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Bashi-bazouk

2 stages from Ottoman Turkish to English.

Today it means an irregular, undisciplined soldier of the Ottoman army

Where does the word "bashi-bazouk" come from? It comes from Ottoman Turkish başıbozuk, adopted directly into English (1850s).

1
Stage 1 of 2
başıbozuk
Ottoman Turkish · 1800s
"irregular soldier"
literally 'head out of order', i.e. leaderless: irregular troops without uniform or regular pay
2
Stage 2 of 2
bashi-bazouk
English · 1850s
"undisciplined Ottoman irregular"
British officers met them in the Crimean War; their 1876 massacres in Bulgaria became notorious through Gladstone's pamphlet 'Bulgarian Horrors'
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Bashi-bazouk’s story begins in Ottoman Turkish: başıbozuk meant “irregular soldier.” Literally 'head out of order', i.e. leaderless: irregular troops without uniform or regular pay. It reached English by 1850s as bashi-bazouk. British officers met them in the Crimean War; their 1876 massacres in Bulgaria became notorious through Gladstone's pamphlet 'Bulgarian Horrors'. Today, bashi-bazouk means an irregular, undisciplined soldier of the Ottoman army.