Many regiments have over the years earned nicknames; some laudatory, some derogatory, but all colourful. Sometimes, the nicknames themselves have overshadowed the actual regimental title, e.g. the "Van Doos" for the Royal 22e Régiment. In some cases the nickname actually replaced it: in 1881, the 42nd (Royal Highland) Regiment of Foot became officially known by its nickname, The Black Watch.
What follows is a list of nicknames of Canadian regiments, arranged alphabetically by regimental title. A brief explanation of the origin of the nickname, where known, is included.
The Dirty Four Dozen[12]: most likely a play on The Dirty Dozen, where ?48? equals four dozen
The Forty-Eighths
The Glamour Boys:
According to Farley Mowat's The Regiment, the Hastings and Prince Edward Regiment were known as "Ploughjockeys" due to their rural recruiting area, while the 48th Highlanders?who recruited from Toronto?were known as "Glamour Boys." This origin is also cited by the The War Amps.http://www.waramps.ca/military/wwii/awot.html#valguarnera
An alternate explanation comes from the blue puttees they wore; during an inspection by King George VI in World War II, the regiment wore blue puttees due to a shortage of khaki material. The king reputedly liked the blue puttees better than the khaki ones worn by the rest of the brigade, and authorized the regiment to keep them. This is the origin cited by the regiment itself.[13]
Double-doubles, from the similarity in colour between their tan berets and coffee with cream (a double-double is a Tim Hortons coffee with two measures of cream and two of sugar)
The Fuzz de Sher , from Fus de Sher, or just the Fuzz, particularly by cross-town rivals, the Sherbrooke Hussars. The regiment's newsletter is also titled "Fuz".
Gustav Gone For Good or Good God, Forgot the Gustav! Used after the regiment left an 84 mm Carl Gustav anti-tank weapon by the side of a road after a weekend exercise and then drove off. When the mistake was realized, and a party sent to retrieve it, the weapon had vanished.
Ladies from Hades: from the First World War; a jocular reference to their kilted battle dress and their fierce fighting.[24]
Highlanders: This name can also be applied to other highland regiments, but is used mainly to describe this regiment. The could also be derived from the common name (highlander) of the unit's cap badge.
Pud-Pulling Cowboys Learning Italian: extremely derogatory name that is both a mockery the Patricias' geographic location in Western Canada and an allusion to them being D-Day Dodgers.
Peanuts, Popcorn, Candy, Licorice and Ice Cream
Please Protect Canada's Little Idiots
Piss Pot Cleaners and Latrine Inspectors
Princess Pocahontas' Cute Little Indians
VP: from Victoria Patricia, Regimental Matron. Often preceded by battalion number.
The Vandoos: from English corruption of the Frenchvingt-deux for ?twenty-two?
Les hosties de queues plates: (literally, "the communion wafer flat-tails". Better translated as "the damn flat-tails": hostie is a mild and common Canadian-French curse) from the beaver on the regimental badge. Seldomly used within the regiment or the 5 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group anymore.
Les Vingt-Deux: the Twenty-Twos.
Régiment Canadien Français: literally, "French Canadian Regiment."
The RCDs: taken directly from their shoulder titles.
Bambi: taken from their cap badge.
Dragoons: Shortened title.
Drags: reference made to the RCD in early (1920s–30s) editions of the regimental journal of The Royal Canadian Regiment, which shared the Toronto garrison with the RCD
The Dragons: common non-service mispronunciation of the word. Known to irritate RCD troopers to no end, and thus, is sometimes used deliberately for that purpose.
Deer-Jumping Fairies: derogatory reference to the springbok in their badge. Usually used by Strats.
The Royals (incorrect, but often used colloquially by those who do not know this is more properly used to refer to The Royal Regiment of Canada)
Shino Boys: a First World War nickname given to The RCR by soldiers of other units, noting the regiment's high standards of dress and deportment
Run Chicken Run: A widely repeated but highly apocryphal story has the nickname resulting from a romantic liaison between a member of the regiment and a chicken. In reality, it probably stems from the fact that the chicken is jokingly referred to by envious others as "the regimental bird." Which explanation is offered usually depends on whether or not the person asked is a member of the regiment. Chickens feature greatly in derogatory nicknames assigned to The RCR, such as Rubber Chicken Regiment, etc.
Coop: Used by military members to refer to the unit's battalions, ie. 1 coop, 2 coop, 3 coop.
Rocking Chair Rangers
The Brasso Kings: First World War nickname mentioned in 1935 Connecting File, the regimental journal of The Royal Canadian Regiment
The Blue Puttees: name actually limited to the first 500 volunteers of the Newfoundland Regiment in 1914, as there was only blue broadcloth available to make puttees
The Fugees: used to illustrate the high number of members of different ethnicities. Two subcategories are eastern european (Winter battalion) and African-Canadian(Summer Battalion)
Little Black Devils: Infantry of the line usually wore scarlet tunics, while rifle units wore dark green?almost black?tunics. After the Battle of Fish Creek during the Northwest Rebellion of 1885, a captured Métis asked, "The red coats we know, but who are those little black devils?"?hence also the Latinmotto: ?Hosti Acie Nominati?, ?named by the enemy in battle?
The Regiment: the precise origin is unknown, but may come from the fact that the British 22nd Special Air Service Regt is also called familiarly "The Regiment", although the Airborne was never affiliated with the SAS, but rather, The Parachute Regiment. However, that use of "The Regiment" to refer to one's own regiment amongst members is not unique, it was presumed by members of the CAR that all others would 'know' which regiment they meant.
: Humorous pronunciation of the regiment?s official abbreviation
: Redefinition of the regiment?s official short title. Each regiment's official short title appears in correspondence as well as on embroidered titles on combat clothing. These abbreviations are often utilized to comic effect in the creation of nicknames.
Dirty EeMEes: jocular reference to the technicians' having the dirtiest and greasiest jobs in the army. Later reclaimed by EME technicians to describe being "dirty" in another usage of the word.
Les Mécanos: used in French to describe any EME technician, mechanic or otherwise.
The Logs: taken directly from their shoulder titles: both English and French.
Blanket Stackers: derogatory slang taken from the British Army nickname for the Royal Logistics Corps.
The Paperclip Badges: from the resemblance of the two chain links in their cap badge to two linked paperclips. Sometimes referred to as "Crossed Paperclips" in reference to crossed rifles, a marksmanship badge once issued in the Canadian Army (and still issued in Army Cadets and at RMC).
Bin Rats: referring to the general assumption made by members of other branches that Logistics members root through the boxes of the newest and shiniest kit available, leaving the remainder for the front-line soldiers.
Circus Battalion: (derogatory name for any service battalion, regular or reserve). Usually employed by members to describe the lack of organization that traditionally plagues these units, i.e. They bring big tents and are staffed by clowns.
Thunder Chickens: from the branch cap badge a thunderbird.
Meatheads: general nickname for Military Police. There are two possible explanations: the first being the obvious derogatory meaning of the word or; a metaphorical reference to their scarlet berets. Most CF personnel seem to concur that the former is much more likely to be the origin of the name than the latter.
Crunchies: from the sound they make when vehicles drive over them. Also known as Speed Bumps for the same reason.
Knuckle Draggers
Gravel Technicians for the American penchant for specialist grades with no meaning beyond private, and the belief infantry privates should be recognized as specialized in something...
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