Pajubá (), or Bajubá, 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, argo ...

which inserts numerous words and expressions from West African languages into the

Portuguese language Portuguese ( or ) is a Western Romance language of the Indo-European language family originating from the Iberian Peninsula of Europe. It is the official language of Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Portugal and São Tom� ...

. It is spoken by practitioners of Afro-Brazilian religions, such as

Candomblé Candomblé () is an African diaspora religions, African diasporic religion that developed in Brazil during the 19th century. It arose through a process of syncretism between several of the traditional religions of West and Central Africa, especi ...

and

Umbanda Umbanda () is a religion that emerged in Brazil during the 1920s. Deriving largely from Kardecist spiritism, Spiritism, it also combines elements from African diasporic religions, Afro-Brazilian traditions like Candomblé as well as Roman Catho ...

, and by the Brazilian LGBT community. Its source languages include

Umbundu Umbundu, or South Mbundu (autonym ''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 populati ...

, Kimbundo,

Kikongo Kongo or Kikongo is one of the Bantu languages spoken by the Kongo people living in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the Republic of the Congo, Gabon, and Angola. It is a tonal language. The vast majority of present-day speakers li ...

, Egbá, Ewe, Fon and Yoruba. 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 countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

, and English, 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 (Brazilian

transvestite Cross-dressing is the act of wearing clothes traditionally or stereotypically associated with a different gender. From as early as pre-modern history, cross-dressing has been practiced in order to disguise, comfort, entertain, and express onesel ...

) 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, argo ...

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 African people, Africans have retained many forms ...

. 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.

Examples

Below are some examples of Pajubá. * ''Adé '' - gay man * ''Adéfuntó'' -

closeted ''Closeted'' and ''in the closet'' are metaphors for LGBTQ people who have not disclosed their sexual orientation or gender identity and aspects thereof, including sexual identity and sexual behavior. This metaphor is associated and sometime ...

gay man * '' Alibã'' - police * '' Amapô'' - woman * '' Aqué/acué'' - money * '' Bofe'' - boy * '' Cacura'' - gay man 40 years of age or more * '' Caminhoneira'' - homosexual woman with a masculine appearance (similar to "butch") * '' Desaquendar'' - to untuck * '' Destruidora'' - person who is doing something very well * '' Equê'' - lie, deception * '' Fazer a Alice'' - to be a dreamer/visionary * '' Fazer a egípcia'' - to maintain a neutral facial expression/feign disinterest * '' Gongar'' - to throw shade/to read * ''Indaca''/''Endaca'' - mouth * '' Neca'' - penis * '' Ocó'' - man * ''Oni'' - water * '' Picumã'' - hair; wig * ''Ravi'' - killer, dangerous * '' Xoxar'' - to mock * ''Xaum'' - meeting

References

{{Reflist LGBTQ culture in Brazil Afro-Brazilian culture LGBTQ argots