Peculiarities of British Dialects

 

Grammar.

• Certain negative forms, such as never referring to a single occasion (I never did, No I never). Less likely is the use of the double negative, which is still widely perceived as uneducated.
• The omission of the -ly adverbial ending, as in You're turning it too slow or They talked very quiet for a while.
• Certain prepositional uses, such as I got off of the bench or I looked out the window.
• Generalization of the third person singular form (I gets out of the car), especially in narrative style; also the generalized past tense use of was, as in We was walking down the road.

 

Some of these developments are now increasingly to be heard in the public domain, such as on the more popular channels of the BBC, and some have even begun to penetrate into the British Establishment. Glottalization, for example, will be heard on both sides of the House of Commons, and has been observed in the younger members of the royal family.

Phonetics.

• L-vocalization, pronouncing the l-sound in certain positions almost like [w], so that "milk bottle" becomes 'miwk bottoo', and "football" becomes 'foo'baw'.
• [j]-yod-dropping even before a stressed /u:/ (Chooseday – Tuesday)
• Glottalling, using a glottal stop [?] instead of a t-sound in certain positions, as in take it off , quite nice . This is not the same as omitting the t-sound altogether, since "plate" [plei?] still sounds different from "play" [plei]. Nevertheless, authors who want to show a non-standard pronunciation by manipulating the spelling tend to write it with an apostrophe: take i' off, qui'e nice. The positions in which this happens are most typically syllable-final -- at the end of a word or before another consonant sound. London's second airport, Gatwick, is very commonly called "Ga'wick".
• HappY-tensing, using a sound more similar to the [i:] than to the [i] at the end of words like happy, coffee, valley. In strong syllables (stressed, or potentially stressed) it is crucial to distinguish [i:] from [i], since "green" must be distinct from "grin" and "sleep" from "slip". But in weak syllables this distinction does not apply - the precise quality of the final vowel in "happy" is not so important.
• H-coalescence, using [t∫] (a ch-sound) rather than [tj] in words like "Tuesday", "tune", "attitude". This makes the first part of "Tuesday" sound identical to "choose", [tSu:z]. The same happens with the corresponding voiced sounds: the RP [dj] of words such as "duke", "reduce" becomes Estuary [dʒ], making the second part of reduce identical to "juice" [dʒu:s]. At the beginning of words h isn’t replaced, it’s simply dropped ('and on – hand on, 'eart - heart)
• Th-fronting (think [fiŋk], mother [mÙvə]).
• 'Vowel fronting' means producing some vowels and diphthongs differently to RP, which can lead to homophones like: way = why , say = sigh, pulls – pools.
• Sounding the diphthong vowel sounds of words like "I" as [ɑɪ], the diphthong in words like "brown" as [æʊ], and the diphthong in words like "face" as [ʌɪ].

 

• COCKNEY

One of the best known Southern dialects is Cockney, the regional dialect of London. A Cockney, in the loosest sense of the word, is a working-class inhabitant of the East End of London. According to one old tradition, the definition is limited to those born within earshot (generally taken to be three miles) of the Bow bells, i.e. the bells of St Mary-le-Bow, Cheapside. Cockney is also an old rhyming slang dialect, which originated from the East end of London. According to the Oxford English Dictionary the first use of the word in its accepted meaning was in 1521, by a writer Whittington. Cockney speakers have a distinctive accent and dialect, and frequently use Cockney rhyming slang.

Although no one speaks fluent Cockney any more, residents in this area of London still use a lot of words. But many Cockney words have slipped into the English language and are used in everyday speech all over England. The etymology of “Cockney” has long been discussed and disputed. One explanation is that “Cockney” literally means cock’s egg, a misshapen egg such as sometimes laid by young hens. During the 1700’s the term, used by country folk, was applied to town’s folk who were considered ignorant of the established customs and country ways. This term in due course became synonymous with working class Londoners themselves and has now lost its once denigrating qualities. Despite the current definition of a Cockney, to most outsiders a Cockney is anyone from London itself. Natives of London, especially in its East End use the term with respect and pride.

Cockney is lively and witty and its vocabulary – imaginative and colourful. Its specific feature not occurring anywhere else is the so-called rhyming slang, in which some words are substituted by other words rhyming with them. Boots, for instance, are called daisy roots.

Vocabulary.

