Lancashire Dialect

[morley pie eater]

As an exile since the age of 15, I've always missed the Lancashire dialect. Sadly, it seems that it's in decline if not dying out.

Wi winter eer, t'childer met be slurring. Tha could faw ooer, cos t'snows wurse thun slutch.

Words like Thrutch, Fratching, Yedwaerch, and simple greetings "Neaw then, 'eaw tha gooin on owd lad?" are completely foreign here in darkest Yorkshire.

Now I'm an owd mon misel, I get nostalgic for some proper talk.

By the way, my grandad was the original Barm Joe. He supplied barm (yeast) from a hand-cart in the days when everybody baked their own bread at home. His shop was on Chapel Green Road in Hindley (top of Argyle Street), taken over by my dad when his dad died in 1936.

[Wintergreen]

It's dying.

I would say the last generation is now in their 70's and 80's.

The odd word survives but the dialect will die with the above generation.

I understand it, having been brought up around a farm where it was in general use.

I don't speak it though.

[josie andrews]

It’s thriving on Facebook Speyk Wiganese & Barry Barmcake

“What time is it when there’s a pie on top of your clock?”

“Summat to eyt”

[SJ]

My mother was a Lancastrian from the Wigan / St. Helens area. I remember her calling me a "gogaw/n. Thought it meant "foolish" Is this Wiganese or Irish slang?

[SJ]

Another word/phrase my mother used was "do they the Hanover " I came across this expression many years ago reading a DH Lawrence novel. I knew DH lived in Eastwood ? on the Nottingham coalfield and I'd only heard it used by my Ma and thought it may have been a mining area term. I remember posting on here KittWazza cos he had knowledge of Wiganese It meant " Do they hell as like" as I understood it but Kitt didn't reply and doesn't seem to post anymore

[bill.inger]

That's still a saying you'll still hear in the pubs in Billinge as the elderly locals all speak in dialect, especially when there is a sprinkling of Saints fans in the house. Can't have 'em knowing everything that's going on.
The disappointing thing is that local born lads in their thirties and forties can't or don't use dialect when in the company of us older folk, in fact, it's depressing, at times, to hear a touch of Scouse in their diction.
We Billingers pride ourselves on the local dialect but I fear it'll not last another ten years.

[OAMJSONA]

quite a few people say i speyk a lot of lanki dialect but i have always spokken tway i does naw and i aint gooin ta change fort tenyone

[ancientnloyal]

My sister got a Lancashire Dialect book for Xmas, quite a good read too and many phrases I’ve not heard of and really shows the differences between Bolton, Wigan, Preston etc despite the relative proximities.

Worth a search online for if, couple of quid tops

[morley pie eater]

My sister got a Lancashire Dialect book for Xmas, quite a good read too and many phrases I’ve not heard of and really shows the differences between Bolton, Wigan, Preston etc despite the relative proximities.

Worth a search online for if, couple of quid tops

Sounds good A&L. Can you give us the title & author so we can search for it please?

Thanks, owd lad.

I had a 90-odd year old uncle and auntie in Hindley. My sons were in their teens when we went to see them. There was a crash from the kitchen, uncle went through and we just heard him say "Er's fawed overr!"

After my auntie died, he always praised my sister for taking him shopping. "Er teks mi ter t'Sparrr int carrr."

He'd buy her a pie for taking him, but in school holidays she'd take her son with her and it was downgraded to 2 mini sausage rolls!

[SJ]

It’s thriving on Facebook Speyk Wiganese & Barry Barmcake

“What time is it when there’s a pie on top of your clock?”

“Summat to eyt”

Remember going into a pie shop in Bowton and asking for a Barmcake.
The assistant looked puzzled so I indicated what I meant. She said" Oh you mean a Flour cake. Armed with fhis info I latter had occasion to go in a little cafe in Preston and asked for a Flour cake only to get a blank stare A Barmcake?,oven bottom. Oh a tea cake No no currents. The assistant said "they don't have currents" Confusing all within spitting distance of each other Up North is worse than going to Benidorm and just as quirky.