Review: 100 Words that Make Us Kiwi
'These words and phrases don't tell you only about our language. They're insights into our culture, both high and low. The 'Bugger' of that Toyota ad is here. So is 'hua', used so ineptly by Sean Plunket in his floundering attack on Eleanor Catton...'
A Kiwi word got me into trouble in the UK, decades back. I'd begun teaching a class of Year 11 boys, and after a few lessons, I sensed a growing prickle of resentment among them almost every time I spoke. 'Am I saying something that you don't like?' I finally asked. A short silence, then one boy demanded, ''Why are you calling us clowns?''
I felt perplexed, till I realised I'd been saying 'Now, you jokers, let's try....Do you jokers think that...?' (This was the 1970s.) I explained; they laughed; all was well. And that very word is on p 66 of Mark Broatch's engaging, informative compendium of Kiwi As She Is Spoke.
Words are Broatch's professional life. He's Books Editor of the NZ Listener, so multiple thousands, possibly millions of them cross his desk each year. Now he offers, explains, analyses 100 (far more, actually) which contribute to and/or reflect New Zild ways of life.
An intro covers 'sweet as....the kleptomaniac marvel' (great!); our accent, the 'interweaving of te reo Māori with New Zealand English'. If only Erica Stanford and her misadvising advisors had met that last phrase. Then come the words and their accompanying mini-essays. They're divided into six intriguingly labelled categories: A Question of Character; Pride & Joy; Field & Boardroom; et al.
We begin with 'Skux', made famous by Labour Minister Kiri Allen, talking re her Covid epidemic clothing. Broatch tells us its meanings – cool, fashionable, attractive – and its possible Samoan origin.
We end, 99 entries and far more words later, with 'Phar Lap....gangly....awkward gait', and the rumour of his death from poisoning by American gangsters.
Each of the hundred gets its once-over-neatly coverage: meanings, origin(s), applications, famous or notorious examples, associated words or expressions. It's a book rewardingly veined with cross-links, parallels, historical cameos.
It's also one which will have you exclaiming ''Yes!'' with recognition and satisfaction at almost every entry. For me, it was 'hard yakka....nong....poke the borax....doesn't know if s/he's Arthur or Martha'. Indeed, some are no longer with us, more's the pity, but Mark Broatch can tell you all about them.
These words and phrases don't tell you only about our language. They're insights into our culture, both high and low. The 'Bugger' of that Toyota ad is here. So is 'hua', used so ineptly by Sean Plunket in his floundering attack on Eleanor Catton.
Other entries reflect our economy ('Think Big, Rogernomics, Ruthanasia'), or our politics ('Helengrad, Gone by Lunchtime'). Did Don Brash actually use that second phrase? Broatch investigates.
Our wardrobes are referenced ('Togs, Jandals, Gumboots'). And our industries ('Rattle your Dags' – with side note re 'a real dag' and a short biography of the famously woolly Shrek, shorn while wearing crampons. Intrigued? It's all on p 214.) There's coverage of environmental language, both affectionate and splenetic. 'Dawn Chorus' leads to the 'Chorus of Outrage' when Radio NZ proposed dropping the bird call before its morning news.
Want to see our national psyche as evidenced in our utterances? Try 'Centrist', where our high incidence of 'don't know' in polls just may reflect our national modesty and honesty, plus an associated 'kind of decency' in our media. Don't tell Winston about that last one. Or there's 'She'll Be Right', endearing if it involves our saying 'thank you' when we leave a shop without buying anything; less commendable when it involves boarding house sprinkler systems.
Rewardingly and appropriately, 'Pavlova' is here. Discover its possible link with the French 'Kiss Cake'. Encounter 'Godzone', parodied by Allen Curnow, and of course 'Number 8 Wire', which ironically isn't manufactured any more. There are fascinating obscurities – I won't say 'trivia', because frequently there's significance, even gravity behind the colloquialisms. Read about our per capita banana consumption; why our All Whites aren't allowed to play in a black strip. Heard of 'Ghost Chips' or 'Rotovegas'? Me neither. But you will here.
My favourite among the massed explanations? The glorious anecdote from WW2 of US Marines marching under a banner proclaiming 'SECOND TO NONE'. Immediately behind them came the Kiwi contingent, with their banner reading 'NONE'.
It's a book to be dipped into as well as read steadily. I mean that approvingly. Mark Broatch writes with style and succinctness. If I may pillage his pages, this has something for Hoons and Pointy Heads, Dills and JAFAs, Cuzzies and Tall Poppies. Mark, my Bro, You've Knocked the Bastard Off.
