Today elements of the language are common in drag culture and have even trickled into the mainstream. Polari was widely spoken in the LGTBQ+ community until 1967 when homosexuality was decriminalized in the UK.
The language was campy and playful: Bona to vada your dolly old eek, a common Polari greeting, meant “Nice to see your pretty face.” Dish meant “ass,” and bona dish meant “nice ass.” Since homosexual acts were illegal, Polari enabled folx to talk safely in mixed company and identify as queer. The language was a mixture of words from London cockney rhyming slang, Romani, and Italian. But, little known to most, these terms come from the queer underground world of pre-1970s London.īack when the UK was a far less tolerant place, LGBTQ+ people used a secret language called Polari to communicate with one another. You’ve probably heard of slang words like butch, camp, and queen.
