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 10 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/shooskie>
