Unfortunate South Africanisms
Eish
One of the difficult things about writing this blog is the fact that I have such a global readership. I live in South Africa, but have friends and blog followers from across the globe. When I use words typical to South Africa I try to give the American or British equivalents but, never having lived in North America or England, I’m not sure I always get it right. And then, sometimes I don’t even bother. (Like with my blog a few days ago where I mentioned “bubble bath” which is apparently called “suds” in Australia.)
A couple of weeks ago I asked some of my foreign friends (most of whom happen to be Canadian, strangely enough) what they thought some of the strangest or funniest “South-Africanisms” were.
Here were their answers, with a few more thrown in for good measure (although I am sure there are many more!)
“Is it?” or “izzit?” is used where other English speakers would say “really?!” It very distinctly identifies one as being South African, and is particularly bad grammar. “Canada has the best farmer sausage in the world,” would say the Canadian. “Is it?” the South African would respond.
“Boet”, “Broer” or “Bru” which means “brother” in Afrikaans. An affectionate term for a friend. It’s like saying “bro” or “buddy”.
Howzit, bru
“Howzit?” directly translated, “How are you?” but much (much) more informally. In fact, it’s closer to “hello.” When we say, “howzit, bru?” we don’t really want to know. The stock standard answer is always, “good an’ you?” or simply “howzit” in return.
“Ag”. This would probably be used instead of “oh”, or just as a simple way of starting a sentence. Like if asked “Howzit?” (if one wanted to break from the norm) one could respond, “Ag, awlraait.” (Oh, alright.)
“Blerrie”: Very, awfully. (See below for use.)
“Ja-nee”, directly translated as “yes no”, which is completely ludicrous to a non South Africa, but makes complete sense to us. “It’s blerrie hot today, hey?” “Ja-nee.”
“Shame, man.” This is said when sympathising with someone. For example, if a friend just lost her job. “Shame, man” one would say (no matter whether to a man or woman). Another way of using the word: “Ag shame, your Schnauzer is so cute.” One of my Canadian friends apparently took this unfortunate South Africanism back to Canada with her, where she used it without thinking. “We don’t say shame. That’s not kind,” she heard a mother within earshot telling her child.
“Robot” is our word for “traffic light”. When someone mentions the robot being red it does not refer to an angry metallic humanoid.
Koeksister
“Koeksister”: A syrupy, deep-fried, plaited snack perfected by Afrikaner “tannies” (aunties).
“Eish!” could be substituted by any one of “dang”, “holy cow”, “you’ve got to be kidding”, “wow, that’s unfortunate” or other similar terms.
“Tinkle”. This isn’t what you think it is. If someone says they will “give you a tinkle” they’re merely saying they will call you.
“Braai”. I saw this described elsewhere as follows: “… the weekend domain of the South African man with a beer in his hand. Otherwise known as grill or barbeque, but it’s not just a noun or a verb, it’s a lifestyle.”
“Lekker”: Great, awesome, amazing, wonderful, nice or cool.
“Bakkie”. Also known as a pickup, truck, ute, or SUV. The Sunday Times website describes it best: “A two-seater light vehicle with an open rear cargo area. The rear is often used to transport an impossible number of workers who stare back at you in traffic and make you feel awkward and a bit guilty.”
And then, the one all my friends mentioned as being most typical of South Africans is the various uses of “now”.
“Now”: Eventually, maybe. Definitely not immediately. Like a teenager responding to when they’ll get around to doing the dishes. “I’ll do them now, awlraait!”
“Just now”: Later. Much later. Probably on the same day. Anything from five minutes, to an hour, to never. It can also refer to the past.
“Now now”: Shortly. When I find the time. If I remember. For example, when asked by one’s husband to call the mother in law: “I’ll give her a tinkle now now, dear.”
