Did You Know: Slang?

 by Nathaniel G

Here are some different slang forms from around the world…. And to help you in your travels, I’ve added what the word is for ‘food’ so that you can survive like a local.

VERLAN is a popular way to speak in France, with origins believed to go back as far as the Middle Ages. It was used a lot by French people to puzzle the Nazis.  The verlan for food is la graille.

COCKNEY rhyming slang started in the East End of London in the early nineteenth century. A word or phrase is replaced with another phrase, which rhymes with the original.

The cockney for fish is satellite dish, and the Cockney for chips is solar eclipse.

STRINE is a term for Australian slang. It is spoken very quickly. If you are ever down under and hungry, quickly ask for some dog’s eye and hopefully you will get a meat pie.   If you don’t fancy that, and want something safer ask for a choccy biccy.

 The term HILLBILLY used to describe people from the rural, southeastern parts of America.  It is an seen as an unkind term to use now. Hillbilly for food is vittles.

 POLARI was a type of rhyming slang with many Italian based words. It may be traced back as far as the sixteenth century. It was first used by sailors, and then became popular among members of the gay community in the early twentieth century as a means of communicating discreetly. When people wanted food, they asked for jarry.

 The Italian Mafia in America during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century had hundreds of their own phrases. Fancy some salami? Ask politely for Gabagool. (As an aside, I definitely recommend the film ‘The Irishman’ by Scorsese: all about the Mafia in America.)

 Slang used in Portsmouth is often called POMPEY.  The city has the same name. One theory is that it comes from 'Pom. P', a shortened version of Portsmouth Point which was entered in ships' logs as they entered Portsmouth Harbour. If any of your food is delicious when in Portsmouth, call it scrummy.