Pajubá () is a Brazilian
cryptolect
A cant is the jargon or language of a group, often employed to exclude or mislead people outside the group.McArthur, T. (ed.) ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (1992) Oxford University Press It may also be called a cryptolect, argot ...
which inserts numerous words and expressions from
West African languages
West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth.
Etymology
The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some R ...
into the
Portuguese language
Portuguese ( or, in full, ) is a western Romance language of the Indo-European language family, originating in the Iberian Peninsula of Europe. It is an official language of Portugal, Brazil, Cape Verde, Angola, Mozambique, Guinea-Bissau and ...
. It is spoken by practitioners of Afro-Brazilian religions, such as
Candomblé and
Umbanda
Umbanda () is a syncretic Afro-Brazilian religion that blends traditional African religions with Roman Catholicism, Spiritism, and Indigenous American beliefs. Although some of its beliefs and most of its practices existed in the late 19th ce ...
, and by the
Brazilian LGBT community. Its source languages include
Umbundu
Umbundu, or South Mbundu (autonym umb, úmbúndú), one of many Bantu languages, is the most widely-spoken autochthonous language of Angola. Its speakers are known as '' Ovimbundu'' and are an ethnic group constituting a third of Angola's popul ...
,
Kimbundo,
Kikongo
Kongo or Kikongo is one of the Bantu languages spoken by the Kongo people living in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Republic of the Congo, Gabon and Angola. It is a tonal language. It was spoken by many of those who were taken from th ...
,
Egbá,
Ewe,
Fon and
Yoruba
The Yoruba people (, , ) are a West African ethnic group that mainly inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo. The areas of these countries primarily inhabited by Yoruba are often collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba constitute ...
. It also includes words borrowed from
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
,
French, and
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
, as well as words of Portuguese origin with altered meanings.
[Aquino, Eloisa. Pajubá: The Language of Brazilian Travestis. Montreal: B&D Press (2014).]
It is also often described as "the speaking in the language of the saints" or "rolling the tongue", much used by the "saint people" (priests of African religions) when one wants to say something so that other people cannot understand.
In the
travesti
Travesti may refer to:
* Travesti (gender identity), a transgender identity in South America
* Travesti (theatre), a performance while wearing clothes of the opposite sex
* "Travesti", a section of Arca's 2020 single "@@@@@"
See also
* Tr ...
(Brazilian
transvestite
Transvestism is the practice of dressing in a manner traditionally associated with the opposite sex. In some cultures, transvestism is practiced for religious, traditional, or ceremonial reasons. The term is considered outdated in Western c ...
) community, Pajubá is usually accompanied by exaggeratedly "queer" body language, part of an aesthetic called ''fexação'' (lit. "closing", roughly analogous to "flaming" in English) intended to subvert societal expectations to conceal or downplay one's LGBT identity.
Etymology
In both the candomblé and the LGBT community, the word ''pajubá'' or ''bajubá'' means "gossip", "news", or "update", referring to other related groups or events occurring (both good things and bad things) in those circles.
History
Pajubá began to be used by the LGBT community during the period of the
military government of Brazil (1964–85) as a means of facing police repression and mislead what people could gather from what they heard. The
argot
A cant is the jargon or language of a group, often employed to exclude or mislead people outside the group.McArthur, T. (ed.) ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (1992) Oxford University Press It may also be called a cryptolect, argot ...
was created spontaneously in regions with the strongest African presence in Brazil, such as Umbanda and Candomblé "terreiros" (religious locations), and the dialect contains many
Africanisms
Africanisms refers to characteristics of African culture that can be traced through societal practices and institutions of the African diaspora. Throughout history, the dispersed descendants of Africans have retained many forms of their ancestr ...
. The dialect was later adopted as a code between travestis and later between all LGBT communities and sympathizers.
In November 2018, a question mentioning Pajubá was included in the
National High School Exam
National may refer to:
Common uses
* Nation or country
** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen
Places in the United States
* National, Maryland, c ...
.
References
{{Reflist
Cant languages
LGBT culture in Brazil
LGBT linguistics
Afro-Brazilian culture