This is probably one of the
funniest pieces I’ve read in the juba dailies.
Kudos, Ayom!
Check our her articles in the
New Times.
New
vocabulary for new republic
Guess what!
Did you know there’s a Juba word for non-serious girlfriends? By Ayom
…….
Below, I list twenty terms which
describe aspects of life in the new Juba. These terms come from a variety of
sources: some, my friends and I have heard in the course of work and personal
interactions, some I made up myself and one was invented by my mother Dr.
Christina Abuk, a very clever and funny woman. I have included some phrases
which are traditional, on the sole basis that I really like them. Some have
their origin in Juba Arabic or Dinka, which are now mixing very thoroughly with
English. One originates in the West African diaspora, but is included because
it is irresistibly fitting to our situation. The loose rules governing
selection are that the terms should be: descriptive; efficient, i.e. shorter or
more specific than alternate terms; and/or funny. In case of a clash, the last
characteristic over-rules all others. I would suggest that the developing
language should be called ‘Jinglish’, though readers may have better suggestions.
I wish to emphasise that this is a
humorous piece and contains no allegations against any particular person(s) or
organisation(s). However, those who are familiar with my previous writing will
know that there is usually a serious underlying point. In this case, that point
is that humour and mockery are powerful weapons against those groups and
individuals, such as corruptees, exploitative organisations and fraudulent
nationality-seekers, working against the best interests of our nation. Should any
reader feel they recognize themselves in certain of these definitions, perhaps
they should take this as warning that their misdeeds are no secret and that
offence is being taken by many of those who observe them. To my readers, use
these weapons well and aim them accurately and fairly.
baby beny (noun phrase) Mocking term for a younger close relative
of a high-ranking member of government, who despite having no job is regularly
seen driving/crashing cars with GOSS plates, living the high life and intimidating
low-level service industry personnel with the phrase ‘do you know who I am?’.
Usually expects to be accorded the security status, respect and in-service
benefits which are rightfully held by the illustrious older relative. Although
the term is part Dinka, it is applicable to people of all ethnicities who fit
the bill.
Source: AW Dhal, Juba 2012
bamba (noun) Juba term for a mistress or non-serious girlfriend.
Derives from the Arabic term ‘bambara’, meaning a lightweight stool with a
loosely-woven wire seat, often used in outdoor kitchens or backyards. Suggests
that, like such a stool, the lady in question is inexpensive, lightweight,
convenient and can easily be put away when no longer needed.
Source: Juba traditional, reported
by C Kivy, 2012
bintoo (noun) Pejorative or mocking term for a Diaspora or IDP
returnee, in particular one who adopts a boastful and sometimes dishonest
attitude towards their exploits abroad and seeks to impose, on their native
land, features of their adopted nation. The word is a contraction of
‘been to’, as in ‘I’ve been to places you have not and therefore I know more
than you do’. It appears that this term is of West African diaspora origin;
however, it is so appropriate for present-day Juba that it merits inclusion
here.
Source: reported to Dr. C Abuk,
London 1990s
briefcase INGO (noun phrase) Pejorative term for an international NGO which
retains such a high percentage of donor funds for its own staff and structures
that this appears to be its core business. As in “an INGO that needs to come
with a big briefcase, so that it can take away all the money”. The phrase is a
riposte to the currently popular phrase ‘briefcase NGO’, meaning an NGO with no
local constituency or actual programing, set up largely or solely to attract funding.
Source: local NGO member (name
withheld to protect the little funding available), Bahr El Ghazal 2012
Dining Class (noun phrase) Humorous and mocking term for the beneficiaries of
the proceeds of corruption. Derives from the verb ‘to eat money’. May be
further subdivided to indicate the scale of the misappropriated sums involved,
eg: Rakuba Dining Class, indicating low-level diners who have taken so little
they must still eat in local rakuba restaurants; Expat Dining Class,
indicating mid to high level diners who can afford to eat in expensive,
expatriate-oriented Juba eateries; and Serena Dining Class, indicating diners
who have taken so much they barely have to stay in Juba at all, and are instead
more likely to be found in 5-star hotels in Nairobi, Kampala and beyond. Care
must be taken not to confuse the Dining Class with diners who actually work for
their money.
Source: AW Dhal, Juba 2012
footing (verb) To travel by foot, as in ‘I am going footing’. This term
is part of an honourable tradition of terms for foot travel, which includes
another of my favourites, the wry Nigerian ‘Legedez Benz’, as in ‘what car do
you drive?’ ‘A Legedez Benz’.
Source: unknown/Juba traditional
gong gong gong Mocking Juba term for the sound made when women with a grown-out
and unwashed hair weave knocks her knuckles on her head to relieve an itch
which is too deep under the false hair to scratch. Anticipate this usage will
rapidly shift, to refer to any woman with such a weave.
Source: modern Juba, reported by C
Kivy, 2012
infant soldier (noun phrase) Mocking term for a young man, typically one trying
to impress ignorant foreign girls, or a prospective rap star, who claims to
have been a child soldier, despite the fact that he is much, much too young to
have fought in the war. Often associated with a claim to be a ‘lost boy’,
despite never having been involved in any of the tragic overland child exoduses
which gave rise to the term.
Source: AW Dhal, Juba 2012
insile (noun) Respectful term for a person who remained in their native
land throughout conflict, famine and hard times and was never in displacement
or diaspora, ie the vast majority of South Sudanese. Derived from the word
‘exile’, in order to provide a brief term to balance and contrast with it.
