Gayle: South African Gay slang
by Lara Reddy
St Enda's Secondary School, Johannesburg
Read the following comprehension passage, and then answer the questions which follow. Paragraphs are numbered.
The Secret Language of Gays
By Nikki Mawson (The Star)
Not sure whether you're Milly or Nora because you don't understand Gayle?
1
Don't worry. the exclusive language, fast disappearing will soon be making a come-back in print. 2
Gayle, which was developed among men in the gay culture in the 1960s and 70s as a reaction to the homophobic government of the time, is a language that has recently attracted a surge of academic interest.
3
Ken Cage, who has a masters in gay sociolinguistics from Rand Afrikaans Universiity, has written a book on the subject, which will be launched at the end of February.
4
Cage says he wrote the book - Gayle: The language of Kinks and Queens - because of his interest in linguistics and because Gayle is rapidly disappearing as a spoken language.
5
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Gayle
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Meaning
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Origin
|
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Queen of Scotch
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a gay alcoholic
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American Gayspeak
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Varda
|
look at
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British Polari
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Milly
|
mad,deranged
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Western Cape
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Lollies
|
legs
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British Polari
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Marie
|
mad, crazy
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Johannesburg, 1970s
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Jennifer-Justice
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a magistrate
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Western Cape
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Betty Bangles
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a policeman
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Western Cape
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Beaulah
|
beautiful (man only)
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Western Cape
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Auntie Aida
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AIDS
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Johannesburg 1980s
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Annamarie Atmosfeer
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party pooper
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Western cape
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Ramona Rottencrotch
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man of questionable hygiene
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Johannesburg 1980s
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Elsie Geselsie
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chatterbox, gossip
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Bloemfontein 1980s
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Dish
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sexy man
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British Polari
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friend of Dorothy
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gay man
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Dorothy in Wizard of Oz, who had some unusual "friends"
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Doris Day
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Gay Pride March Day in Johannesburg
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Johannesburg 1990s
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Koffie Moffie
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SAA steward
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Johannesburg 1970s
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Nora
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stupid
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Western Cape
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Pandora
|
Inquisitive gay man
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Greek mythology
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Rent
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male prostitute
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British Polari
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Leonora
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liar
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Western Cape
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Cage also says he could not find research on it, other than word lists
6
His research, he says, indicates the existence of a secret gay language as far back as the High Middle Ages. Both Britain and the United States have their own gay languages.
7
In South Africa, Gayle originated from the word "gail", which means "chat". It co-existed alongside the speaker's home language.
8
Gayle is not so much a language as a list of words that are used interchangeably in Afrikaans and English.
9
So, for example, a "dora" is a drink, and "hilda" means ugly.
10
The words in Gayle are often formed by alliteration; for example, "hilda" was derived from the word "hideous".
11
"There's a lot of borrowing of words from other sources," says Cage. "Shades, meaning dark glasses, was translated into straight language. Forty years ago it was used by gay society."
12
And many words have come over from Polari, the British gay slang, or from American gayspeak.
13
Cage says Gayle had several functions, the most notable of which was concealment.
14
"In homophobic society, gays could seldom be open about who and what they were."
15
"Gayle also allowed gay men to reveal themselves to each other, it allowed for creativity, and it could also be used for humour."
16
Many of the words used are feminine names, according to Cage. This allowed men to make comments about other men, within their earshot, without being understood.
17
Another language that has developed into a township gay language is Isigqumo. This language originated on the mines because workers were forced to live in hostels without their families.
18
They took on male wives while they were there, and then returned to their families when they were finished their contracts at the mine, says Cage.
19
The ever-increasing acceptability of gay culture means that gayle, as a language, will cease to exist, Cage believes.
20
Questions
- Using ypour own words, explain why gayle was developed. (2)
- Work out the meaning of the word "surge" in paragraph 3. (2)
- Explain teh main function of Gayle. (3)
-
- What would cause Gayle to disappear, according to Cage? (2)
- Explain whether you agree that there is "the ever-increasing acceptability of gay culture." (paragraph 20) (2)
- The opposite of gay is generally taken to be "straight" (paragraph 12). Explain how this use of terminology brings negative connotations to the gay community. (4)
- Which of the following words are more positive: gay or homosexual. Provide a reason for your answer. (3)
- What word is used to describe people who have negative attitudes towards gay people? (1)
- From the table, identify one word used to describe gay people that has negative connotations, and what is the etymology of this word? (2)
- What is the etymology of the word "Pandora"? (2)
- The article provides two reasons why most of the Gayle terms are derived from female names. Provide one other erason why this is so. (2)
- The writer classifies Gayle as gay slang. Explain how it could also be classified as gay jargon. (3)
- Is this an example of objective or subjective writing? Provide a reason for your answer. (3)
- Discuss the tone, style and intention of this article. (6)
(37)
