“You OK?” This is a very common statement made in UK when people meet each other. It could be your colleague you meet in office at the pantry, or your landlord who you meet accidentally in the train, or any other person who is not a stranger to you. People start the conversation with this. It is used as a replacement for a small simple ‘Hi’ or a sweeter ‘Hello’. During my initial days in UK, I used to feel quite awkward, rather offended at this small harmless question. What does it mean when somebody asks you if you are ok? Does it mean you don’t look ok? Or does it mean you weren’t ok yesterday? And what does this Ok mean? Does Ok mean you are in full spirits to jump and dance all around? Does it mean you are neither sad nor happy just ok-ok? Or does it mean you are sad and just ok? I perceive Ok as the second state; a state where you are not too happy with a situation, nor are you unhappy; rather you are just Ok.
Ok has an interesting background. My favourite and the most popular one is that it is an abbreviation for ‘All Correct’, or rather ‘Oll Korrekt’ where neither ‘O’ nor ‘K’ is correct. Supposedly, this was coined by American President Andrew Jackson who was bad at spellings. Some theory says OK came after an American president (FYI, Martin Van Buren) who was nicknamed 'Old Kinderhook’ and whose initials later became popular as OK. Others say it is the American craze of misspelling the words which lead to the birth of OK. Earlier it was used as O.K. which then became OK. Okay is a newer version of Ok. Okie is another form. Okie-dokie is a stylish version.
It is not that I don’t use the expression Ok. Somebody explains something to you and wants a confirmation from you and asks “Is that ok?” I am Ok with this ok. Asking “Are you in agreement with me if I don’t cook tonight?” will not sound as ok as “Is it ok if I don’t cook tonight?” You go to a shop and find a dress not quite interesting. Your husband asks you, “How is it?” “It’s ok”, this means you wouldn’t want to buy it. Some people answer affirmative as ok. “Will you do this?” “Ok”. Others are unable to decide and use Ok as the defence. On a query from her roommate about the new date she had, the girl says, “He is ok”, which means she is yet to decide about him. Mom says her kid who ate too many candies, “Beta, it’s not ok to eat so many sweets at once”, which means you are not supposed to eat too many sweets. Someone’s late for a party and apologizes. The host replies “That’s Ok”, which means ‘I don’t mind’. I am perfectly ok with these Oks. What I am not ok with is to ask a person “You ok?” when the person is already ok and asking that question will only make him not ok. I don’t know why, but asking “Are you ok?” somehow reminds me of a rude question in Kannada “Tale sari unta?” (Are you sane?), which is asked only when one is extremely upset with someone or something.
I feel one another general pleasantry used in UK equally annoying. “How are you today?” Had the pleasantry stopped at “How are you?” I would have been ok. But a ‘today’ added to it makes me think “Arrey, what had happened to me yesterday? I was ok yesterday; I was ok day before yesterday for that matter I was ok for the past 6 months. What is there to ask how I am today if I was ok and fit and bubbling with energy for the last 6 months?” We, Indians generally enquire how one is only if we have met that person after a long time or if the person wasn’t feeling ok the previous day. During my first few days in UK, if someone asked me these questions about my ok status , I would think “May be I look tired and sick” and then go to the rest room and check out in the mirror how I looked and think “Oh! I look quite ok. I wonder why he asked me that!” It has been a year now in UK and till now I have not been able to accept this innocent query; but I have become wise enough not to go and check if I am ok. On the other hand I am quite ok now.
By the way are you still Ok?
Ok has an interesting background. My favourite and the most popular one is that it is an abbreviation for ‘All Correct’, or rather ‘Oll Korrekt’ where neither ‘O’ nor ‘K’ is correct. Supposedly, this was coined by American President Andrew Jackson who was bad at spellings. Some theory says OK came after an American president (FYI, Martin Van Buren) who was nicknamed 'Old Kinderhook’ and whose initials later became popular as OK. Others say it is the American craze of misspelling the words which lead to the birth of OK. Earlier it was used as O.K. which then became OK. Okay is a newer version of Ok. Okie is another form. Okie-dokie is a stylish version.
It is not that I don’t use the expression Ok. Somebody explains something to you and wants a confirmation from you and asks “Is that ok?” I am Ok with this ok. Asking “Are you in agreement with me if I don’t cook tonight?” will not sound as ok as “Is it ok if I don’t cook tonight?” You go to a shop and find a dress not quite interesting. Your husband asks you, “How is it?” “It’s ok”, this means you wouldn’t want to buy it. Some people answer affirmative as ok. “Will you do this?” “Ok”. Others are unable to decide and use Ok as the defence. On a query from her roommate about the new date she had, the girl says, “He is ok”, which means she is yet to decide about him. Mom says her kid who ate too many candies, “Beta, it’s not ok to eat so many sweets at once”, which means you are not supposed to eat too many sweets. Someone’s late for a party and apologizes. The host replies “That’s Ok”, which means ‘I don’t mind’. I am perfectly ok with these Oks. What I am not ok with is to ask a person “You ok?” when the person is already ok and asking that question will only make him not ok. I don’t know why, but asking “Are you ok?” somehow reminds me of a rude question in Kannada “Tale sari unta?” (Are you sane?), which is asked only when one is extremely upset with someone or something.
I feel one another general pleasantry used in UK equally annoying. “How are you today?” Had the pleasantry stopped at “How are you?” I would have been ok. But a ‘today’ added to it makes me think “Arrey, what had happened to me yesterday? I was ok yesterday; I was ok day before yesterday for that matter I was ok for the past 6 months. What is there to ask how I am today if I was ok and fit and bubbling with energy for the last 6 months?” We, Indians generally enquire how one is only if we have met that person after a long time or if the person wasn’t feeling ok the previous day. During my first few days in UK, if someone asked me these questions about my ok status , I would think “May be I look tired and sick” and then go to the rest room and check out in the mirror how I looked and think “Oh! I look quite ok. I wonder why he asked me that!” It has been a year now in UK and till now I have not been able to accept this innocent query; but I have become wise enough not to go and check if I am ok. On the other hand I am quite ok now.
By the way are you still Ok?
2 comments:
nice one ! reading this it gives an idea of how clear the author is in his/her thinking !!
I read your whole blog in a day; HK referred it to me. This is a good article as well as – “marriage material”. Keep writing. -Ravi Lobo
Post a Comment