Dialect/slang

jim · Post by **jim** » Mon 15 Nov, 2010 4:31 pm

My brother left Leeds in 1956 aged 14. He spent ten years in Lincoln, twenty-five in London, and the rest in Bournemouth. To me he has sounded like a "savvannar" since his twenties. To his friends on the south coast he remains a very obvious Yorkshireman. I suppose it all depends where you are standing!

Johnny39 · Post by **Johnny39** » Mon 15 Nov, 2010 5:29 pm

Leeds born and bred but the times I've been asked, when in America, if I'm Scottish is unbelievable. When I tell them "No", they then ask if I'm Australian! I often wonder if it's because we use the terms "Lad", "Lass" and "Mate"?

Uno Hoo · Post by **Uno Hoo** » Mon 15 Nov, 2010 11:40 pm

jim wrote: My brother left Leeds in 1956 aged 14. He spent ten years in Lincoln, twenty-five in London, and the rest in Bournemouth. To me he has sounded like a "savvannar" since his twenties. To his friends on the south coast he remains a very obvious Yorkshireman. I suppose it all depends where you are standing! Very much so. My Yorkshire ancestry is on my mother's side. Dad came from Leicester, and we lived there until I was eight, so I developed a Leicester accent which became overlaid by a Yorkshire one which never displaced it entirely. For years Yorkshire folk have assumed I'm a Southerner, while in the Midlands and South I'm assumed to be a Northerner. This is why I'm nervous about the impending dialect recitation; I just don't think my accent's authentic. I'm grateful for the reassurance the good folk on this site have given.

Trojan · Post by **Trojan** » Tue 16 Nov, 2010 12:21 am

Leodian wrote: Not sure why it came to my mind but "cloth ears" is slang said as in "Have you got cloth ears?" when someone is not listening or has not really heard what was said. I thought the expression would be in this thread but I did a search for "cloth ears" and nothing came up (unlike a search for "cloth" that brought up loads). I suspect though that "cloth ears" may not just be Yorkshire slang. Clart eeard - Cloth head a term of abuse.

Bramleygal · Post by **Bramleygal** » Tue 16 Nov, 2010 12:40 am

Lived in Leeds for 23 years. Moved to US. Watched much BBC TV. Unbelievably, my American husband could not detect any difference between Yorkshire accents and Scottish!!! To me they are totally different, but to him they were identical

LOL Sean Connery a Yorkshireman? I don't think so (even tho he's the sexiest man ever.)

stutterdog · Post by **stutterdog** » Tue 16 Nov, 2010 9:59 am

Bramleygal wrote: Lived in Leeds for 23 years. Moved to US. Watched much BBC TV. Unbelievably, my American husband could not detect any difference between Yorkshire accents and Scottish!!! To me they are totally different, but to him they were identical

LOL Sean Connery a Yorkshireman? I don't think so (even tho he's the sexiest man ever.) I was in Tenerife last year and struck up a conversation with a bloke from Norfolk. He asked where I hailed from and when I told him Leeds, he said I didn't have a Yorkshire accent! I think he meant that I didn't speak like they do in South Yorkshire.Ian Clayton and that bloke McMillan spring to mind. Proffesional Yorkshireman ,I call'em.I dont think their accent should be regaded as the norm!

tilly · Post by **tilly** » Tue 16 Nov, 2010 11:30 am

stutterdog wrote: Bramleygal wrote: Lived in Leeds for 23 years. Moved to US. Watched much BBC TV. Unbelievably, my American husband could not detect any difference between Yorkshire accents and Scottish!!! To me they are totally different, but to him they were identical

LOL Sean Connery a Yorkshireman? I don't think so (even tho he's the sexiest man ever.) I was in Tenerife last year and struck up a conversation with a bloke from Norfolk. He asked where I hailed from and when I told him Leeds, he said I didn't have a Yorkshire accent! I think he meant that I didn't speak like they do in South Yorkshire.Ian Clayton and that bloke McMillan spring to mind. Proffesional Yorkshireman ,I call'em.I dont think their accent should be regaded as the norm! Hi stutterdog But it is the norm were they come from Ian Clayton has more of a South Yorkshire accent than a West Yorkshire one even though he comes from Featherston West Yorkshire.I find that people who come from around edge of the South Yorkshire coal fields tend to have an accent more in keeping with there South Yorkshire neighbours.

stutterdog · Post by **stutterdog** » Tue 16 Nov, 2010 3:20 pm

tilly wrote: stutterdog wrote: Bramleygal wrote: Lived in Leeds for 23 years. Moved to US. Watched much BBC TV. Unbelievably, my American husband could not detect any difference between Yorkshire accents and Scottish!!! To me they are totally different, but to him they were identical

LOL Sean Connery a Yorkshireman? I don't think so (even tho he's the sexiest man ever.) I was in Tenerife last year and struck up a conversation with a bloke from Norfolk. He asked where I hailed from and when I told him Leeds, he said I didn't have a Yorkshire accent! I think he meant that I didn't speak like they do in South Yorkshire.Ian Clayton and that bloke McMillan spring to mind. Proffesional Yorkshireman ,I call'em.I dont think their accent should be regaded as the norm! Hi stutterdog But it is the norm were they come from Ian Clayton has more of a South Yorkshire accent than a West Yorkshire one even though he comes from Featherston West Yorkshire.I find that people who come from around edge of the South Yorkshire coal fields tend to have an accent more in keeping with there South Yorkshire neighbours. Hello Tilly, I suspect you are right. My Dad had a very broad Yorkshire accent but he was born in Otley.He , I think got his accent from working down the pits in Dewsbury and Middleton.

Leeds Hippo · Post by **Leeds Hippo** » Sat 08 Jan, 2011 12:51 am

Leeds Hippo wrote: Found this fascinating book called"The Dialect of Leeds and its Neighbourhood" 1862 - not sure if anyone has mentioned this in the thread - couldn't find ithttp://books.google.com/books?id=Uo4SAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA364#v=onepage&q&f=false An even more comprehensive source"The English Dialect Dictionary" http://www.uibk.ac.at/anglistik/projects/speed/

Trojan · Post by **Trojan** » Sat 08 Jan, 2011 12:37 pm

tilly wrote: stutterdog wrote: Bramleygal wrote: Lived in Leeds for 23 years. Moved to US. Watched much BBC TV. Unbelievably, my American husband could not detect any difference between Yorkshire accents and Scottish!!! To me they are totally different, but to him they were identical

LOL Sean Connery a Yorkshireman? I don't think so (even tho he's the sexiest man ever.) I was in Tenerife last year and struck up a conversation with a bloke from Norfolk. He asked where I hailed from and when I told him Leeds, he said I didn't have a Yorkshire accent! I think he meant that I didn't speak like they do in South Yorkshire.Ian Clayton and that bloke McMillan spring to mind. Proffesional Yorkshireman ,I call'em.I dont think their accent should be regaded as the norm! Hi stutterdog But it is the norm were they come from Ian Clayton has more of a South Yorkshire accent than a West Yorkshire one even though he comes from Featherston West Yorkshire.I find that people who come from around edge of the South Yorkshire coal fields tend to have an accent more in keeping with there South Yorkshire neighbours. There is a difference in West Yorkshire. The best place to hear both versions spoken is Wakefield. The dialects south and east of Wakefield vary from that spoken to its north and west. In Cas and Fev the "o" sound is certainly different. But I wouldn't describe it as South Yorkshire. In Sheffield "thee" and "tha" become "dee" and "da" In Barnsley "don't" becomes "dun't"