General
riah
What does riah mean?
Often paired with 'zhoosh' (to style) and 'shusher' or 'riah-zhoosher' for a hairdresser.
"He works as a riah-zhoosher up West."
Origin
Polari of mid-20th-century Britain; 'riah' is back-slang for 'hair', a coding documented by Paul Baker and rooted in the older back-slang of costermongers recorded by Mayhew (1851).
Frequently asked questions
What does riah mean?
It is Polari for hair — 'hair' spelled backwards.
Why is riah hair backwards?
Polari borrowed the back-slang trick of reversing words to make them hard for outsiders to follow.
What is a riah-zhoosher?
A hairdresser — someone who styles ('zhooshes') the hair.
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