Late Start

Late Start

Forgive my late start to this new blogging, ladies and gentlemen, but I had been doing some thinking as to what I really am desirous of blogging. 

I was motivated to start by a blog that I had read and I decided that I should start writing. 

I have recently read an article that I found online, that a friend had sent me the link to read.  I proceeded to read said article and it got me to thinking about my own culture.  If you notice any grammatical errors in my sentences or you come across a sentence that might is not to make as much sense as you would think, it is because I am using windows speech recognition software.  This allows me to dictate to my computer without having to type; and although I give it a brief review before and let me go on to the next sentence and correcting it, there is still that element of technical difficulty that would allow certain things to go unchecked.  With all of that out of the way, let us continue on smartly.

The article was reading had a lot to do with the words and cultural colloquial phrases that are indigenous to my country Barbados.  And this being the month of our independence, the month of November, I have much obligation to sort of discuss another set of words that are indigenous to my country and perhaps by extension the other parts of the Caribbean.

A phrase that is very popular especially among the young people is “starve-out” (wait, dah girl cross dey so look real starve-out yuh!) This phrase that was in the parenthesis is speaking of the young lady who looks slightly malnourished and her small figure brings into question the amount of food she is fed and the number of times she is fed.  At first glance, one can quickly deduce that this particular phrase is derived from some manner of the word starve.  So therefore it is reasonable to suggest that this person in particular has long passed the level of starvation and is no longer starving but starve-out.

This next word is known throughout Barbados and is used in widespread language.  The problem comes in trying to define such a word.  This war has been used in many varying contexts used to describe people, but no one really knows what it is.  The word, ladies and gentlemen, is “Maguffy”.  Of course this particular word sounds negative and if it sounds negative to you then you are correct in assuming that has a very negative connotation indeed.  If I had to describe one and will probably describe it as being a big black hairy animal that walks on its two hind legs with big ferocious teeth, or something of the sort, really-anything to scare little children into behaving themselves. (he really cuh stop getting on like a igrunt maguffy) without knowing the meaning of the word, one can aptly deduce that this is referring to something that is negative.

My final word for this evening is the word that was used in the previous example.  The word “igrunt”.  This one will present some manner of difficulty in explaining for the simple reason that has many differing definitions.  In most contexts, this word is used to describe someone who has been little or no regard for the rules.  For example, if someone threatens to confront a man of such a description someone warning him may say “you, leff he, yuh...he cuh be real igrunt when he ready” or “big man, people in dah country does be real igrunt when dey ready hear?” warning them that it would be unwise to confront such a person.  Another example of how this may be used as in describing someone who knows nothing of what is going on someone was described in this manner could also be described as being oblivious in English contexts. (you’s goh be suh igrunt doa?).

I am certain that most of you have never really even given any real thought to the actual definitions of the words and phrases we use daily.  To my fellow Barbadians, and to all those who read this blog, I pray God’s riches blessings upon you in this, our Independence season.