Source: Dr. C Abuk, London 1990s
International Relationships,
qualification in (noun phrase) Humorous term for the
qualifications which might be said to be held by commercial sex workers,
particularly those specializing in servicing the UN/INGO market. Can further be
sub-divided to indicate the market level at which such workers function, eg:
high school diploma in International Relationships (low-end worker, perhaps
based in Jebel Market); first degree in International Relationships (mid-level
worker, perhaps specializing in the hotel trade, may be ostensibly employed in
another service industry, such as hospitality, which affords access to
potential clients); Masters (or perhaps that should be Mistress?) degree in
International Relationships (high-end worker who may be accommodated in an
expensive hotel or apartment, or be the temporary ‘girlfriend’ of expatriate or
wealthy local clients, may be ostensibly employed as an office worker or sales
rep, occasionally graduates out of the sector altogether with the help of a visa
and wedding ring). The sector is marked by extreme fluidity as talented
students may readily upgrade their qualifications and those with personality or
substance abuse issues may quickly regress to Jebel Market. Modules of such a
qualification may include face-to-face marketing, manual dexterity and
vehiclular services.
Source: unidentified commercial sex
worker (and one clearly in the wrong job), Juba 2011
job inflation (noun) term for the process by which one’s professional
qualification is automatically upgraded in conversation, eg a nurse being
referred to as ’dictor’/’dictora’, a construction worker becoming an
‘engineer’, etc. Related to the term ‘honorific creep’, describing the process
by which, say, a Director may have business cards describing them as
‘Honourable’ so and so, and the way people persist in calling high status
individuals ‘Excellency’, despite the fact that the term is properly applied
only to a head of state or an Ambassador.
Source: AW Dhal, Juba 2012
Kussii (noun) Juba term for the bottom of the range Toyota Harrier,
given to a young lady as a reward for engaging in illicit relations with a
wealthy man who is not her husband, though her performance of the act does not
merit the gift of a more expensive model. Derives from an Arabic term for a
female body part usually involved in such relations.
Source: traditional Juba, reported
by C Kivy, 2012
miraya maafi (noun phrase, Juba Arabic) A deeply unappealing and
sometimes very rich man, who insists upon chasing ladies who are significantly
more attractive than himself. Derives from the suspicion that such a man must
lack a mirror (miraya) and thus have no idea of how he actually looks. As in:
‘I’m so sick of that man hitting on me even though I tell him ”no”’. ‘Which
man?’ ‘The miraya maafi on the left’.
Source: AW Dhal, Juba, 2012
mith apuol (noun phrase) Juba term for an expensive V8 vehicle. Derives
from the Dinka phrase for ‘the children are well’, implying that the possessor
of said vehicle (of whatever ethnicity) is doing well.
Source: modern Juba, reported by R
Mogga, Juba 2012
native (noun) Offensive term used by some diaspora returnees
(see ‘bintoo’ above), to describe all South Sudanese who were not in diaspora
(see ‘insile’ above). The term derives from the colonial British usage, where
it was used to describe the subjugated indigenous peoples they were exploiting.
It came to be associated with the supposedly uncivilized nature of such
subjugated people and thus served as a justification for their exploitation,
which was said to be in the best interests of the ‘natives’ (ref ‘white man’s
burden’). The word ‘native’ actually means a person born in a place (eg Tony
Blair is a native of the UK); thus, its use by locally-born bintoos is
nonsensical and betrays a regrettable lack of application to whatever
educational opportunities they were afforded in their countries of refuge.
Source: a group of mean young
ladies, who should know better, overheard in a Juba place of entertainment,
2012
on the road coming (prepositional/locative phrase) Mendacious or wishful phrase
used by Juba professional drivers to explain to delayed customers where they
are when asked why they are 45 minutes late for a pre-arranged pick-up. The
term may in fact be of Ugandan origin, as the majority of Juba taxi drivers
appear to hail from there.
Source: unknown/possible imported
Ugandan usage
Somehow/somehowly (adjective) descriptive term for the speaker’s state of mind or
well-being, the Juba response to the generally rhetorical question ‘How are
you?’, as in ‘I am somehow’. Clearly this is not a new word, but its use in
this way is new to me, and is most appealing and a little wistful. The phrase
is a nice compromise between actually telling the questioner how one is, as in
‘I have a slight headache, my shoes are hurting, I hate my job and my love life
is going nowhere’ (always the wrong answer), and simply lying, as in ‘Fine,
never better’. ‘Somehow’ sits between those two extremes, is brief and is
very useful.
Source: unknown/traditional Juba
Ugandese (noun) Juba term for a Ugandan person (cf the less often heard:
‘Kenyanese’).
Source: traditional Juba usage
wewe (noun) Disparaging Juba term for Swahili-speaking foreigners,
the use of which is often extended to include all East African foreigners, as in
‘those wewes over there’. ‘wewe’ is actually the Swahili word for ‘you’,
and it is thought the local usage came about in response to the sound of spoken
Swahili, which uses the word frequently.
Source: traditional Juba
you are who?/inta minu?/een nga? (salutation) the traditional Juba telephone greeting used by
people who call your phone and do not greet you or identify themselves, but
rather ask YOU who you are. Found in all known South Sudanese languages;
English, Arabic and Dinka examples are given above.
Source: traditional Juba
