African Colloquialisms

I love informal expressions of different cultures. South Africa is chock-full of words and phrases that are common in usage, but could be confusing for a non-local.

For instance:
“Shame!” And “Ach! Shame!” are used interchangeably for commenting on good things, bad things, inconsequential things.

Examples:
1st person, said sadly – “My daughter’s getting divorced.”
2nd person – “Ach! Shame!”
My interpretation – What a pity.

1st person, said with delight – “My daughter’s getting married.”

2nd person ‘ “Ach! Shame!”
My interpretation – You don’t say!

In response to a query about when something is going to happen – “Just now.”

My interpretation – *Stop worrying, it’ll happen as soon as I get to it.* (Similar to the Spanish meaning of “manana” – but it's more likely to happen sometime today.)

When being asked for the second or third time when something is going to happen, a common response is, “Now now!”

My interpretation – this will probably happen a tad sooner than “just now” … "but don’t ask me again."

1st person, asks a favor of 2nd person.

2nd person’s response, “Ya, no, definitely!” (or “Ya, no, fine!”)
My interpretation – “Ya” means, *yes, I heard you*, “No” means *no problem*. “Definitely” or “Fine” means *I’ll do it*.

Muti (MOO-tee) – medicine, whatever makes you feel better – oil is muti for the car, chocolate is muti for the soul.

Fundi (FOON-dee) – someone who has an extraordinary skill set – as in a computer fundi.