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Is Pig Latin a Real Language​?

Have you ever wondered "Is Pig Latin a real language​?​" and "How does Pig Latin work​?" — then this article is just what you've been looking for!

Read on to learn more about:

  • Whether Pig Latin is a real language;
  • How Pig Latin works;
  • What no in Pig Latin​;
  • Pig Latin translation​ (Pig Latin to English​ and English to Pig Latin​); and
  • The meaning of Pig Latin today.

Don't wait any longer, and et'slay etgay intoway itway!

Have you ever heard someone say, **"Ellohay, owhay areyay ouyay?" ** or "icenay otay eetmay ouyay" and wondered what on language they are speaking? That's Pig Latin! But what exactly does that mean?

The term Pig Latin, which originated in the late 19th century, was created with the intention of being humorous and ironic. Since Latin was seen as a sophisticated language, pig added a mocking nuance, for a funny version of a Latin-sounding language. With some minor twists, ordinary words were turned into a fancy and hilarious secret code.

The purpose was for children to have a game to play and a means of communication with one another. The main goal, therefore, was to have fun and maintain a sense of secrecy, rather than to create a new language for cultural purposes. It allowed children to bond while also challenging themselves intellectually.

So does that mean that Pig Latin is a real language? Not really. Wordplay and language games would be more fitting descriptions, as Pig Latin does not have its own grammar, vocabulary, or syntax. It's entirely based on the English language, which means that someone who doesn't know English won't be able to understand Pig Latin.

💡 Did you know that other languages have their own "Pig Latin", too? For example, Jeringonza for Spanish and Louchebem in French are other variants of wordplays.

If you've gotten curious about Pig Latin and want to try it with your friends, here are some basic rules to get you started:

  • Words starting with a consonant — move the initial consonant (or cluster) to the end and add ay; and
  • Words starting with a vowel — simply add way or yay.

This way, tea becomes eatay and laugh becomes aughlay, while words that start with a vowel, like amazing, become amazingway and usual becomes usualway.

So if you wanted to translate English to Pig Latin​, you'd just need to move the first consonant or consonant cluster to the end of the word and add ay if the word begins with a consonant and way or yay at the end if the word starts with a vowel.

Translating Pig Latin to English is a bit trickier​, so bear in mind:

  • Words ending with way or yay — remove the ending; and
  • Words ending with ay — remove the ending and move the last letter(s) to the front of the word.

🙋 Need any help with Pig Latin translation​? Try our Pig Latin Translator.

Everything seems clear, right? But sometimes it might be too simple to be true, and you may wonder, e.g., "What is no in Pig Latin​?" No starts with a consonant, which means you only need move the n to the end and add ay to create the Pig Latin version onay.

It might seem that, due to its far-reaching origin, Pig Latin is outdated. Nothing further from the truth! Pig Latin is still present in several contexts even nowadays:

  • Cultural significance — Cartoons, books, and movies often use Pig Latin as a code among characters to enhance language awareness and phonics in children.
  • Psychologic and linguistic benefits — Playing with language can benefit cognitive development and language education, as it encourages rethinking the structure of words, recognizing patterns, and improving memory.
  • Social media — Pig Latin is still used for fun in viral challenges.

Pig Latin was meant to be an ironic and playful, Latin-sounding version of English. It was created as a game for children to communicate secretly, have fun, and challenge themselves intellectually. Pig Latin is not a real language, since it has no independent grammar, vocabulary, or syntax and relies entirely on the English language.

The word no starts with a consonant, so according to pig latin rules, you move the first letter to the end of the word and add ay, which creates onay.

Pig Latin follows these simple rules:

  • Words that start with a consonant — move the first consonant or consonant cluster to the end of the word and add ay; and
  • Words that start with a vowel — add way or yay to the end.

To translate Pig Latin to English, follow these rules:

  • Words ending with way or yay — remove this ending from the word; and
  • Words ending with ay — remove this ending and move the last letter(s) to the front of the word.

This article was written by Julia Kopczyńska and reviewed by Steven Wooding.