Triniglish|Trinididioms spoken and explained #89 | Carry Yuh Own Bag Ah Cocoa
Who or what is ah Trini? Well, the simple answer would be a person born in the twin-island republic of Trinidad and Tobago. Simple right... Well not exactly.
Here is the thing I realized recently and this may offend some people but it is intended to help us think about our situation and place in society. Someone who has an East Indian name, who looks Indian is looked upon as "Indian" and is referred to as an Indian not Trinidadian. Someone who has a Chinese name or looks Chinese is referred to as 'Chiney'. It goes that way until we come to persons of African descent. Have you given it any thought? Emancipation day is coming soon (08/01) and every one of African ancestry is feeling that 'Africanness'. However, if you ask any Trinidadian how do they refer to persons of African descent living in Trinidad you may be very surprised. There may be a pause, and then some thought... Try it! If the person questioned is honest you will most likely not come up with the answer that should be so natural... they are African!
As I said before, in Trinidad a person of East Indian ancestry is looked upon as an Indian, Chinese ancestry is called 'Chiney' but then we have black and negro when referring to people of African ancestry. The truth is most people of African ancestry are so entrenched in European culture that they don't like to be addressed as Africans... They are more comfortable being called Trinis. There is an awareness of this 'Africaness' now that the holiday is fast approaching but it goes away just as quickly as the holiday passes.
Some people conclude that regardless of where a person of African ancestry is born he or she is first African then you can affix the nationality of a country to the individual...What do you think?
This could be a troublesome discussion and one that could even cause anger. As a result, it is up to each individual to deal with the topic as they see fit. As we say in Trinidad "carry yuh own bag ah cocoa". This Trinididiom simply means "Carry your own burdens/ troubles" - trust me it is indeed a burden for many.
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