Ubbi dubbi is a language game spoken with the English language. It was popularized by the 1972–1978 PBS children's show Zoom.[1][2] When Zoom was revived in 1999 on PBS, Ubbi dubbi was again a feature of the show.[3][4]
| Ububbubi Dububbubi | |
|---|---|
| Region | United States |
| Classification | Language game |
| See also: Language games | |
Rules
Ubbi dubbi works by adding -ub- /ʌb/ before each vowel sound in a syllable[5] (or, as a linguist might put it, "insert [ˈʌb] after each syllable onset").[6] The stress falls on the "ub" of the syllable that is stressed in the original word. In the word "hello" for example, which is stressed on the "-lo" syllable, the stress falls on the "lub" in "hubellubo".
The method of adding "ub" before each vowel sound has been described as "iterative infixation".[7][8]
In popular culture
Ubbi Dubbi has also been popularized as the signature speech pattern of the cartoon character Mushmouth from the animated series Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids, voiced by Bill Cosby. Cosby also used this speech variation in his "Dentist" monologue to illustrate the effects of a dose of Novocaine.[9]
It was used in the episode "Mentalo Case" from the TV series The King of Queens, between character Spence Olchin (Patton Oswalt) and a salesman at a toy convention.
It was also used between Penny and Amy in the episode "The Veracity Elasticity" of The Big Bang Theory as a means of having a secret conversation, to counter Sheldon and Leonard's use of Klingon.
In the video game Rayman Origins, the Bubble Dreamer speaks Ubbi Dubbi.
See also
- -izzle / Dizzouble Dizzutch (a.k.a. "shizzolation")
- Javanais, a similar slang version of French
- Pig Latin
- Jeringonza, a similar language game in Spanish and Portuguese
- Rövarspråket
- Tutnese (language game)
- Farfallino alphabet
- A-Ba-Ni-Bi - a Eurovision winning Hebrew-language song based on a similar /b/ based language game
References
External links
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