Ends
Also spelled: endz
Meaning
One's home area, neighbourhood, or the local streets where a person is from and known. It carries a sense of belonging and territory rather than just a geographic location.
Examples
-
“Mi deh a mi ends right now, come link mi.”
I'm in my neighbourhood right now, come meet me.
Note the absence of a copula before the locative 'a mi ends'.
-
“Nuff badness a gwaan roun de ends dese days.”
A lot of trouble is going on around the neighbourhood these days.
'a gwaan' is the continuous marker plus 'gwaan' (going on).
-
“Him nah come a fi mi ends, dat too far.”
He's not coming to my area, that's too far.
'fi mi' functions as a possessive here, 'my'.
Origin
From British English slang 'ends' meaning local area or turf, spread through UK street culture and reinforced by Jamaican-British diaspora exchange.
How it's used
Popular among younger speakers and heavily used in UK-Jamaican slang. Older Jamaicans are more likely to say 'yard' or name the actual district. Common in dancehall and grime lyrics.