Gendarmeries

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A branch of the military responsible for police duties, especially in rural areas or smaller towns
2. Organizations tasked with maintaining law and order through enforcement and investigation
3. Forces that combine elements of military and police work, often under the command of the government

Etymology: Gendarmerie began as a military term before it ever meant a police force. The French "gens d'armes" literally meant "men of arms," a phrase for heavily armed cavalry soldiers, and in its earliest uses it referred to the troops themselves. Over time the word for these soldiers, "gendarme," came to be used for a kind of armed constabulary, and "gendarmerie" named the body that such men belonged to. The word traces back through Old French and Middle French to Latin "gentem" (people, nation) and "armas" (arms, weapons), the latter a plural form that came to be treated as a feminine singular. English borrowed "gendarmerie" directly from French, so the plural "gendarmeries" simply pluralises the English noun, referring to several such organisations.

Synonyms: police, law enforcement, military police, security forces, constabulary