Polari

Polari*, a bold yet secretive part of Gay history, now instantly accessible from your pocket. The world’s first and only Polari smart phone app.

The most comprehensive Polari index and phrase book fuses one of the world’s most endangered languages with 21st century communications technology. This unique app contains an accurate A to Z of all 500 words and 40 authentic key phrases.

Introduce friends to this curious and humorous, gay language; share these weird and wonderful words and phrases, directly from the app, and help to keep Polari alive. Read the etymology to discover the history behind many of the words.

By owning this app you become a custodian of the language, literally holding its future in your hand. Through its new interactive features you can add words that may be missing, or be inventive and create new words and phrases to be submitted directly via the app. ‘Favourite’ a word or phrase from the lexicon and see it rise in global popularity.

Polari app is a collaboration between the artist, Joseph Richardson, and Paul Baker, Professor of English Language and Linguistics. (Lancaster University)

*Polari in a nutshell

“Polari was a secret form of language used mainly by gay men, lesbians and people who worked in the theatre. It was most often used in London and other UK cities with a gay sub-culture, and was popular between the 1930s and 1960s. It was introduced to a wider audience through a 1960s comedy radio programme, called Round The Horne. Apart from a few familiar words, it is hardly known today.”

Professor Paul Baker (Lancaster University)