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Rhubarb Commando #203320 11/18/11 02:04 PM
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 3,290
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 3,290
it comes from Cockney "backslang"

Ah, well, should've looked into before going by memory.

There is a French cant, Verlan, where syllables are reversed. For example, cité 'city' > té-ci > téss. Some single syllable words just ended up backwards. Polari tends to have a lot of loanwords from other languages, such as Yiddish, Romanian, etc.


Ceci n'est pas un seing.
zmjezhd #203325 11/18/11 05:00 PM
Joined: Nov 2011
Posts: 1,075
old hand
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old hand
Joined: Nov 2011
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AS you say, polari is almost entirely made up of loan words - including backslang. e.g. lyrig - girly, as in, " that lyrig has real bona lallies. Shame she's a chavering donna!"

There's lots of Italian loans [polari derives from It "parlare = to speak] and quite a few Romany i.e. gypsy, words (rather than Romanian, strictly speaking, although I guess there is some connection there.) A very flamboyant and colourful language.


I'm immortal until proven otherwise
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