Walking down the hallways of Hammonton High School, one might feel like a foreigner if you don’t know the language of the people.

It’s not that you’re in another country, although it might sound that way. It’s not even that you’re in a different town than the one you woke up in that morning.

However, you still might need a translator.

The unique slang and lingo we hear naturally changes over time. Sometimes lingo and phrases are exclusive to a group of friends, or an entire generation. We see this in our own school, and our teachers have watched the language evolve since they were in school.

Language is never set in stone, and new words are born all the time.

For example, one word we hear a lot of is “swag”. The origin of the word has many theories, including a popular rumor that it was 1960’s acronym for the phrase “Secretly We Are Gay”.  However, the website snopes.com, which is dedicated to verifying rumors, it is “a corruption of the Scandinavian svagga, meaning “to rock unsteadily or lurch.” The website went on to explain that it entered the English language in the 13th or 14th century and over time its meaning evolved into that of “hanging loosely or heavily, to sag,” and by 1794 picked up the additional meanings of “booty or plunder” and “a hanging wreath or garland.”

It evolved into the word “swagger,” which, according to a more modern explanation on Urban Dictionary, describes a person who is boastful, confident, and arrogant. There are many words that come from swag.

Here are few examples:

– “We (meaning her and her friends) say swaggie and swag me out” (sophomore Olivia Hess)

She explained that “swag me out” is sort of a catchphrase that can be said at anytime, along with “swaggie.”

“I also say naw a lot, like ‘are we going out tonight or naw’,” she added.

Sometimes lingo can be as simple as spelling words differently or giving new meaning to a word, as explained by junior Anthony Paone.

“We say things like sick, dope, and neat; but spell them as ‘sic’, ‘dop’, and ‘nete’,” he said.

This is interesting because they use words that several people use, but they spell them differently when using them in text or writing

Today, many students (and adults) say “dawg”, but they weren’t the first generation to use the word.

“I graduated in 2004, we used to say things like ‘dawg’ and ‘yo what’s up baby’,” said music teacher Mr. Kevin Arena.

The trend appears to this: Have a word you commonly use? Abbreviate it or change it’s spelling, and you’ve got a new word. Case in point: “bae,”

“Oh yeah, I say ‘bae’ all of the time,” senior Marissa Gabriele. “I might walk by my friend Lexi in the hallways and say, ‘Hey bae’,” said senior Marissa Gabriele

She says the word because it’s catchy. What does it actually mean? It depends, but it is commonly used to refer to your significant other or in a joking matter to your friend, your “babe.”

So the moral of the story? If you want to be sic, talk swaggie to your bae.