I'd never really taken the time to consider the linguistic peculiarities of
skateboarding terminology until very recently. I quite literally grew up
skateboarding. I’ve been doing it since as far back as I can remember, so the
skateboarder dialect seems completely natural to me. I tend to forget that
others might not understand what a “kick flip back smith” is, and that’s really
why I chose to examine the evolution of language use within the skateboarding
community. In an interview with Huck
Magazine, Kevin Métallier, a skate photographer, answered a few questions
that relate to dialectology within skateboarding (http://www.huckmagazine.com/ride/skate/photographer-learning-universal-language-skateboarding/).
Métallier said, when asked about skateboarding as a sort of “universal language,”
“My passion for skateboarding and the culture surrounding it can be defined as
a passport. In the 15 years that I’ve travelled around world, skateboarders, no
matter where you are, can share something strong with you.” He seems to view
skateboarding as a uniting force of sorts, and his rather expansive answer
might be a good place to begin in terms of actually analyzing skateboarding as
a language.
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| This image depicts some of the mechanical terminology used to describe the makeup of a skateboard. ( http://www.awesome-skateboard.com/SkateboardParts.html) |
The origin of the terminology used
by skateboarders certainly stems from surfing. Skateboarding was, naturally,
invented by surfers who wanted to be able to “surf” even when the waves went
flat. Many of the more general terms used to describe feelings or appreciation
within surfing and skateboarding are identical (“sick,” “rad,” “gnarly,” etc.).
However, the actual tricks performed by skateboarders have names that are
entirely unique to skateboarding. Simon Horobin, author of an Oxford Dictionaries article entitled “The
Words You Need to Know Before Skateboarding,” said, “A rich lexicon has emerged
to describe the variety of grinds and airs – street and aerial maneuvers – that
expert skaters perform” (https://blog.oxforddictionaries.com/2016/06/language-of-skateboarding/).
So, the physical act of skateboarding somehow brought about the formation of an
entirely new vocabulary. The constant evolution of skateboarding’s terminology
seems to run parallel with the constant progression within skateboarding
itself.
I think examining the various ways
in which skateboarding as a dialect can unify people from different
geographical locations is crucial to understanding how skaters actually utilize
their language on a daily basis. John McMahon, author of an article entitled “The
Language, Lifestyle, and Universality of Skater Speak,” said, “As a teenager I
was deeply involved in skate culture and now as a middle-aged expat in
Thailand, my knowledge of the language allows me to talk to kids less than half
my age at the wake park where I board each week even when my Thai fails” (https://www.listenandlearnaustralia.com.au/blog/the-language-lifestyle-and-universality-of-skater-speak/).
Those who truly treat skateboarding as something more than just a pastime are naturally
able to communicate with each other. Skater jargon resulted from a combination
of surfer slang and unbridled uniqueness. Words like “sick” and “rad” have
actually bridged the gap between skateboarding and popular culture as a whole,
however it seems as though the only way to truly become familiar with the
skateboarding dialect is to speak with other skateboarders. What began as a
secondary hobby to surfing has transformed into a veritable way of life with
its own dialect (cliché, I know). The origins of skateboarding’s
linguistic history are certainly worth examining, and it will be interesting to
see how the vernacular changes as time goes on.
