OED Adds Several Words Long-Used in The Caribbean
To help preserve the islands' linguistic cultural heritage, the Oxford English Dictionary has just added more than a dozen words from Bermuda and across the Caribbean.
There are about 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. Now there are a handful more, and the chances are they are words that you have never heard before. Let's take a look...
Bimpert: A Bermudian word of unknown origin that is used to describe a stupid or foolish person. People on the tiny island in the north Atlantic often use it in this traditional phrase: “A bimpert is justah wuffless bye,” which roughly translates to: an idiot is just a worthless boy.
Trinbagonian: Refers to people from both the islands of Trinidad and Tobago.
Hornerman: This is another colourful addition used in the eastern Caribbean island of Trinidad and Tobago since 1975 to describe an unfaithful man or a man having a relationship with someone else’s partner.
Jablesse: Defined as “a malevolent shape-shifting female spirit with one cloven hoof, which at night is said to assume the form of a beautiful woman to lure men to their deaths.” It is derived from “diablesse,” the French word for female demon.
Douen: Another supernatural entry, used to describe a creature that is “typically depicted as short in stature, with backward-pointing feet, and wearing a large hat, said to be the spirit of a child who died before it could be baptized, and believed to lure children into the forest by calling their names,” according to the dictionary. It is a variation of the Spanish word “duende,” which means elf.
Canboulay: Refers to Carnival festivities in Trinidad in the 1800s that celebrated the emancipation of slaves.
Shadeesh: One of several food-related words that were added, it's the Bermudian word for chorizo.
Sugar cake: Made of grated coconut boiled with sugar, water and spices
Peanut punch: A wildly popular rich and frothy beverage made with peanuts or peanut butter, milk, sugar and several spices. In the Caribbean, one might sit down to have a peanut punch with one’s “nana” or “nani,” Hindi words that are used to address one’s maternal grandparents. In Bermuda, one would sit down to partake with a “hamma,” or friend.
