Voices of the Past … Ceylonese-English

Thanks to Keith Bennet for sending!

Aneeeeey…wot men!!!

I am sure you will identify with some of the following

She gave me the come to the body like look,

So, puttas I followed her.

Adday! I only wanted to put a break to her, but her brother putting pul-part with me.

And she also, straightaway asked to borrow my bike.

How to say no to the face so I had to give, no?

When Mummy heard about it she told me Jus be Chile. You want to start trouble in the junction getting involved with that family? Beeeeeg trouble!

For all their booroos-part they are actually a godayatic, har par six crowd. Better you catch a corner and study. But what for telling?…..you never lisen to me anyway.

When you become a doctor, you can easily catch a Colombo7 number and all your friends will look and say Aow Aow! Where to catch!

Some buggers of course will try to put k.p. (katey pus) to you.

But that will be because they are really J.

Straightaway you can warn them saying Take care men! will What happen to Happenstall, mus happen to us all they all shut up, then
Other common words that I was happy to be reminded of were :

1. Kolopppan,
2. Thoppi,
3. Gori,
4. Poot-board traveller,
5. Gundu,
6. Leg-bail,
7. Jool piece,
8. Gultik,
9. Dead rope,
10. Sus-gahla,
11. Hoo-ha,
12. Nevermind karaya,
13. Border catching,
14. Bandakka-ispeed.
15. Istubistekcutlis.

Taken out of context of that time and environment they sound amusing, but they were a part of everyday conversations of that time.

I remember, people used to eagerly await the delivery of the Sunday Observer to read the Flybynight columns and view the cartoons by Collette.
You will also probably remember enjoying their incisive political and social comment, and the colloquialisms they created (Bambalawatte, The Yeighty Club).

They also made us aware of the colourful characters that we had around us (in their creations of the characters like Sooty Banda and Citizen Perera) and of course the deviousness of the politicians in our Land of Hope and Gori.

I wonder if any of these Ceylonese-English is still heard around Colombo, or have the new generation compiled their own new patios?

I for one, would love to hear some of those old voices again!