disputed, though its use dates back to at least the beginning of the 1900s.^[1] There are at least three theories as how the phrase originated.^[2]

• The most prevalent theory is based on the term "Paddy" (a common Irish shortening of Patrick), which was used (sometimes as derogatory slang) to refer to Irish people.^[3] Irishmen made up a large percentage of the officers of early police forces in many American cities. Thus, this theory suggests that the concentration of Irish in the police forces led to the term "paddywagon" being used to describe the vehicles driven by police.
• An alternative theory is similarly based on the term "Paddy" but states that the term arose due to the number of immigrant Irish being arrested for having consumed too much alcohol and taken away in the vehicles.^[4]
• The final theory holds that the name originates from the padding used on the inside of police horse-drawn carriages to prevent injury; ^[5] this last is regarded by lexicographers as an example of folk etymology^{[citation needed]}.

These vehicles were usually painted black or a very dark blue. Archaically in the United States, Ireland and the United Kingdom, a police wagon was also sometimes called a Black Maria (using the archaic pronunciation i.e Mariah). The origin of this term is equally uncertain. The OED lists the first usage as the Boston Evening Traveller from 1847 which mentions them as a new type of wagon. Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable suggests the name came from Maria Lee, a large and fearsome black keeper of a sailors' boarding house who the police would call on for help with difficult prisoners. The term is still used today in parts of Britain for the vehicle that transports prisoners from gaol to court, appearing in the song "Guns of Brixton" by The Clash. Frequently, screened-in buses are also used for the same purpose. [1] For other uses, see Slang (disambiguation). ... Folk etymology is a term used in two distinct ways: A commonly held misunderstanding of the origin of a particular word, a false etymology. ... Black Maria is usually pronounced using the archaic pronunciation Mariah, rhyming with pariah, and is therefore sometimes written as Black Mariah. It may refer to: A Black Maria or a Paddywagon, a vehicle used by the police to transport prisoners. ... The Oxford English Dictionary print set The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) is a dictionary published by the Oxford University Press (OUP), and is the most successful dictionary of the English language, (not to be confused with the one-volume Oxford Dictionary of English, formerly New Oxford Dictionary of English, of... 1847 was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... Brewers Dictionary of Phrase and Fable - sometimes referred to simply as Brewers - is a reference work containing definitions and explanations of many famous phrases, allusions and figures, whether historical or mythical. ... Boarding House is a privately owned house,in which individuals or families on vaccation, holidays, deputition,transfered on temporary duties, on some particular training,short&mediun tenure visitors,working professionals & lodgers,rent one or more rooms sets for one or more nights,sometimes for extended periods of weeks, months and... The word Gaol can refer to the following: Gaol American/British English jail, Early Modern English spelling, though this spelling is seldom used today, it is still considered the official spelling in Australian English. ... The Guns of Brixton is a song by The Clash on their third album, London Calling released in 1979. ... This article is about the English rock band. ...

The Black Maria is also called 'Mothers Heart' as it is viewed that there is always room for one more.

The term is often used in some areas of Australia, specifically New South Wales[2] and Queensland[3] to refer to a general duties vehicle with a prisoner cage on the back. Australian paddywagons are typically based on small utility vehicles such as the Holden Rodeo or Toyota Hilux. In other areas of Australia the term Divisional Van (or Divvy Van for short) is more common. NSW redirects here. ... Slogan or Nickname: Sunshine State, Smart State Motto(s): Audax at Fidelis (Bold but Faithful) Other Australian states and territories Capital Brisbane Government Constitutional monarchy Governor Quentin Bryce Premier Anna Bligh (ALP) Federal representation  - House seats 28  - Senate seats 12 Gross State Product (2004-05)  - Product ($m)  $158,506 (3rd... Pickup truck with extended cabin and homebuilt lumber rack. ... The Isuzu i-Series pickup truck line was launched at the 2005 New York International Auto Show. ... The Toyota Hilux, and Toyota Tacoma, are compact pickup trucks built and marketed by the Toyota Motor Corporation. ...

Modern Australian paddywagon

Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 539 pixel Image in higher resolution (1574 × 1061 pixel, file size: 373 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Isuzu i-Series... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 539 pixel Image in higher resolution (1574 × 1061 pixel, file size: 373 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Isuzu i-Series...

References

1. ^ Oxford English Dictionary (2002); ISBN 978-0195219425
2. ^ Partridge's Concise Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English (1989); ISBN 0-02-605350-0
3. ^ Webster's Third New International Dictionary (1993); ISBN 0-87779-201-1 , and The Cassell Dictionary of Slang (1998) ISBN 0-304-34435-4
4. ^ Sowell, Thomas. The Economics And Politics of Race, p. 69
5. ^ The Detroit News. The padding on the walls and floor of the wagons prevented the prisoners from injuring themselves.

Thomas Sowell (born June 30, 1930), is an American economist, political writer, and commentator. ...

External links

• World Wide Words on the origin of the term Black Maria
• London's Metropolitan Police on the Black Maria