20 Comments on “Unfortunate South Africanisms”
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They called me weed
I have been blogging here since around April 2011 - my little place on the blogosphere to express myself creatively. As a teenager I used to write a diary - in fact, as a 17-year-old living in Belgium, I wrote religiously every day. Fortunately the Internet didn't exist back then because my ramblings as a teenager were ever-so-slightly dark, cynical and depressing. You won't find much of that here. Also, mostly, I try not to get too deep or philosophical in this forum - I'd like my photography to uplift and inspire, and, where I can, I try to bring a bit of humour into my writing too. I've been fortunate enough to travel extensively and have made many friends across the globe. This is my spot to keep in touch with them.
i love this! makes me really miss all of my South African friends! it’s so helpful, too, because i’ve always wondered how to spell “eish” and what the exact definition of “just now” is.
i totally forgot that way back when i was in Israel, i had a South African roommate who made koeksisters for us. mmmm.
p.s. nobody in Canada says “plaited”.
Rhonda, I read a FB post of yours the other day…seems you’ve been living back in Canada long enough now to pick up some Canadianisms eh?
Greatness!
However, the “we don’t say shame/that’s not kind” comment from the Canadian made me go “pfffttttt” with an eye-roll.
Jislaaik bra, most bakkies are double cabs my ou. They seat 5 or so.
Kief post
In the Eastern Cape, we always spelled it ‘kiff’ and we used it a lot!
And in Durbs you said it too but with a soft “i”, like the “u” in business. And you said “is” with the same soft “i”…
Ja no well fine!
‘Ja, well,no, fine’ – words in the wrong order, my son. A completely untranslatable non sequitur, intended to bring a conversation/argument/debate to a close and indicating: ‘That’s it; I’m moving on; not interested in pursuing this conversation; I neither agree nor am I prepared to argue with you on the matter.
Another one: ‘Smaak’, literally ‘taste’ in Afrikaans, but used to show appreciation for someone, usually said by a boy of a girl, or ‘cherrie’. ‘Jis, I smaak that cherrie, she’s really stacked, hey’.
Well, mother, you can clearly see that I don’t use South Africanisms much.
Maybe you should have added how “ag” is pronounced…you may have a whole lot of people walking around doing a SA impersonation saying ag, not acccchhhhh!
Loved this! Learned a lot and it made me want to return to South Africa for another visit. Beautiful part of the world. Ag, have to practice my sayings, y’all!
My Irish cousin also says Ach! and it sounds so like our ag with the same sort of contempt or disgust!
Sjoe, you got quite a few there, but there must be more.
Ag, plenty boet, plenty!
The way I heard it, ‘blerrie’ is a slurring of the English word ‘bloody’ – as in “Willie’s gonna donner that blerrie yankee” (from the lyrics of ‘Ag Pleez Deddy’ by jeremy Taylor’). There is a correlative slurring in the dialect of N W England, where ‘bloody’ can become ‘blurrih’. In the context you site ‘blerrie’ it makes sense, as a kind of vulgar emphasising adverb.
While I’m on the subject of jeremy Taylor’s song, could you please (pleez?) solve the mystery of the last line of the song?
“If you won’t take us to the zoo
Then what the heck else can we do
But go on out and moer all the outjies next door.”
What on earth does ‘moer all the outjies’ mean? I have a slight recollection that ‘outjie’ means an outsider, an incomer, but I could be wrong.
Okay, time for the only South African joke I know…
Q: What’s a trio?
A: An ou who lives in a tree.
M
As someone from the era of the Jeremy Taylor song, let me try to clear up the mystery: An ‘ou’ is simply a guy; ‘outjie’ is the dimunitive form – so, ‘little guy’ or ‘kid’. ‘Moer’ is an extremely derogative term in Cape Coloured patois, as in the Afrikaans, ‘jou ma se moer’, but in the song, this is a common term for ‘beat up’ or ‘rough up’, with much more intent than those terms might suggest.
Ah!
Thank you.
In my original comment, please read ‘cite’ for ‘site’.
I had to explain “now” “just now” “now now” to an American student the other day – she’s ten! What a process! Have you read “Ah big yaws?: a guard to Sow Theffricun Innglissh”? Too funny! Looks at how we talk – can tell it from across the globe.
Interestingly enough, I took “Ah big yaws?” with me to Belgium when I was an exchange student there in the 1980s to help explain South African english. Another interesting snippet: I acted in a production of “Winnie the Pooh” with Robin Malan (Rawbone Malong), who wrote the book. I was six and played Roo. He wasn’t (six) and he played Owl, if my memory serves me right.