Adam and Eve – to believe - верить

Almonds – socks - носки

Apples and pears  - stairs – лестница

Barnet fair – hair - волосы

Bees and Honey – money - деньги

Bird – prison – тюрьма (from bird lime = time)

Boat race – face - лицо

China - mate/friend – товарищ/друг (from China plate = mate)

Dickie bird – word - слово

Dog and bone – phone - телефон

Dustbin lids - kids/children - дети

Elbows and knees – trees – деревья

Elephant's trunk – drunk – пьяный

Jam jar – car – машина

Loaf of bread – head – голова

Mince pies – eyes - глаза

North and south – mouth – рот

Pig’s ear – beer - пиво

Plates - feet – ноги (from plates of meat = feet)

Pride and Joy – boy – мальчик

Rabbit and pork – to talk - говорить

Rosie Lea – tea - чай

Skin and blister – sister- сетра

Trouble – wife – жена (from trouble and strife = wife)

 

Imagine a conversation like:

"Got to my mickey, found me way up the apples, put on me whistle and the bloody dog went. It was me trouble telling me to fetch the teapots."

which really means,

"Got to my house (mickey mouse), found my way up the stairs (apples and pears), put on my suit (whistle and flute) when the phone (dog and bone) rang. It was my wife (trouble and strife) telling me to get the kids (teapot lids)." - "Я добрался до дома, поднялся по лестнице, одел костюм, когда зазвонил телефон. Это была моя жена. Она сказала чтоб я забрал детей".

Grammar.

The grammar of Cockney is almost unchanged.

• Use of ain't instead of "isn't" or "am not".
• Use of multiple negation, e.g. I ain’t never done nothing
• Another form of reflexive pronouns, e.g. ’E'll ’urt ’isself or That’s yourn.
• Use of adverbs without –ly, e.g. Trains are running normal.
• The possessive pronoun my is changed to me, e.g. Where’s me bag?

Phonetics.

The Cockney dialect involves very little lip movement. Some features:

• The pronunciation of the letter ‘t’ as ‘d’ (the /ðƏ/ becomes /dƏ/).
• The pronunciation of the letter ‘l’ as ‘w’ (all /Ɔ:l/ becomes /Ɔ:w/).
• The omission of the letter ‘h’ (his /hiz/ becomes /iz/, house becomes /aus/).
• Diphthongs change, sometimes dramatically: time /toim/, brave /braiv/.
• there are also an amazing number of glottal stops and swallowed syllables in the dialect, e.g. Wa’erloo - Waterloo, Ci’y - City, A li'le bi' of breab wiv a bi' of bu'er on i' - A little bit of bread with a bit of butter on it, Sco'land – Scotland, sta'emen – statement, ne’work – network.
• Another very well known characteristic of Cockney is th-fronting, e.g. fin – thin, bruvver – brother, free – three, barf – bath.
• Vowel lowering, e.g. dinna – dinner, marra – marrow.
• Very often letter ‘a’ is pronounced as [Ù] (cat /kÙt/, apple /Ùpl/).
• The inflexion –ing is pronounced as [in] or [n] rather than [ŋ].

 

• CORNWALL

The dialect of Cornwall is named Cornish. This dialect differs very much from the other British dialects.

The Cornish dialect is usually spoken, not written, and the spellings in the following vocabulary are the pronunciations.

Vocabulary.

Alantide - AII Saints Day – День всех святых

Allish – pale - бледный

All-on-a-nupshot - in a great hurry - наспех

Ampassy – etcetera – и так далее

Arry – any - любой

Avise/advise – good – хороший

Bamfer - to worry - беспокоиться

Barning - phosphorescent ("The sea is barring"- море светится) - фосфоресцирующий, светящийся

Bearn - a child - ребёнок

Bender - very large – очень большой

Betwix – between - между

Biskey - a biscuit - печенье

Brush - a nosegay – букетик цветов

Bucca/buckaboo - a ghost/hobgoblin/scarecrow – привидение/домовой/пугало

Buddy - friend - друг

Bye – lonely - одинокий

Carrots - nickname for red-haired person - рыжеволосый

Cats and dogs - the catkins of the willow – серёжки ивы

Centry - church or glebe – церковь или приходская земля

Chets – kittens - котята

Criss-cross/row - the alphabet - алфавит

Dido - a noise; row or fuss – шум; гул или суматоха

Ear – year - год

Fower – four - четыре

Fuzzy-pig - the hedgehog - ёжик

Game - go on - продолжать

Giglet/giglot - a giddy girl – легкомысленная девочка

Hilla – nightmare - кошмар

Horse-adder - the dragonfly - стрекоза

Mate – meat - мясо

Night t'ee - goodnight to you - Спокойной тебе ночи

Riders – circus - цирк

Tantarabobus - the devil - дьявол

Tie – bed - кровать

Tribe – family - семья

Yet – gate - ворота

 

Grammar.

