the-polari-person
The Polari Person
14 posts
a mad man's mumblings about the secret langauge of gay people
Don't wanna be here? Send us removal request.
the-polari-person Ā· 3 years ago
Photo
Tumblr media
ā€˜light bodyā€™
2K notes Ā· View notes
the-polari-person Ā· 3 years ago
Text
I would suggest reading the Lyrics with Emojis first and seeing how much can understand then coming to the definitions to see if you got it right :)
(heads up there are a lot of references to sex and genitalia in here)
šŸ‘ ā€œBonaā€, adjective; good, well, sometimes synonymous with pretty (more here)
šŸ™‚ ā€œEkeā€, noun, face. Short for ecaf (more here)
šŸ’… ā€œCampestā€, adjective; the mostĀ ā€œcampā€.
šŸ’… ā€œCampā€ is an adjective meaning funny, exaggerated, flamboyant or heavily stylized
šŸ‘€ ā€œVadaā€, verb; to see or to lookĀ 
šŸ‘Ž ā€œtattyā€, fromĀ ā€œtatā€, and adjective meaning ā€œrubbishā€ or ā€œtrashā€
šŸ  ā€œgaffā€, noun; an apartment or house
šŸ‘•šŸ‘— ā€œDragā€; noun, clothing, usuallyĀ ā€œwomenā€™sā€ clothing
šŸ¤¢ ā€œNaffā€, adjective; plain, tasteless, heterosexual, ugly, comes from the acronymĀ ā€œNot Available For Fuckingā€
šŸ† ā€œPacketā€, noun, someoneā€™s crotch
šŸ’¬ ā€œBon Polariā€ this one is hard for me ill cover it at the end of the post
šŸ’‡ā€ā™€ļø ā€œRiahā€, noun, hair.
šŸ’© ā€œCodā€, adjective, bad, synonymous withĀ ā€œshitā€
šŸ¦· ā€œPotsā€, noun; teeth
šŸ‘ā€œDishā€, noun; the 1st meaning is ass or anus, the 2nd is an attractive man
šŸ³ļøā€šŸŒˆā€œBoldā€, adjective, the 1st meaning is very gay, the 2nd is unpleasant (more here)
šŸ„µ šŸ’¦ā€Charverā€, verb; to f*ck
šŸ‘®ā€ā™‚ļø ā€œLilly Lawā€, noun; the police
šŸ³ļøā€šŸŒˆ ā€œIn the lifeā€, adjective; gay or queer. (more here)
šŸ†šŸ‘ ā€œClean the kitchenā€, noun, gay sex, usually butt stuff between men
šŸ† ā€œCartsā€, noun, a penis. a popular variation of this word isĀ ā€œCartzoā€
šŸ¦µ ā€œLalliesā€, noun; legs. (plural of Lally,Ā ā€œlegā€)
šŸ™… ā€œNantiā€, a general negator term. (more here)
šŸ’… ā€œDollyā€, adjective; pretty or smartĀ (more here)Ā 
So i have done a bit more research on the origins of this song and discovered its aĀ  version of one of Lee Suttonā€™s songs! I donā€™t know much about Lee yet, just that he wrote songs in Polari then translated them for the audience. However he often purposefully translated things wrong as an extra joke for the Polari speakers in the room.
In this recording of him performing and translating Bona Eke he saysĀ ā€œyour bon polari almost makes me spring a leakā€ meansĀ ā€œWhen you speak your mind I almost lose control of myselfā€.
I know Polari is the name for the language and is also a verb meaningĀ ā€œto talkā€, but im not quite sure what theĀ ā€œbonā€ means specifically. In French,Ā ā€œbonā€ meansĀ ā€œwellā€ orĀ ā€œgoodā€, se perhaps the literal translations isĀ ā€œgood talkā€ but i cant be sure.Ā 
Let me know if you guys would be interested in more about Lee Sutton!
