"Ay orrrrrrr mi chiquititos"

This week I caught myself calling Chiquitito "pet", a north-east English expression that both my Grandmother and mother use, and after laughing at myself it made me stop and think how much my language has changed over the years, and more recently after five years of tropical living.

Papicito and I both originate from the UK, and whilst we can (and do) lapse into our local dialect, we had different childhood  influences and education and I do not think we sound that similar.

So what new words have worked their way into our every day vocabulary over the last five years?

Our first two years of expat living were spent in Malaysia, and whilst we learned a few pleasantries of Bahasa Malay we never picked up much of the language. As an ex British colony there was enough English spoken that we managed to get by.

The main word that we picked up in Malaysia, and still use today, is "ay-orrrr". I always thought this was a Chinese word, but a Malaysian friend has recently told me that it is a Malay word. And its meaning? Any time you need an expletive "ay-orrrr" will do the trick. If  your friend told you they had just had an unexpected windfall "ay-orrrr" is the perfect exclamation. If the car in front of you does something unexpected and you break sharply, why risk Junior learning a profanity when "ay-orrrr", with extra "orrrrrrrr" fits the bill perfectly.

Can I just add that Chiquitito, who is learning to talk in both Spanish and English has also mastered a fantastic "ay-orrrr" this week.

We have lived in El Salvador for approaching three years now, and as a former Spanish colony, where English is not spoken as much as I had hoped for, we have had to make an effort to learn basic Spanish.

Of course, in the house we speak English to each other, but there are some words of Spanish that have become part of our every day vocabulary, and I know that we will continue to use them even when we eventually move on to somewhere new.

"Si" ("yes") is the most common Spanish word that we use, then probably "gracias" ("thank you") and also "con" or "sin" to denote whether we want our cold drink "con hielo" or "sin hielo" - with or without ice.

One of the words that I use on a frequent basis is the Salvadoran word "dundo" or "dunda" depending whether it is a man or woman that I am berating. It is considered very impolite to call someone stupid in El Salvador (estupido/a), but "dundo/a" is an accepted slang form.

(The difference between the a or o at the end of a word is masculine and feminine - o for masculine, a for feminine).

So when I do or say something daft, or someone else does "dunda" is the perfect word, and always guaranteed to make the Salvadoran you're talking to laugh with surprise. Likewise, when someone makes your life difficult, like the shop assistant who over charges you then rolls her eyes when you complain - a 'dunda!" muttered under your breath (or out loud if you strongly about it) makes you feel better!!

I also use "chiquitito" and "chiquitita" a fair amount too, and it is our pet name for our young son. It is a term of endearment, so instead of calling someone "dear" or "darling", or when talking to a close friend, you would use the expression "mi chiquitito/a".

The other word that I will probably take away from El Salvador is "super". But hang on a minute, I know what you're thinking - surely "super" is an English word? Yes it is, but it is a word that gets used here all the time. Is something really good? "Super bien!" Very fast? "Super rapido!" Is someone very clever? "Super inteligente!"

If you want to learn more Salvadoran slang words then check out Jose Herrera's blog.

So, until next time, adios mi chiquititos.

PS - What's your favorite word that you use every day that is not from your native language? Share it with us in the comments box below!