Ya no look here charna, The Kiffness has been sending messages to the Oxford Dictionary society for lank years now telling them they better flippen’ recognise the word “kiff” brah, but they always tuned “nort brah, that word is miff”. But luckily there was a South African who moved to England because he heard his mate got mugged & he was like “nort bru, I’m moving to England”. He so happened to be a surfer and somehow he found himself mingling with the larnies in Oxford & he kept tuning the okes, “bru how kiff is this scone?” and “By George! That was such a kiff croquet shot there old chap! ha ha”. At first the Oxford larnies were like “what is this preposterous hypothesis flowing from the top of this South African’s oesophagus?” but slowly the kiff bru’s vibe started rubbing off on them & before they knew it they found themselves saying kiff too! The okes even decided to add 23 other kiff South African words to the dictionary!
Here they are:
- amakhosi, n. – collective term of Xhosa and Zulu origin for tribal leaders or chiefs in traditional Nguni societies
- bunny chow, n. – a hollowed-out loaf of bread filled with curry, a popular takeaway dish among South Africans.
- deurmekaar, adj. – something that is confused, muddled, or mixed up
- district surgeon, n.
- dwaal, n. – referring to a dreamy, dazed, or absent-minded state, frequently used in the phrase in a dwaal
- eina, int. and n. – an interjection expressing sharp pain or distress
- gumboot dance, n. – a style of dance where the dancer incorporates the sound of their rubber boots
- howzit, int. – a casual greeting of ‘how’s it going?’
- ingcibi, n. – a Xhosa word for a person who performs circumcisions on young men as part of a traditional rite of passage
- ja, adv. – Yes
- ja well no fine, phr. – a non-committal, resigned, or ironic ‘whatever’ expressed as ‘ja well no fine’, pronounced quickly, almost as one word.
- kasi, n. and adj.
- kif, adj. – meaning cool or sometimes used as a term of agreement
- Mzansi, n. – the Xhosa name for South Africa, also meaning South Africans as a people.
- sakkie-sakkie, adj. and n.
- sarmie, n. – a sandwich
- shackland, n.
- skedonk, n. – an old, dilapidated car
- spaza, n. – is a small, unlicensed shop in a township, usually one run from a person’s house.
- tickey box, n.
- toyi-toyi, n. and v. – the name of a dance-like movement usually performed with chanting or singing during marches or rallies.
- traditional healer, n.
- ubuntu, n. – a word signifying the fundamental values of humanity or of Africanness, also borrowed partly from Xhosa and partly from Zulu.
- voetstoots, adv. and adj. – a legal term describing the buying or selling of items in their existing condition, also used more generally to describe actions carried out unconditionally, without reservation or qualification.
- Wine of Origin, n. -(abbreviated W.O.), which is used to designate wines that are officially certified as originating from a recognized region or estate and guaranteed as being of the specified vintage and grape variety.
You may have noticed that they didn’t spell “kiff” correctly (what the F)… But don’t worry! I’m on it & I’m going to tune those flippen’ larnies. Who says kif anyway? (at least kiff is there as a variation, but still)…
Source: Good Things Guy / The Oxford Dictionary
