Janner
Encyclopedia
Janner is a British
regional nickname
associated with people from Plymouth
or people who live in areas near the sea, both as a noun and as an adjective for the local accent and colloquialism
s. Cyril Tawney
's Grey Funnel Lines describes its meaning as "a person from Devon
", deriving from Cousin Jan (the Devon form of John), but "more particularly in naval
circles anyone from the Plymouth area".
A version of an Oggie Song from Devonport
c. 1951 runs as follows:
Alf a pound
of flour and lard
,
Makes a lovely clacker
,
Just enough for you and me,
Oh Brother Janner,
Oh 'ow 'appy uz shall be!,
When uz gets to the Westcountry!,
Whur the oggies
grows on trees,
Oh Brother Janner
With the changes in the local economy
in Plymouth over the course of the 1980s and 1990s, from the Royal Navy
being the major employer to being a university
city housing a large number of students from outside the city, the term has developed an additional secondary pejorative sense describing the locals.
Some people nonetheless still have doubts about the specific application and treat Janner as a term that applies to all waterside 'yokels' from any West Country
or even south coast port.
It features in the football team Plymouth Argyle
supporters' chants, particularly its variant on the folksong Oggy Land. For many years there was a cartoon in the Plymouth Evening Herald entitled 'The Janners'.
The Member of Parliament
for Plymouth, Devonport, Alison Seabeck
, showed her ignorance of the term in 2005 when, while still a candidate, she was asked by the local paper: "What is a Janner?" The Express on Sunday
reported her reply:
Many pamphlets circulate with mischievous amusing and sometimes erotic anthologies and there are short dictionaries of Janner vocabulary, e.g. the Janner TextBook.
It has been used in a television advertisement for Aviva Car Insurance where a heavily made up Paul Whitehouse
exhorts a potential automobile passenger to "get on you janner"
.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
regional nickname
Nickname
A nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....
associated with people from Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
or people who live in areas near the sea, both as a noun and as an adjective for the local accent and colloquialism
Colloquialism
A colloquialism is a word or phrase that is common in everyday, unconstrained conversation rather than in formal speech, academic writing, or paralinguistics. Dictionaries often display colloquial words and phrases with the abbreviation colloq. as an identifier...
s. Cyril Tawney
Cyril Tawney
Cyril Tawney was an English singer-songwriter, proponent of the traditional songs of the West of England and traditional and modern maritime songs.- Biography :...
's Grey Funnel Lines describes its meaning as "a person from Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
", deriving from Cousin Jan (the Devon form of John), but "more particularly in naval
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
circles anyone from the Plymouth area".
A version of an Oggie Song from Devonport
Devonport, Devon
Devonport, formerly named Plymouth Dock or just Dock, is a district of Plymouth in the English county of Devon, although it was, at one time, the more important settlement. It became a county borough in 1889...
c. 1951 runs as follows:
Alf a pound
Pound (mass)
The pound or pound-mass is a unit of mass used in the Imperial, United States customary and other systems of measurement...
of flour and lard
Lard
Lard is pig fat in both its rendered and unrendered forms. Lard was commonly used in many cuisines as a cooking fat or shortening, or as a spread similar to butter. Its use in contemporary cuisine has diminished because of health concerns posed by its saturated-fat content and its often negative...
,
Makes a lovely clacker
Pastry
Pastry is the name given to various kinds of baked products made from ingredients such as flour, sugar, milk, butter, shortening, baking powder and/or eggs. Small cakes, tarts and other sweet baked products are called "pastries."...
,
Just enough for you and me,
Oh Brother Janner,
Oh 'ow 'appy uz shall be!,
When uz gets to the Westcountry!,
Whur the oggies
Pasty
A pasty , sometimes known as a pastie or British pasty in the United States, is a filled pastry case, associated in particular with Cornwall in Great Britain. It is made by placing the uncooked filling on a flat pastry circle, and folding it to wrap the filling, crimping the edge at the side or top...
grows on trees,
Oh Brother Janner
With the changes in the local economy
Peace dividend
The peace dividend is a political slogan popularized by US President George H.W. Bush and UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in the early 1990s, purporting to describe the economic benefit of a decrease in defense spending. It is used primarily in discussions relating to the guns versus butter...
in Plymouth over the course of the 1980s and 1990s, from the Royal Navy
HMNB Devonport
Her Majesty's Naval Base Devonport , is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy . HMNB Devonport is located in Devonport, in the west of the city of Plymouth in Devon, England...
being the major employer to being a university
University of Plymouth
Plymouth University is the largest university in the South West of England, with over 30,000 students and is 9th largest in the United Kingdom by total number of students . It has almost 3,000 staff...
city housing a large number of students from outside the city, the term has developed an additional secondary pejorative sense describing the locals.
Some people nonetheless still have doubts about the specific application and treat Janner as a term that applies to all waterside 'yokels' from any West Country
West Country
The West Country is an informal term for the area of south western England roughly corresponding to the modern South West England government region. It is often defined to encompass the historic counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset and Somerset and the City of Bristol, while the counties of...
or even south coast port.
It features in the football team Plymouth Argyle
Plymouth Argyle F.C.
Plymouth Argyle Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Plymouth, Devon, that plays in Football League Two.Since becoming professional in 1903, the club has won five Football League titles, five Southern League titles and one Western League title. The 2009–10 season was the...
supporters' chants, particularly its variant on the folksong Oggy Land. For many years there was a cartoon in the Plymouth Evening Herald entitled 'The Janners'.
The Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Plymouth, Devonport, Alison Seabeck
Alison Seabeck
Alison Jane Seabeck is an English Labour Party politician and shadow Minister in the Ministry of Defence. She was previously the shadow Housing Minister...
, showed her ignorance of the term in 2005 when, while still a candidate, she was asked by the local paper: "What is a Janner?" The Express on Sunday
Daily Express
The Daily Express switched from broadsheet to tabloid in 1977 and was bought by the construction company Trafalgar House in the same year. Its publishing company, Beaverbrook Newspapers, was renamed Express Newspapers...
reported her reply:
The flustered candidate wailed: "I don't know. You're not going to print this, are you?" Unfortunately they did. The answer is a "Plymothian".
Many pamphlets circulate with mischievous amusing and sometimes erotic anthologies and there are short dictionaries of Janner vocabulary, e.g. the Janner TextBook.
It has been used in a television advertisement for Aviva Car Insurance where a heavily made up Paul Whitehouse
Paul Whitehouse
Paul Whitehouse is a Welsh actor, writer and comedian. He became known for his work with Harry Enfield and as one of the stars of the popular BBC sketch show, The Fast Show. In a 2005 poll to find The Comedian's Comedian, he was in the top 50 comedy acts voted for by comedians and comedy insiders...
exhorts a potential automobile passenger to "get on you janner"
.