Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1971 (SND Vol. VIII).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1815, 1888-1932
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SHOOSKIE, n., int. Also shiooskie, sjuski (Jak.). [′ʃuski, ′ʃøski]
I. n. 1. A name for the Devil (Sh. a.1838 Jam. MSS. XII. 197); a devil, as a pejorative term, a scamp, rascal (Sh. 1866 Edm. Gl., Sh. 1970), also used playfully to a child or a dog (Sh. c.1860 E.D.D., 1908 Jak. (1928)). Also attrib.Sh. 1815 Shetland Advert. (6 Jan. 1862):
O shiooskie! doo'll mak a black end yet.Sh. 1888 B. R. Anderson Broken Lights 85:
Some strange shooskie o' a king.Sh. 1908 Jak. (1928):
De sjuski so and so is been here and broken my hooks.Sh. 1932 J. M. E. Saxby Trad. Lore 180:
Neither on land or sea was it wise to speak of the devil's recognised names. You referred to him as the . . . shooskie.
2. A sea-taboo term for a clergyman (Sh. 1886 Williamson MSS., Sh. 1970).
II. int. A call to drive away cattle, shoo! (Sh. 1866 Edm. Gl.). This however may be a confusion with shookie s.v. Shug.
[Jak. suggests connection with Faer. tjóvsk [kjøsk], thievish, rascally, O.N. þjófr, a thief, the Devil freq. being called 'da tief' in Sh. Cf. note to Shooi.]You may wish to vary the format shown below depending on the citation style used.
"Shooskie n., interj.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 6 Feb 2026 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/shooskie>
