Message: "Irie is a Jamaican slang word, I'm pretty sure..."

This is a reply within a larger thread: view the whole thread

[Opinions] Irie is a Jamaican slang word, I'm pretty sure...

by Ora

9/12/2006, 8:57 PM

pro EYE-ree, I saw it on keychains when I was in Jamaica. They use it like "all good"/"cool"/"great"/"life's chill"/"all right" etc...

edit: I just saw a def. on a website of Jamaican slang that says Irie means "to be happy" - like that song "Don't Worry, Be Happy!" lol I remind my tour guide telling me that.

edit: here's the website, http://www.speakjamaican.com/glossary.html

"Chan eil tuil air nach tig traoghadh"

Capt. Malcolm Reynolds - Half of writing history is hiding the truth.
- Serenity

This message was edited 9/12/2006, 8:59 PM

Replies

- iris +1

9/12/2006, 9:25 PM

Jamaica and Rastafarianism are intertwined. Irie is listed as a Rastafarian term on wiktionary and other sites.

I knew a girl named Irie and she pronounced it eye-REE which I think would be indistinguishable from EYE-ree in most conversation. I believe she had a caribbean background although I'm not sure if she was necessarily Jamaican.

“It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.”
~Mark Twain

- Ora

9/12/2006, 10:07 PM

Not everybody in Jamaica is Rastafarian though - I actually saw more Christian churches than anything while I was there. Just as Rastafarianism isn't contained to JUST Jamaica... however, I've been to several of the Caribbean islands several times and only in Jamaica have I heard "irie" used in conversation...

edit: which is why I preferred to say it's a Jamaican term rather than Rastafarian.

"Chan eil tuil air nach tig traoghadh"

Capt. Malcolm Reynolds - Half of writing history is hiding the truth.
- Serenity

This message was edited 9/12/2006, 10:08 PM

View Message

Replies