DOES YOUR FAMILY HAVE ITS OWN DIALECT? IT’S CALLED A “FAMILECT”

Have you heard the term “FAMILECT” before?  It’s like a mash-up of “family” and “dialect.”  Someone coined it a while back, and “The Atlantic” did an article last year.  Now it’s in the news because the holidays are coming up.

It means made-up words or phrases that only you and your family use.  It also includes things like inside jokes and shared references.  

For example, maybe your dad accidentally called himself your “Dud” 20 years ago.  So you’ve been teasing him by calling him Dud ever since.

Someone polled over 20,000 people and asked if their family has its own “familect”.  And around two in five people said yes.  39% said they do, 41% don’t, and 20% might, but can’t remember any words or phrases specifically.