You will be surprised at the number of Indian restaurants in the UK. As India was part of the empire where the sun never set, the love for Indian cuisine is not surprising. You could safely say Indian cuisines to the British is akin to Moroccan cuisine to France. It is equivalent to being the national cuisine. Like the cuisine, there are other hidden connections to Indian.
One of my British counterparts gets excited while discussing plans. He talks fast explaining the various components, the interconnections and the final desired output. At this stage, he describes the state as "Everything is tickety-boo". Although the term tickety-boo is new to me, I assumed it has something to do with the happy state where we all want to end up. My friend always reinforces this state by saying this sentence more than once. Sometimes, it brings a smile on my face.
So what does this word mean? It means everything is alright. You will find a song with titled "Everything is tickety-boo" by Danny Kaye. It is a happy song. But what is the origin of this word? The origin has ties to India. This word is the British version of "teek hai babu" in Hindi meaning "it is alright, sir". I tried to say the Hindi expression repeatedly but couldn't come up with the British equivalent. But then British has been known to anglicise the Indian names with ones that require lesser tongue-twisting.
Tags: British Lessons,Ticket-Boo
What an interesting insight...What never have imagined that "tickety boo" came from "teek hai babu" :)
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed the happy song too....thanks!
I came across the word only recently. I was surprised to find the song. But I liked it. :)
DeleteWow! How interesting! Thanks for following my blog, Nona! I'm enjoying going through your posts :)
ReplyDeleteThank you
DeleteAre wah! Ways that life tells you small world. Small world :D
ReplyDelete