"Aye Mommy" - what does it mean?

Question

"Aye Mommy mira mira":- Supposedly a compliment, in the same way that a wolf-whistle would be.
Where does it come from? Is it from some US telly programme, or music? The mira mira bit sounds not-English, but my American friend says that people say it to her quite a bit, so it might be transitioning to English. (Is transitioning a word? What would have been better?)

Google shows some examples of usage, but not much explanation.

http://mrs-roboto.diaryland.com/030303 13.html
(quote)
I couldn't for the life of me figure out just why I was so angry. I mean yes, this guy said a nasty thing to me but it's not like I haven't had men say nasty things to me before. Hell, New York is Cat Call City. Just walking down the wrong street in blue jeans and a T-shirt will get you an "aye mommy, mira mira." And I can't tell you how many times I've sat down in a bar and had a drink with a guy only to find out that his main goal was to get laid. But these incidents seemed almost respectful by comparison. (/quote)

Usenet · Accepted Answer

[nq:1]"Aye Mommy mira mira":- Supposedly a compliment, in the same way that a wolf-whistle would be. Where does it come ... her quite a bit, so it might be transitioning to English. (Is transitioning a word? What would have been better?)[/nq]
I have no idea, but just guessing from the sound of the words and the "New York" and "cat-call" connection, the "mira" in Spanish and Italian according to Babelfish appears to relate to "sight".

So my guess is "Whoa, momma: look at that!".

Cheers, Harvey
Canada for 30 years; S England since 1982.
(for e-mail, change harvey.news to harvey.van)

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]On 02 Apr 2005, x wrote[/nq]
[nq:2]"Aye Mommy mira mira":- Supposedly a compliment, in the same ... English. (Is transitioning a word? What would have been better?)[/nq]
[nq:1]I have no idea, but just guessing from the sound of the words and the "New York" and "cat-call" connection, the "mira" in Spanish andItalian according to Babelfish appears to relate to "sight". So my guess is "Whoa, momma: look at that!".[/nq]
That's about right. "=A1Ay!" is an interjection that can be translated as "ow" or "ouch", or just "oh". "Mira" is imperative "look". I'm not sure in this case if it means "look at that" or "look at me" (said by someone grabbing his crotch, for example).

john

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]On 02 Apr 2005, x wrote[/nq]
[nq:2]"Aye Mommy mira mira":- Supposedly a compliment, in the same ... English. (Is transitioning a word? What would have been better?)[/nq]
[nq:1]I have no idea, but just guessing from the sound of the words and the "New York" and "cat-call" connection, the "mira" in Spanish andItalian according to Babelfish appears to relate to "sight".[/nq]
My dictionary seems to this it more means "take aim." I'm guessing that if Zimbabwean Flame Lilies have made it to Manhattan restaurant centrepieces, maybe "Heh, mama, mira, mira" also has made it over the pond. Around here it would mean, "O,
mature-woman-who-is-too-old-to-be-addressed-as-'sister', wait up, wait up!'
[nq:1]So my guess is "Whoa, momma: look at that!".[/nq]
That's about right. "¡Ay!" is an interjection that can be translated as "ow" or "ouch", or just "oh". "Mira" is imperative "look". I'm not sure in this case if it means "look at that" or "look at me" (said by someone grabbing his crotch, for example).

john

Usenet · Answer

Only remains to say that, since the rest is all Spanish, it should be "Ay, mami". CDB

Usenet · Answer

[nq:2]Italian My dictionary seems to this it more means "take ... at me" (said by someone grabbing his crotch, for example).[/nq]
[nq:1]Only remains to say that, since the rest is all Spanish, it should be "Ay, mami". CDB[/nq]
I know I'm two weeks late, but I've only just noticed this thread, and thought the Spanish needed a little tweaking:
1. "¡Ay!" means "Hey!" when calling out to someone.
2. "mommy" in Spanish would be "mama"; obviously the English word could beused in Spanglish. Oddly my Oxford Spanish Dictionary doesn't have any slang usages for "mama", though it does have "mamacita", which has the meaning here; a good-looking woman.