Study reveals that Cornish dialect not only has a sound system far removed from Modern English, but also has its own grammar. Flexible word order gives a range of meaning and subtleties that can be difficult to comprehend. Dialect eez sum maezd and sum maezd ee ez both translate as ‘he is very perplexed’ (он очень растерян) but the first emphasises the person while the latter emphasises his state. A preposition combines with a personal pronoun to give a separate word form. For example, gans (with, by) + my (me) -> genef; gans + ef (him) -> ganso.

In Cornish there is no indefinite article: Cath means "a cat" (there is, however a definite article: an gath means "the cat").

Phonetics.

Cornish Dialect has a vowel system similar to Old English:

aa - this sound does not exist in English, as in Cornish tan ‘fire’, e.g. aant ‘aunt’.

a - as in English pan, e.g. pezak ‘rotten’ (гнилой) and stank ‘stamp’.

ae - this sound does not exist in English, as in Cornish men ‘stone’, e.g. aeven ‘throwing’

e - as in English pen, e.g. fesh ‘fish’ and glaazen ‘staring’ (пристальный).

i - as in English pin, e.g. dipa ‘small pit’ (маленькая яма) and pindee ‘gone off’.

ee - as in English preen, e.g. morgee ‘dogfish’ (акула) and geek ‘a peek’ (взгляд украткой).

oa - this sound does not exist in English, as in Cornish mos ‘to go’, e.g. troaz ‘noise’ and noa ‘no’.

o - as in English upon, e.g. porvan ‘wick’ (фитиль).

u - as in English pun, e.g. durns ‘door frame’ and un ‘him, it’.

oo - as in English poo, e.g. gook ‘bonnet’ (шляпка) and fooch ‘a pretence’ (хвастовство).

 

2. SCOTTISH ENGLISH

Scots dialect is the speech of those who live in the northern part of the island of Britain, more-or-less defined as north of Hadrian's Wall. The Scottish has a special linguistic status as compared with dialects because of the literature composed in it. The name of Robert Burns, the great national poet of Scotland, is known all over the world. A few line from R.Burns’s poem dedicated to his friend James Smith will illustrate the general character of Scottish:

To James Smith

Dear Smith, the slee'st, pawkie thief,

That e'er attempted stealth or rief !

Ye surely hae some warlock-brief

Owre human hearts;

For ne'er a bosom yet was prief

Against your arts.

 

For me, I swear by sun an' moon,

An' ev'ry star that blinks aboon ,

Ye've cost me twenty pair o' shoon ,

Just gaun to see you;

An' ev'ry ither pair that's done,

Mair taen I'm wi' you…

Here slee'st means ‘slyest’ – лукавый; pawkie – cunning, sly - ловкий; e'er – ever – когда-либо; or – ere, before – прежде; rief – robbery, plunder – кража, воровство; hae – have - иметь; warlock-brief – wizard’s contract (with the devil) – дьявольский договор; owre – over - над; prief – proof - недоступный; an' – and - и; blinks – looks smiling – выглядит улыбающимся; aboon – above – на небе, в небесах; o' – of ; shoon – shoes – обувь; gaun – going - собираться; ither – other - другой; mair – more - больше; taen – taken - взятый; wi' – with - с.

Vocabulary.

Aye - yes да

Bonnie - good, nice, beautiful – хороший, красивый

Dee – do

Down South – England - Англия

Mannie - a man – человек, мужчина

Messages - the shoppings (usually food) – покупки (еды)

Mind  - remember – помнить, вспоминать

Pinkie - little finger - мизинец

Poppy – money - деньги

Wee – small - маленький

Wind-ee/wind-ay – window - окно

 

 

Grammar.

• Scots tend to say "nae" for "not." So, instead of the word "cannot" the Scots would say "cannae". Similarly, "do not" becomes "dinnae" and so forth.
• Instead of the word "understand" Scots use the word "ken". This word is also occasionally used to substitute for "know" as in "I dinnae ken where the fellow be".
• Where an Englishman might say "lad" or "lass" a Scot will use the diminutive "laddie" or "lassie". A Scot might use these terms for adults, as well.
• Scots will also use "ye" instead of "you".
• Scots will use the word "wee" for "little" or "small".

 

Phonetics.

• The realisation [x] for "ch" in loch, patriarch, technical, etc.
• In ‘length’ and 'strength’ [n] not [ŋ].
• Wednesday is pronounced /wɛdnzde/.

The following may occur in colloquial speech, usually among the young, especially males.

