Interesting Origin of a Phrase... and a Little Ditty.

I occasionally wonder where an apparently odd phrase or saying came from, and in this spirit of enquiry, I looked up the word "Tickety boo" meaning, "everything is great" in English English.  (As opposed to American English for example.)

I found out that:

"It first appeared around 1920-40 It is almost certainly a relic of the British colonial presence in India.
One of the most accepted and common theories about "ticketyboo" connects to the Hindi expression "tikai babu," meaning "it's all right, sir."

For some reason that tickled me pink, and I just thought I would share.

PS, I then looked up "Tickled Pink" and found this little gem of a nursery rhyme.

"Peter Pan has lost his grin:

Tinkerbell is drowning in

A hefty keg of pirates' rum.

Fairy-flavoured booze. Yum yum.

Captain Hook enjoys his drink: 

Every sip is pickled Tink."

Ah.  Google!

Comments

[Pankaj Narula]

as a "vernacular" speaker I would suggest the correct Hindi way to write "tikai babu" would be "theek hai babu" or ठीक है बाबू

theek = alright

hai = is

babu = Sir