Potteries dialect
Encyclopedia
The Potteries dialect is a dialect found in the northern West Midlands
of England
, almost exclusively in and around Stoke-on-Trent
.
Another peculiarity is the use of the addition of ne at the end of words to indicate the negative as in thee cosne goo dine theyr sirree, theyl get thesen ow bautered u. Although clearly similar to Latin in the way this is used, this might just be coincidental.
There are differences in the way people from Staffordshire Moorlands villages speak to people from the Potteries. Indeed it used to be possible, within living memory, to be able identify which village people came from simply by their accent or words used. ie 'thesen' is a moorlands word and 'thesell' is Potteries. A sparrow would be described in the Moorlands as a "spuggy", a watering can a "lecking can" or a horse a "tit" - though not so in the Potteries.
The late Mr John Levitt from Keele University
was very interested in recording this dialect and often stated that the Potteries or North Staffs Dialect was the most difficult dialect to speak as well as it being the closest to Anglo-Saxon. It is interesting that if one, as a native dialect speaker, attempts to read "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
" in this dialect it suddenly changes from incomprehensible to a lilting poem as it was constructed to be. This has led scholars to speculate that it was written by a monk from Dieulacres Abbey
.
Mr Levitt was also intrigued by the ability of Potteries people to be able to confuse the letters O and H as in otel or horanges.
, created by Dave Follows
, appears in The Sentinel newspaper and is written in the Potteries dialect. Previously The Sentinel has carried other stories in the dialect, most notably the Jabez stories written by Wilfred Bloor under the pseudonym of A Scott
West Midlands (region)
The West Midlands is an official region of England, covering the western half of the area traditionally known as the Midlands. It contains the second most populous British city, Birmingham, and the larger West Midlands conurbation, which includes the city of Wolverhampton and large towns of Dudley,...
of England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, almost exclusively in and around Stoke-on-Trent
Stoke-on-Trent
Stoke-on-Trent , also called The Potteries is a city in Staffordshire, England, which forms a linear conurbation almost 12 miles long, with an area of . Together with the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme Stoke forms The Potteries Urban Area...
.
Features
Two noticeable features of the dialect are the vowel sound ow (as in low) which is used where standard English would use ol as in cowd = cold, 'towd" = told, etc. and the use of thee and they in place of you (both singular and plural), also heard in parts of Yorkshire and Lancashire.Another peculiarity is the use of the addition of ne at the end of words to indicate the negative as in thee cosne goo dine theyr sirree, theyl get thesen ow bautered u. Although clearly similar to Latin in the way this is used, this might just be coincidental.
There are differences in the way people from Staffordshire Moorlands villages speak to people from the Potteries. Indeed it used to be possible, within living memory, to be able identify which village people came from simply by their accent or words used. ie 'thesen' is a moorlands word and 'thesell' is Potteries. A sparrow would be described in the Moorlands as a "spuggy", a watering can a "lecking can" or a horse a "tit" - though not so in the Potteries.
The late Mr John Levitt from Keele University
Keele University
Keele University is a campus university near Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire, England. Founded in 1949 as an experimental college dedicated to a broad curriculum and interdisciplinary study, Keele is most notable for pioneering the dual honours degree in Britain...
was very interested in recording this dialect and often stated that the Potteries or North Staffs Dialect was the most difficult dialect to speak as well as it being the closest to Anglo-Saxon. It is interesting that if one, as a native dialect speaker, attempts to read "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is a late 14th-century Middle English alliterative romance outlining an adventure of Sir Gawain, a knight of King Arthur's Round Table. In the poem, Sir Gawain accepts a challenge from a mysterious warrior who is completely green, from his clothes and hair to his...
" in this dialect it suddenly changes from incomprehensible to a lilting poem as it was constructed to be. This has led scholars to speculate that it was written by a monk from Dieulacres Abbey
Dieulacres Abbey
Dieulacres Abbey was a Cistercian monastery established by Ranulf, Earl of Chester at Poulton in Cheshire. It moved to the present site in Staffordshire in 1214, possibly in part as a result from raids at the former site by the Welsh.- History :...
.
Mr Levitt was also intrigued by the ability of Potteries people to be able to confuse the letters O and H as in otel or horanges.
Examples
Like all English dialects, the Potteries dialect derives from Anglo-Saxon Old English. Example words and phrases:- "NeshNeshNesh is an English dialect adjective meaning unusually susceptible to cold weather and there is no synonym for this use. Usage has been recorded in Cheshire, Staffordshire, the East Midlands, Lancashire, South Yorkshire, Derbyshire and Shropshire....
" meaning soft, tender, or to easily get cold is derived from the early English, “nesc, nescenes.” - "Slat" meaning to throw, is from the old English “slath,” moved.
- "Fang" meaning catch or seize, as in "Fang 'owt of this" - "catch hold of this", is from Old English "fang, fangen". It is a cognate with the modern SwedishSwedish languageSwedish is a North Germanic language, spoken by approximately 10 million people, predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along its coast and on the Åland islands. It is largely mutually intelligible with Norwegian and Danish...
word "fånga" which means, "to catch". - "Sheed" meaning to spill liquids, most likely derived from the word "shed" in the sense of getting rid of something.
- "Duck" a common term of affection towards both men and women as in "Tow rate owd duck?". "Are you all right dear?" Duck being derived from the Saxon word "ducas" as a term of respect, which by another route is where the word "DukeDukeA duke or duchess is a member of the nobility, historically of highest rank below the monarch, and historically controlling a duchy...
" arises from in English. Duck in this context may also relate to the Roman military honorific "DuxDuxDux is Latin for leader and later for Duke and its variant forms ....
", meaning troop or tribal leader, but it is unclear if ducas pre-dates DuxDuxDux is Latin for leader and later for Duke and its variant forms ....
or if they are etymologically related. - "Spanwanned" (agricultural) meaning the state of being stuck astride a wall whilst attempting to climb over it. Probably from the Saxon "spannan winnan", Span Woe.
In popular culture
A popular cartoon called May un Mar LadyMay un Mar Lady
May un Mar lady is a cartoon strip written in Potteries dialect, which first appeared on July 8, 1986 in the North Staffordshire Sentinel and has been a local institution for over 20 years. Now, the full twenty-year run of cartoonist Dave Follows' daily cartoon strip is being republished in the...
, created by Dave Follows
Dave Follows
Dave Follows was a British cartoonist. Follows' cartoons appear in newspapers, comics, and magazines all over the world. The Creature Feature is one of Follows' biggest successes....
, appears in The Sentinel newspaper and is written in the Potteries dialect. Previously The Sentinel has carried other stories in the dialect, most notably the Jabez stories written by Wilfred Bloor under the pseudonym of A Scott