Gay Lingo in Great Britain and the Philippines. A Comparison of the Sociolects Polari and Swardspeak

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Seminar paper from the year 2018 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Linguistics, grade: 1,3, Free University of Berlin, language: English, abstract: As LGBTQ rights were not yet established in Western countries, queer people had to fear discrimination or even prosecution. To express their unnormal sexual identities, gay subcultures were formed, and language varieties, known as gay lingo or gay slang, served as a secret form of communication, and a reinforcement of gay identity within these communities. In Great Britain, mainly London, an anti-language called Polari emerged and was spoken especially in the 1950s and 60s (Baker 2002). As homosexual acts under certain circumstances were decriminalized in the United Kingdom, the slow decline of the anti-language began until it vanished almost completely (Baker 2002). Another gay lingo found in the Philippines, referred to as Swardspeak, emerged in the 1970s, and contrary to Polari, is still actively spoken today. I will analyze how both language varieties compare to one another, and why they progressed differently. The essay will examine what distinguishes slang from other language varieties, will compare the linguistic features and sociolinguistic background of both varieties, and lastly will scrutinize the sociohistorical differences of Great Britain and the Philippines to explain why Swardspeak is still spoken, while Polari is a dead variety.

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