Category Archives: Folk speech

Never Cross Over Train Tracks Into The Desert

Text: You should never cross over train tracks into the desert, especially at night.

Context: My roommate X, a current USC student, grew up in Arizona and recounted to me that when they were 12 they first learned this saying from other kids. They were playing with friends one night and a Nerf bullet was shot too far, landing on the other side of the nearby train tracks. X went to get the bullet and the other kids stopped them with the warning that they should never cross over the tracks into the desert. The kids said “it’s gone now” and explained that X would be “gone” too if they crossed. X heard the saying multiple times while living in Arizona, highlighting first hand accounts of others hearing the voices of loved ones who aren’t present or seeing glowing eyes in the dark. Each account of what was or could be on the other side was different but the message was consistently that you should not cross train tracks into the wilderness.

Interpretation: Upon hearing this, I immediately thought that this saying seems like a warning for children about the dangers of the Arizona wilderness or potentially just train safety. X’s story supported this because they mentioned it was common for children in the area to play near train tracks and the desert so it would make sense for parents to make up a reason as to why their children shouldn’t be near the train tracks. However, as we continued discussing, X made it clear that they heard the accounts of voices and glowing eyes at a much older age from adults who wholeheartedly believed what they saw. As seemingly a memorate, I think this saying could stem from the Native communities of Arizona because the reports of voices reminds me of Skinwalkers or spirits. The train tracks could represent the barrier between the danger/supernatural and safety/civilization.

Girls Go to College Rhyme

Text: “Girls go to college to get more knowledge. Boys go to Jupiter because they’re more stupider”

Context: My childhood friend said this long forgotten phrase to me recently in a discussion about childhood rhymes. We were talking about when were we in elementary and middle school we learned a bunch of silly rhymes that didn’t make much sense but were somehow memorable. She mentioned that she remembered this phrase because it implied women are smarter than men, something she ponders frequently.

Interpretation: During our discussion, I noted that many of these rhymes we were recalling seemed to center around gender. I found this interesting because we learned and repeated these rhymes only when we were children but not as adults. The idea and societal concepts of gender are constantly changing, especially when you’re a child, so the prevalence of these rhymes seems to signify the shift from the family sphere to the school/public sphere. I think these rhymes represent a time in a child’s life when they begin to develop relationships outside of their family and look for ways to relate to their peers.

“I broke your ankles” and “I put you on skates”

Text:

“I broke your ankles.”

“I put you on skates.”

Context:

LP is an adult male college graduate who grew up in Beverly Hills, CA attending the public schools in the area.

LP shared with me a traditional insult he would hear in his games growing up in Beverly Hills, CA while playing lacrosse. Both of these phrases are used when an athlete has outmaneuvered his competitor. They refer to a falling motion caused from having to quickly change direction (either the collapse that would come from one breaking their own ankles or if they were using roller skates and subsequently fell). He shared that these are phrases learned from fellow athletes while in high school. These phrases are used as a celebration for beating out an opponent and a way of sharing this success both with your own team and the opposing. LP also reported that these phrases were not considered unsportsmanlike by parents and coaches, but rather were encouraged.

Analysis:

The fact that these phrases were learned from fellow athletes during high school highlights the transmission of folk speech within the social context. The shared experience of playing lacrosse contributes to the perpetuation of these types of insults and expressions, creating a unique cultural marker. It was interesting to hear that the surrounding adults did not condemn the usage of these insults. This suggests that such expressions of triumph and competitive banter are deemed acceptable and even embraced by the larger community of Beverly Hills.

Wap konn Jój

-Haitian Creole saying

-direct English translation: “You will know George.”

-Dom’s colloquial translation: “Basically means you gonna find out or you’ll know soon – origins are debated”

My friend, Dom, is from Atlanta, GA; however, both of his parents were born in Haiti. He is fluent in Haitian Creole, and quite passionate about his heritage, culture, and driving upliftment of Haiti and its inhabitants.

According to Dom, “Wap konn Joj” directly translates to “You will know George.” However, he likens it to the more commonly Black American saying, “Fuck around and find out.” Growing up, he would hear it from his parents at times when he was perhaps doing something or going down a path that would end negatively, perhaps at the hands of the speaker. In this way, it can be somewhat of a threat or warning to stop doing something before the speaker (or someone/something else) intervenes/consequences arrive.

The number of translations and informational videos about the saying and how it’s used in Haiti give me the impression that it is pretty widely known on the island and among members of the diaspora. Additionally, popular Haitian-American rapper Mach-Hommy has a 2022 album titled Wap Konn Jój, further implying my former statement. 

According to Dom and the Founder and Director of the Haitian Creole Language Institute of New York, Wynnie Lamour, origins of the phrase are debated; however, “the most common is that it’s attributed to Hurricane Georges that passed through Haiti in September 1998, causing great damage…Still, others claim that it was a popular saying warning schoolchildren to behave, or they will know Jòj, another word for the rigwaz, or whip. Most likely, it is a Biblical reference to St. George, who is known for bringing the mad back to their senses.”

Regardless of the story behind the mysterious “George,” the meaning of this saying seems to be made clear to most Haitians from an early age. 

Pa fe bouche mwen long

-Haitian Creole saying

-direct English translation: “Don’t make my mouth long”

-Dom’s colloquial translation: “Don’t piss me off, basically”

My friend, Dom, is from Atlanta, GA; however, both of his parents were born in Haiti. He is fluent in Haitian Creole, and quite passionate about his heritage, culture, and driving upliftment of Haiti and its inhabitants.

According to Dom, “Pa fe bouche mwen long” directly translates to “Don’t make my mouth long,” however, it essentially means “Don’t piss me off.” He heard it from his parents and other adults in his community if he or others were bothering or angering them. 
Most of the online media defining this saying provide only colloquial translations. However, as I suspected when Dom first told it to me, according to Learn Haitian Creole, somewhere between the direct and colloquial is the translation, “Don’t make me talk too much.” When Dom’s mom would tell him not to make her mouth long, she was really instructing him not to get her worked up to the point of having to lecture or yell at him.