Cockney rhyming slang might have been mastered by Seinfeld and inserted into an ATM's vernacular, but it's far from the only compex slang used in the British Isles. Polari was a similar British creation, relying on some rhyming slang, transposition of letters, and hidden references to allow the homosexual community to identify themselves and communicate discretely, in a time when the act was illegal in the UK. As such, it could certainly be considered a Thieves' Cant, a private language to allow criminals to commit their crimes undetected by eavesdroppers, although the whole "crime" angle no longer exists. The positive cultural change in society regarding homosexuality has altered our view of Polari to something more cute and subculturey rather than the criminality underlying it the mid-20th century, while thieving is still - quite rightly - illegal.
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