Arkharov Nikolai Petrovich - Moscow Chief of Police, an official of the Russian Empire. Lived at the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries. According to one version, it is this person who is the ancestor of such a concept as "Arkharovtsy".
Who are the "Arkharovtsy"? Version one
From the point of view of the Russian language, "Arkharovtsy" is an outdated and colloquial expression that denotes mischievous people, hooligans, desperate and dissolute people and, of course, an outdated name for police officers.
The first version says that the term "Arkharovtsy" takes its origins from a certain surname Arkharov. In the 18th century, there was such an official in the Russian Empire, a general from infantry. He was also the chief policeman of Moscow. It was his surname, according to one of the versions, that formed the basis of the initial meaning of the term "Arkharovets". This is an ironic designation for the servant of law and order (policeman).
Nikolai Arkharov was from a noble family. To rise to the rank of officer, he first joined the guard, and then served as a soldier of the Preobrazhensky regiment.
The fact is that the sponsors of Nikolai Petrovich Arkharov became famous for their "unconventional" methods of Russian investigation. Some of them were generally thieves and hooligans in the past. Although these people have repented, they have not forgotten the old "rough grips".
Who are the "Arkharovtsy"? Second version
Another version of the origin of this term is based all on the same surname Arkharov, but in a different interpretation. According to this version, at the end of the 18th century, soldiers of the Moscow garrison were called Arkharovtsy. It was at that time in Moscow that two brothers were in power one after another - the governor-generals of the Arkharovs.
According to their position, they were the commanders of the Moscow regiment. It so happened that since the time of the rifle troops, the regiments were named after their colonels. That is why the garrison Moscow regiment began to be called among themselves Arkharovsky, and the soldiers who served in it, Arkharovtsy.
Some people call "arkharovtsy" lovers of hunting mountain sheep. The fact is that the argali is a mountain sheep, which is considered a dexterous and rather agile animal.
Who are called "Arkharovtsy" now?
Today the concept of "Arkharovtsy" in a colloquially joking form can refer to fidget children, mischievous people, mischievous people, etc. This term can be pronounced in both condescending, humorous and even condemning tone. For example, the character of the actor Alexander Polovtsev Oleg Georgievich Solovets in the series “Streets of Broken Lanterns” from time to time called his subordinates “Arkharovtsy” - operatives Larin, Dukalis, Volkov and Kazantsev. At the same time, he put a condemning and expressively mocking connotation into this term.
