The latest threat to that last bastion of “true” Englishness, The Daily Mail, comes from the emergence of a new dialect called “Jafrican,” the paper reports. This multicultural patois of “West African, Indian and Jamaican” speech patterns is “wiping out English accents in inner-cities.” Shock horror!
It sounds like its time for a language lesson for children’s commissioner Al Aynsley-Green, who infamously likes to get down with da kids and wear his hoodie with pride and go “jamming” (hanging around) on street corners….
Here’s a guide to “Jafrican,” courtesy of the Daily Mail:
Yoot – child/children
Blud/bredren/bruv – mate
Ends – area, estate or neighbourhood (as in “what ends you from?”)
Low batties – trousers that hang low on the waist
Bitch – girlfriend
Begging – talking rubbish
Nang – good (as in “rah, das ‘nuff nang!”) meaning: “Wow, that’s really good!”
Chat – talk back, contradict (as in “don’t chat to me!”)
