wila
n.— «At the county level, gang members use letters on tiny scraps of paper called wilas, a slang term that translates to tiny writing. The wilas are hidden in all sorts of places—shoes, clothing lining, body cavities—and move between facilities as inmates are transferred, ultimately serving as updates that let gang supervisors know what’s happening in the county’s jails. Members who get in trouble with the gang can be required to use wila-style writing to pen essays with topics ranging from gang histories to instructions on how to be a better gang member, Teso said. “Some people snort wilas and keep them in their sinus cavity and hawk it up later when they get where they’re going.”» —“Gangs Sear Jail Atmosphere” by Ty Phillips Modesto Bee (California) Apr. 17, 2005. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
Twice a day the River Thames recedes, revealing a muddy shoreline. Hobbyists known as mudlarks stroll the surface searching for objects that have found their way into the river over the centuries, everything from ancient Roman jewelry to modern...
Many of us struggled with the Old English poem “Beowulf” in high school. But what if you could actually hear “Beowulf” in the English of today? There’s a new translation by Maria Dahvana Headley that uses contemporary...