For this post i primarily got my information for Paul Bakers book ā€œFabulosla!, the story of Polariā€, the Polari app, and a bit from this recording.Ā 
So I just wanted to share this fabulousa song called Bona Eke, its written in Polari!!Ā 
youtube
Iā€™ll be reblogging this later today or tomorrow with a translation that explains the Polari words in it for those who are curious :)
18 notes Ā· View notes
the-polari-person Ā· 3 years ago
Text
(Polari explained here)
Here are the lyrics and some emojis to guide you:
BonašŸ‘EkešŸ™‚,
You got the campestšŸ’…little bonašŸ‘ ekešŸ™‚
When you vadašŸ‘€ me it leaves me weak
Youā€™ve got a bonašŸ‘ ekešŸ™‚
bonašŸ‘ bona, Youā€™ve got aĀ tattyšŸ‘ŽĀ gaftšŸ 
BonašŸ‘Ā BonašŸ‘And all your dragšŸ‘•šŸ‘—Ā isĀ naffšŸ¤¢
But I love you so and
Ā My heart starts a racket
Everytime I see yourĀ packetšŸ†
But I love yourĀ bonašŸ‘Ā ekešŸ™‚!
BonašŸ‘Ā EkešŸ™‚, Youā€™ve got theĀ campestšŸ’…Ā littleĀ bonašŸ‘Ā ekešŸ™‚
YourĀ bon PolarišŸ’¬Ā makes me spring a leak
Youā€™ve got, aĀ bonašŸ‘Ā ekešŸ™‚!
BonašŸ‘Ā BonašŸ‘, whats more yourĀ riahā€™sšŸ’‡ā€ā™€ļøĀ codšŸ’©
BonaĀ šŸ‘BonašŸ‘, and all yourĀ potsšŸ¦·Ā are odd,
But I love you so, Iā€™d grant your every wish,
Iā€™d even grease myĀ dishšŸ‘šŸ•³
Just to see your bonašŸ‘Ā ekešŸ™‚!
BonašŸ‘Ā EkešŸ™‚,Ā 
Youā€™ve got theĀ boldestšŸ³ļøā€šŸŒˆĀ littleĀ bonašŸ‘Ā ekešŸ™‚
And when youĀ charveršŸ„µšŸ’¦Ā me it leaves me weak,
Youā€™ve got aĀ bonašŸ‘Ā ekešŸ™‚
BonašŸ‘Ā BonašŸ‘, heard it fromĀ lilly lawšŸ‘®ā€ā™‚ļø
BonašŸ‘Ā BonašŸ‘,Ā Youā€™reĀ in the lifešŸ³ļøā€šŸŒˆĀ once more,
But I love you so
And you canĀ clean my kitchenšŸ†šŸ‘
Get yourĀ cartsšŸ†Ā a pitchinā€™!
Yes I love yourĀ bonašŸ‘Ā ekešŸ™‚!
BonašŸ‘Ā EkešŸ™‚Ā x3
YourĀ lalliesšŸ¦µĀ look like darts,
And youā€™ve gotĀ nantišŸ™…Ā cartsšŸ†,
But I love your,Ā BonašŸ‘EkešŸ™‚!
BonašŸ‘Ā EkešŸ™‚! BonašŸ‘Ā EkešŸ™‚!
Eā€™re, Give us aĀ vadašŸ‘€Ā of thatĀ dollyšŸ’…Ā oldĀ ekešŸ™‚!Ā 
Some words I have already explained and if you click them it will take you to a post with an explanation. There are over 20 polari words in this song to talk about so Iā€™ll be putting definition in another reblog later tonight.
So I just wanted to share this fabulousa song called Bona Eke, its written in Polari!!Ā 
youtube
Iā€™ll be reblogging this later today or tomorrow with a translation that explains the Polari words in it for those who are curious :)
18 notes Ā· View notes
the-polari-person Ā· 3 years ago
Text
So I just wanted to share this fabulousa song called Bona Eke, its written in Polari!!Ā 
youtube
Iā€™ll be reblogging this later today or tomorrow with a translation that explains the Polari words in it for those who are curious :)
18 notes Ā· View notes
the-polari-person Ā· 3 years ago
Text
British twinks in London in the 1900s:
Tumblr media
273 notes Ā· View notes
the-polari-person Ā· 3 years ago
Text
If you are looking for a summary on Polari with more information than what is provided in this post, i highly recommend this video. They do a good job summing up the points of Polari and I found it entertaining to watch.Ā 
youtube
If you want to here some examples of Polari being used in conversation, the short film, ā€œPutting on the Dishā€, is good example of how Polari would have been used at the peak of its popularity in London.Ā 
youtube
30 notes Ā· View notes
the-polari-person Ā· 3 years ago
Text
For people who want to learn Polari here are a few dictionaries you can start looking at.Ā 
this free online dictionary
this 2 dollar mobile app
Fabulosa by Paul Baker
Personally Iā€™ve found Paul Bakerā€™s research the most helpful but you can definitively still learn Polari without reading his books.