3. "¡mira!" is the informal imperative for "look", as mentioned; any useto mean "take aim" would be by extension, and not applicable here (I'd have thought "¡apunte!" would be the more normal phrasing).

So we have something like "Hey, mama, look over here!". You'll have to find a native-speaker for the best AmE colloquial equivalent, but the BrE version would be "Oy, ****, over 'ere!".

Andrew Gwilliam
To email me, replace "bottomless pit" with "silverhelm"

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]2. "mommy" in Spanish would be "mama"; obviously the English word could be used in Spanglish. Oddly my Oxford Spanish Dictionary doesn't have any slang usages for "mama", though it does have "mamacita", which has the meaning here; a good-looking woman.[/nq]
But "mami" seems to be used in some dialects - certainly Puerto-Rican. Maybe specifically Mainland Puerto Rican, so to say, BIDT. So too with "papi".

Usenet · Answer

[nq:2]2. "mommy" in Spanish would be "mama"; obviously the English ... have "mamacita", which has the meaning here; a good-looking woman.[/nq]
[nq:1]But "mami" seems to be used in some dialects - certainly Puerto-Rican. Maybe specifically Mainland Puerto Rican, so to say, BIDT. So too with "papi".[/nq]
That's quite possible, Puerto Rican Spanish has to fight off a lot of English influence. In New York et al. I'd imagine that it can be quite heavily Spanglished.
The first time I went to Puerto Rico I had only just started learning Spanish, and wasn't too familiar with non-TV American English, so I had a devil of a time understanding anything.

Andrew Gwilliam
To email me, replace "bottomless pit" with "silverhelm"

Usenet · Answer

[nq:2]But "mami" seems to be used in some dialects - certainly Puerto-Rican. Maybe specifically Mainland Puerto Rican, so to say, BIDT. So too with "papi".[/nq]
[nq:1]That's quite possible, Puerto Rican Spanish has to fight off a lotof English influence. In New York et al. I'd imagine that it can be quite heavily Spanglished.[/nq]
My half-Spanish niblings use the "-i" forms when speaking Spanish: their mother is from Madrid, and I don't think it's English influence.

Mike.

Usenet · Answer

[nq:2]Only remains to say that, since the rest is all Spanish, it should be "Ay, mami". CDB[/nq]
[nq:1]I know I'm two weeks late, but I've only just noticed this thread, and thought the Spanish needed a little tweaking: 1. "¡Ay!" means "Hey!" when calling out to someone.[/nq]
Yessiree, Roberto.
[nq:1]2. "mommy" in Spanish would be "mama";[/nq]
Nitpick: It'd usually be "mamá", "mama" is gypsy dialect.
[nq:1]obviously the English word could be used in Spanglish. Oddly my Oxford Spanish Dictionary doesn't have any slang usages for "mama", though it does have "mamacita", which has the meaning here; a good-looking woman.[/nq]
Mamacita* (also *mamaíta* and *omaíta) can also be "mum(my)" with its regular maternal meaning.
[nq:1]3. "¡mira!" is the informal imperative for "look", as mentioned; any use to mean "take aim" would be by extension, ... to find a native-speaker for the best AmE colloquial equivalent, but the BrE version would be "Oy, ****, over 'ere!".[/nq]
It should probably be mentioned here also that in LatAmSp, "mama" and "papa" are used much like "darling" or "hon(ey)" by couples, regardless of whether they have any children.

Ross Howard

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]word[/nq]
Nope, it's perfectly standard colloquial Spanish. A sensible translation would be mamá* and *papá* for "mum" and "dad", and *mami* and *papi* (also sometimes *mamuchi* and *papuchi) for "mummy" and "daddy".

Ross Howard

"Aye Mommy" - what does it mean?

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