★ Around the world

Among the field of Queer Linguistics, there are a few notable examples worth mentioning. The following argots, emerging from specific social and political situations in which their respective gay communities lived, served their purpose of isolating speakers which did not belong to said group, as an attempt of preserving the community's safety.

★ Polari

Also known as “Palari”, “Palare”, or similar forms derived from the Italian parlae (“to talk”), Polari’s origins are hard to trace with precision, due to the lack of written documentation. It seems to be a mixture of Mediterranean Lingua Franca – a pidgin used in the Mediterranean region  - and several vernacular and slang varieties of English, tracing back to the 19^th century.

Initially, it was spoken mainly in England by fairground and circus performers, aside from fish traders and sailors. Due to the large number of homosexual men in the theatrical business, as well as working in the merchant navy, the variety was wildly used among the gay community as an argot, hiding their intentions from outsiders – since homosexuality was considered to be a crime at the period.

The language became more popular with the sketch “Julian and Sandy” from the “Round the Horne” BBC radio show in the mid-60’s, featuring two homosexual male characters who used a lot of Polari expressions during the program. However, by popularizing such words, they also made the argot less and less secret. This and the Sexual Offences Act of 1967, decriminalizing consensual homosexual acts between men of at least 21 years of age in England and Wales, contributed to Polari’s downfall, which was already in progress at the beginning of the decade. Nowadays, it is no longer relevant within the community as it used to be.

The short movie “Putting on the dish” explores a bit of the Polari code:

For better understanding, script and annotations can be found in here:

http://genius.com/8493701

★ Gayle

Also known as “Gail”, Gayle is the gay slang argot used in South African communities. Its origins are linked to Cape Town’s drag queen community in the 1950s. At the time, homosexuals were criminalized and stereotypically perceived as predators and pedophiles, and gay men used humor in order to try to soften and retort to this image.

The region is known for its carnival, which gives men an opportunity to cross-dress and question sexuality roles. The “Moffie Queen competition at the Kismet Theatre in Athlone” (“moffie” being a slur meaning “queer” which was reclaimed by the colored gay community) was another event where drag queens could express themselves and be appreciated for it.

The language was developed mainly among black gay communities, being slowly adopted by white gay circles along the 60s and 70s. At the time, black homosexuality was usually confined to specific areas - mostly due to the mining working compounds where the colored men tended to work at - and was more likely to be accepted, while white homosexuality was seen as more of a threat by the authorities due to the lack of a geographically contained area, thus making its potential spread unpredictable. This only heightened the need for an argot, in order for the white gay community to preserve its safety.

While Polari uses many words with Italian origins, Gayle has many terms that come from typically female names, such as “priscilla” (“police”), “olive” (“attractive male”), “dora” (“drink” or “to drink”) and “monica” (“money”). Unlike Polari, Gayle is still used by its speech community.

At around 10 minutes on this video, a man from Cape Town teaches a few Gayle terms to the interviewer:

Sources:

http://www.worldwidewords.org/articles/polari.htm - An article about the “Julian and Sandy” sketch, as well as its Polari influences.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julian_and_Sandy - More information on the “Julian and Sandy” sketch.

http://chris-d.net/polari/ - Brief introduction to Polari, as well as a lengthy collection of its terms and their definitions.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polari - General introduction to Polari, its history, usage, and influences.

https://open.uct.ac.za/bitstream/item/6868/thesis_hum_2014_luyt_k.pdf?sequence=1 - Thesis concerning Gayle and the matter of queer linguistics, going into much more detail regarding the language’s history and influence, as well as the changes its importance to the gay community suffered along the years.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gayle_language - Brief introduction to Gayle, containing a sample of its terms.