Does anybody know the origins of these constructions? I seem to hear it predominantly from people from the UK, usually expats in South East Asia. Are there similar malapropisms for places in the UK (or America)?
Examples:
Honkers- Hong Kong
Yangers- Yangshuo
Singers- Singapore
Bangers- Bangkok
Changers- Chiang Mai
Patters- Pattaya
I have not heard
Jackers for Jakarta.
henningwessel
1
somebodyelse
What, you mean like "Loners" for London, "Manners" for Manchester and "Loser Vegans" for Los Vegas?
2
bangsue
it's just the first few letters with 'ers' on the end.
similar thing happens at public schools in the uk with people's surnames if it has a ring to it. often prefixed by 'old' for some reason. eg 'old smithers'.
same sort of people talk about thai baht as if it is dollars or pounds. everything is 50grand this or 20grand that. or do you want to play pool for a few grand. or just got a car for a million.
7
skylar
London = LDN
Bangkok = BKK
Thailand = TH... and for short, spoken Thais normally say 'in thai' for in Thailand when talking about it in English.
Kuala Lumpur = KL
It took me ages to master the Australian vernacular, Cocodrilo... how about pov and unco?
Pro tip
Lonely Planet
trusted partner
trusted partner