From ‘bobolee’ to ‘pholourie,’ the Oxford English Dictionary adds 12 new Caribbean words
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) 鈥 The Caribbean has elbowed its way into the Oxford English Dictionary with 12 new words commonly used in the region that officials publicly recognized on Wednesday.
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) 鈥 The Caribbean has elbowed its way into the Oxford English Dictionary with 12 new words commonly used in the region that officials publicly recognized on Wednesday.
The longest of the words is 鈥渃arry-go-bring-come,鈥 and it dates from 1825. Variations include 鈥渂ring-back-carry-come鈥 and 鈥渂ring-come-and-carry-go,鈥 but they all mean the same thing: gossip, or a person who spreads it, according to the dictionary.
Also under the letter 鈥楥鈥 is the cute-sounding 鈥渃ou-cou,鈥 a Caribbean dish that incorporates okra, butter and cornmeal, and, of course, the 鈥渃ou-cou-stick,鈥 which is self-explanatory.
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Four other new words added to the dictionary also refer to food.
You have 鈥渂ulla,鈥 derived from the Spanish word 鈥渂ollo,鈥 or bread roll. It is 鈥渁 small, round, flat cake from Jamaica, made with flour, molasses, brown sugar, and various spices and flavourings such as ginger, nutmeg, coconut, and pineapple.鈥
(Hungry yet?)
Also under 鈥楤鈥 is 鈥渂uss up shut,鈥 which is not a rude way of telling someone to shush, but rather 鈥渇ried unleavened bread with a flaky texture, similar to paratha or roti.鈥 It is one of the most popular dishes in Trinidad and Tobago.
鈥淭he name represents the Caribbean pronunciation of bust-up shirt, apparently because of the flaky bread鈥檚 resemblance to rags of fabric,鈥 according to the dictionary.
Also popular in Trinidad and Tobago and elsewhere in the region is 鈥減holourie:鈥 鈥渁n Indo-Caribbean dish made of fried flour balls, ground split peas and spices.鈥 The word was first quoted in a 1936 song by the Trinidadian calypso singer and composer Rafael de Leon.
Rounding out the food words is 鈥渟altfish.鈥 It dates from 1558, making it the oldest new word from the Caribbean added to the dictionary. It is, well, fish that has been salted and dried.
The Oxford Dictionary also added 鈥渂obolee,鈥 鈥渁 stuffed and dressed up effigy 鈥 set up as a target for beating on Good Friday鈥; 鈥渃ry long water鈥 which means either to cry a lot or insincerely; and 鈥渂roughtupsy,鈥 a nod to polite manners stemming from a proper upbringing.
The last two words are 鈥淛amaican Creole鈥 and 鈥渢antie,鈥 a title of respect that refers to any older woman, not necessarily an aunt.
There are some 500,000 words and phrases in the Oxford English Dictionary, which details the history of words, some of which go back to the 11th century.
