Gail, or Gayle, is an English/Afrikaans-based argot used by Indo-European speaking male homosexuals in urban communities of South Africa, similar in some respects to Polari in England, from which some lexical items have been borrowed. The equivalent language spoken by Bantu-speaking homosexuals in South Africa is called IsiNgqumo. This has an Nguni base.

Gayle originally manifested as "moffietaal" in the "moffie drag culture" of the Cape Coloured community in the 1950s. It permeated into white homosexual circles in the 1960s and became part of mainstream white gay culture through the South African Airways "koffie-moffies" in the 1970s.

Besides a few core words borrowed from Polari (such as varda meaning to see), most of Gayle's words are alliterative formations using women's names, such as Beulah for beauty, Priscilla for police and Hilda for hideous. Men, especially other gay men, are often referred to by female pronouns, as is the custom among almost all gay countercultures throughout the world.

Gayle arose for the same reason that most antilanguages develop in marginalised communities - to have a secret language in an oppressive society. However it also fulfilled other functions such as to "camp up" conversation, and provide entertainment in a subculture where verbal wit and repartee are highly valued.

Sample

"Varda that Beulah! Vast mitzi. She's a chicken and probably Priscilla and I don't need Jennifer Justice in my life right now." Translation: "Look at that beauty! Very me. He's young and probably a policeman and I don't need trouble with the law in my life at the moment." (from the Exclusive Books' review of Gayle: the language of Kinks and Queens)

External links

• Gayle - Gay SA slang
• Ethnologue

Bibliography

• Ken Cage. Gayle - the Language of Kinks & Queens. A History and Dictionary of Gay Language in South Africa. Jacana Media 2003. ISBN 1-919931-49-X. (link)