7 notes Ā· View notes
the-polari-person Ā· 3 years ago
Text
For people who want to learn Polari here are a few dictionaries you can start looking at.Ā 
this free online dictionary
this 2 dollar mobile app
Fabulosa by Paul Baker
Personally I've found Paul Baker's research the most helpful but you can definitively still learn Polari without reading his books.
7 notes Ā· View notes
the-polari-person Ā· 3 years ago
Text
Boyno! Iā€™m Perry, I use any pronouns, and i have a huge passion for all things queer. One of those things that Iā€™m hoping to share and teach is Polari.Ā 
For anyone who doesnā€™t know, Polari is the ā€œsecret language of gay peopleā€, it is/was a dialect used by queer folk in London, in the early to mid 1900s.Ā 
Polari was used mostly by gay men to identify each other, communicate, evade the police (because being gay was illegal at the time), but it also became a big part of gay culture.Ā 
Polari is made up of a large variety of languages of slangs, ranging from Yiddish, to back-slang, to Cant, and many more.Ā 
Unfortunately it began to die out mid to late 1900s, the primary reason for this being that being queer was becoming more socially acceptable and there was no use to hide anymore.
I myself know quite a bit of Polari and I want to share my knowledge on it. Iā€™ve been studying it for while and Iā€™m continuing to learn about it. I want to make learning Polari not only easy and accessible, but fun and engaging. So i figure what better way to start than with a tumblr?Ā 
Some other things about me are that iā€™m an artist, i also like learning about lgbt history, and im 16 (so please dont be creepy). Iā€™m super excited to start this blog so feel free to ask me anything in my asks (can be Polari-related or not).Ā 
19 notes Ā· View notes
the-polari-person Ā· 3 years ago
Text
For you gender identity you can call your self anĀ ā€œomiā€(man), or a ā€œpaloneā€(woman).
Unfortunately because Polari was created before many labels such as nonbinary, pansexual, etc. where created there arenā€™t Polari words for every queer identity.
The closest thing to ā€˜transā€™ would be ā€œremouldā€, the Polari word for ā€˜sex changeā€™.
There is no Polari word for nonbinary but if someone asked you you could say you areĀ ā€œnanti-binaryā€ or haveĀ ā€œnanti-gender.
ā€œNantiā€ is a general polari negator term, so you can use it in place of words like ā€œnotā€,Ā ā€œnoā€,Ā ā€œdontā€, etc.
Are you in the life?
What better way to start learning the secret language of gay people than learning the Polari words for ā€œIā€™m gayā€?
Personally my favorite way to say gay is ā€œIn the lifeā€.
Maybe its just a matter of personal preference but i just think ā€œAre you in the life?ā€ is such a cool way to ask someone if they are lgbt.
Other ways to say gay are ā€œon the teamā€, ā€œblueā€, ā€œsoā€, and ā€œboldā€*.
*According to Paul Bakerā€™s research on Polari, bold meansĀ ā€œaudaciously gayā€ orĀ ā€œunpleasantā€, so I would stick to the other three for defining sexuality.
to get a bit more specific, some words meaning bisexual areĀ ā€œbibiā€,Ā ā€œac/dcā€ (can also mean a couple), and finally ā€œversatileā€Ā 
If you are a lesbian you can call your self aĀ ā€œpalone-omiā€ (the literal translation being woman-man),Ā 
and if you are a gay man you can call your self aĀ ā€œomi-paloneā€ ( the literal translation being man-woman).
Personally palone-omi and omi-palone are not my favorite terms, but the only other Polari word used to describe lesbians is d*ke, which im sure most of us already know as a slur.Ā 
However there are other words for gay men, such asĀ ā€œfruitā€ andĀ ā€œfairyā€, I think many of us have heard these are well.
