Speaking in A G

[Barquentine]

Has anyone else heard of 'AG'? My Mum and Dad used it to prevent us knowing what they were on about. It sounds like fiendish gobbledegook until your ear is tuned in, then it's such fun watching people having no clue what you're on about, when all the time you are speaking English!

[weeal]

ayethescotsgettoldthatallthetime

[heathfield]

''Agy-pagy'' was used by WWI British prisoners-of-war to prevent their German captors knowing what they were talking about. They put the letters 'ag' before any vowel in a word. (It would be written ''lagike thagis''). As you say, with a little practice it becomes fairly easy to speak and understand - for a native English speaker. But the Germans, even those who spoke fluent English, found it impossible to make out what their prisoners were saying.

[shaking]

brings memories back of my school days.

[sophie_1003]

I posted a question about this sort of thing a while back, my boyfriend and his mates use 'ay' in place of ag so 'Answerbank' would beome Aylanswer Baylank'. I still can't catch all of the words if they're using it and speaking quickly! Prefer Pig Latin myself!

[R1Geezer]

I can remember a variation where we took the first letter of a word that started with a consonant and moved it to the end and then added "ay". t
eg car = arcay, boat = oatbay etc etc

then for added complexity you doubled it up with rhymming slang!

so Stairs would tairssay and then apples and earspay!

Also when I worked in a butchers from 13yrs old we used to use butchers back slang so the customers would know what we where talking about!

[sophie_1003]

R1Geezer, the first part of yours is the pig latin or igpay atinlay that I was referring to! Whats butchers back slang?

[R1Geezer]

that's where certain key words are pronounced pseudo back wards so that you can communicate but the customers do not know what you are on about. For example the govner would often say "use the old ones first", obviously stock rotation is important but at the same time customers would not like the idea of not having the freshest, so he would actually say "Use the dlo ones", dlo pronounced deelow. Als you's have a "Gel of Beemal", leg of lamb etc etc

[Iggle Piggle]

I watched the film Monsters Inc the other day and one of the monsters (Sully) says "ooklay in the agbay" meaning look in the bag.
There is something wrong with my brain as I cannot think quick enough to talk like this !!

[blondie83]

I used to speak in 'backslang' all the time at school but it got to a stage where everyone could understand it so there was no point!