• The use of glottal stops for [t] between vowels or word final after a vowel, as in butter /bʌ?əɹ/ and cat /ka?/.
• The realisation of the nasal velar in "-ing" as a nasal alveolar "in'", as in talking /tɑ:kin/.
• They usually distinguishes between [ʌur] and [ʌuər], in flour and flower.
• The 'r' is normally rolled at the front of the mouth so 'car' is pronounced as carrrr.
• Some words are shortened, losing bits that slow their roll off the tongue, so 'awfully' becomes offy and 'cannot' becomes canny.

 

 

3.WENGLISH

Welsh English or Wenglish is the dialect of English spoken in Wales by Welsh people. The dialect is significantly modified by Welsh grammar and contains a number of unique words.

Vocabulary.

Aim – to throw - бросать

‘Ambarg – handbag - сумочка

Aye – eye - глаз

Bar – except – кроме, за исключением

Belfago – loudly - громко

Blacklead – pencil - карандаш

Carn – can’t

Credit – to believe - верить

Easy – certainly – конечно, естественно

Feeling – sympathetic - симпатичный

Flag – an unreliable person – ненадёжный человек

Glad and Sorry - on the "never-never" (glad to have it, sorry to have to pay for it) – в кредит

Grizzle - to complain - жаловаться

In a (like a) winky – very quickly – очень быстро

Losins/loshins – sweets - конфеты

Mamgu/myngu – (usually pronounced /mungee/) grandmother - бабушка

On the trot – consecutively – постоянно, последовательно

Pat – cockroach - таракан

Rainin(g) nasty - raining very heavily – лить как из ведра

Salty – expensive - дорогой

Suck-in – disappointment - разачарование

Taffy – toffee - ириска

Yarn - a good joke – хорошая (удачная) шутка

 

Phonetics.

Some of the features of Welsh English are

• Use of /x/  in loch, Bach, technology etc.
• Dropping of h in some varieties, ‘house’ sound like ouse.
• Distinction of /w/ and /W/ in ‘wine’ and ‘whine’.
• Distinction of ck and k, i.e. /x/ vs. /k/ in ‘yack’ and ‘yak’.
• Use of the Welsh ll sound /K/ (a voiceless 'l') in Llwyd, llaw etc.
• There is no contrast between [Ù] and [ə]: rubber [rəbə].
• In words like ‘tune’, ’few’, ’used’ we find [iu] rather than [ju:]: tune [tiun].
• When the preceding vowel is short – consonants are doubled:city [sitti:].

 

4. HIBERNO-ENGLISH

Hiberno-English is the dialect of the English language used in Ireland. It is also called Anglo-Irish or Irish English. The basis for the type of English spoken in Ireland is said to be a mixture of the language of Shakespeare and the Irish of the Gaelic earls. The standard spelling and grammar are the same as British English, but especially in the spoken language, there are some unique characteristics, due to the influence of Irish on pronunciation.

Vocabulary.

The vocabulary of Hiberno-English to this day includes many words that are no longer in general use in British English. Delph is still used for ‘crockery’ (глиняная посуда), shore for ‘a sewer’ (труба), mitch for ‘playing truant’ (прогуливающий), bring for ‘take’ (брать), galluses for ‘braces’ (фигурные скобки), and so forth. Interestingly though, some words which were last in general use in British English centuries ago are still current in Ireland, even among the younger generation. A good example of this is the noun bowsie meaning ‘a disreputable drunkard, a lout, a quarrelsome alcoholic’ (пьяница, невоспитанный человек, драчливый алкоголик), which is still in use by all ages. In addition to words classified as ‘obsolete’ or ‘dialectal’ Hiberno-English includes many words taken from Irish, for example, ‘a fool’ is called ‘an ommadhawn’ (Irish ‘amadán’), or ‘a left-handed person’ is called ‘a kithouge’ (Irish ciatóg). Often the Irish diminutive suffix -een is attached to a word, for instance, ‘girleen’ (a little girl).

 

Grammar derived from Irish.

• People in rural Ireland have a tendency to avoid the use use of "yes" or "no" when speaking English, e.g:

"Are you finished debugging that software?" "I am"

  "Ты закончил настройку той программы? " "Да я закончил".

  "Is your mobile charged?" "It is"

"Твой мобильный заряжен?""Да, заряжен".

• Irish verbs have two present tenses, one indicating what is occurring at this instant and another used for continuous actions. Rural Irish speakers of English use a "does be/do be" (or "bes", although less frequently) construction to indicate the continuous present:

"They do be talking on their mobiles a lot" – Они много разговаривают по мобильным

• Mirroring the Irish language and almost every other European language, the plural 'you' is distinguished from the singular, normally by using the otherwise archaic English word 'ye':

"Did ye all go to see it?" – Вы все идёте смотреть его?