Friday, September 16, 2005

What does "Ounooi" mean?

Well Velten tells me: In the old days in South Africa the boers were called Bas (pronounced like bus) for the male and Nooi, for the female. Similar to Sahib and Memsahib in India I guess. The children of the Bas and Nooi were referred to as Kleinbas and Klein nooi, with the grandparents referred to as Oubas and Ounooi. There you have it, our Ounooi is still a teenager but will grow into her name.

1 comment:

Therese Benade said...

Not Bas but Baas using a diphtong which rhymes with ah - 'bahs'. Bas means the hide of a person, the bark of a tree or the voice of a person.
Hope this helps to correct your entry