(you can read this post for a quick summary of what Polari is)
30 notes Ā· View notes
the-polari-person Ā· 3 years ago
Text
If you are looking for a summary on Polari with more information than what is provided in this post, i highly recommend this video. They do a good job summing up the points of Polari and I found it entertaining to watch.Ā 
youtube
If you want to here some examples of Polari being used in conversation, the short film, ā€œPutting on the Dishā€, is good example of how Polari would have been used at the peak of its popularity in London.Ā 
youtube
30 notes Ā· View notes
the-polari-person Ā· 3 years ago
Text
Are you in the life?
What better way to start learning the secret language of gay people than learning the Polari words for ā€œIā€™m gayā€?
Personally my favorite way to say gay is ā€œIn the lifeā€.
Maybe its just a matter of personal preference but i just think "Are you in the life?" is such a cool way to ask someone if they are lgbt.
Other ways to say gay are "on the team", "blue", "so", and "bold"*.
*According to Paul Bakerā€™s research on Polari, bold meansĀ ā€œaudaciously gayā€ orĀ ā€œunpleasantā€, so I would stick to the other three for defining sexuality.
to get a bit more specific, some words meaning bisexual areĀ ā€œbibiā€,Ā ā€œac/dcā€ (can also mean a couple), and finally ā€œversatileā€Ā 
If you are a lesbian you can call your self aĀ ā€œpalone-omiā€ (the literal translation being woman-man),Ā 
and if you are a gay man you can call your self aĀ ā€œomi-paloneā€ ( the literal translation being man-woman).
Personally palone-omi and omi-palone are not my favorite terms, but the only other Polari word used to describe lesbians is d*ke, which im sure most of us already know as a slur.Ā 
However there are other words for gay men, such asĀ ā€œfruitā€ andĀ ā€œfairyā€, I think many of us have heard these are well.
(you can read this post for a quick summary of what Polari is)
30 notes Ā· View notes
the-polari-person Ā· 3 years ago
Text
Bona to Vada your Dolly Old Eke!
Bona to Vada your Dolly old Eke! this is easily the most famous phrase in Polari, meaningĀ ā€˜Good to See Your Pretty old Face'.
'Bona'(adjective) means good, or well. I've also seen it used in place of "pretty" but its primary meaning is "good".
'Vada' (verb) to see, to look, etc.
'Dolly'(adjective) smart or attractive. I believe this is also common British slang today, but im not sure.
Eke (noun) eke is short for ecaf, meaning "face". This one is easy for me to remember because ecaf comes from backslang (when you spell/say a word backwards).
Anyways, now you know how to tell someone how bona it is to vada their dolly eke!
(if you dont know what Polari is,this post will give you a short summary)
2 notes Ā· View notes
the-polari-person Ā· 3 years ago
Text
Boyno! Iā€™m Perry, I use any pronouns, and i have a huge passion for all things queer. One of those things that Iā€™m hoping to share and teach is Polari.Ā 
For anyone who doesnā€™t know, Polari is the ā€œsecret language of gay peopleā€, it is/was a dialect used by queer folk in London, in the early to mid 1900s.Ā 
Polari was used mostly by gay men to identify each other, communicate, evade the police (because being gay was illegal at the time), but it also became a big part of gay culture.Ā 
Polari is made up of a large variety of languages of slangs, ranging from Yiddish, to back-slang, to Cant, and many more.Ā 
Unfortunately it began to die out mid to late 1900s, the primary reason for this being that being queer was becoming more socially acceptable and there was no use to hide anymore.
I myself know quite a bit of Polari and I want to share my knowledge on it. Iā€™ve been studying it for while and Iā€™m continuing to learn about it. I want to make learning Polari not only easy and accessible, but fun and engaging. So i figure what better way to start than with a tumblr?Ā 
Some other things about me are that iā€™m an artist, i also like learning about lgbt history, and im 16 (so please dont be creepy). Iā€™m super excited to start this blog so feel free to ask me anything in my asks (can be Polari-related or not).Ā 
19 notes Ā· View notes