Not only do Caymanians have a distinct dialect, with accents varying from district to district, but they also have many unique words, pronunciations and phrases.
A handy guide to shed light on these colloquialisms is ‘The Cayman Islands Dictionary’ and ‘Caymanian Expressions’ by Kevin Goring.
Miskittas (mis-kid-uz) Noun, Pl. – 1. Mosquitos. 2. Any of numerous dipterous insects of the family Culicidae the females of which suck the blood of animals and humans, some species transmitting certain diseases, such as malaria and yellow fever. 3. Really annoying insects. 4. Large biting insects which come out in abundance after the rain. (Also called Gallon Nippers) E.g. “I ready fah dem miskittas t’night. I gah my smoke pan, my miskitta stick, my fly swat, fly paper, n’ da’ fogger commin’ chrew ‘rong sebb’m-a-clock.”
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