paisa
n.— «There is a slang term that students in mostly Latino schools use to separate those who seem more connected to their Latino roots than to American culture: “paisas.” It comes from the word “paisano,” meaning peasants or countrymen. “It’s a softer way of saying “wetback,” ” said Joe Lechuga, 17, also known as “Buddha.” He and other Mexican American students who hang out in Senior Park say the term is affectionate, not malicious.…”Where’s Domingo? The paisa?” Buddha asked his friends one day during lunch. “Oh, he’s over there kissing some paisa girl,” another student replied.» —“Cultural Divide on Campus” by Erika Hayasaki Los Angeles Times Dec. 3, 2004. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
Language is always evolving, and that’s also true for American Sign Language. A century ago, the sign for “telephone” was one fist below your mouth and the other at your ear, as if you’re holding an old-fashioned candlestick...
Brittany in Green Coast Springs, Florida, says that when she was grumpy or irritated as a child, her mother would say a phrase that sounded like Don’t be such a scooch. This bit of Italian-American slang, often rendered as skutch, denotes a “pest”...