Other Historical Information

Yorkshire Expressions

Voices of Experience
Listen to the recordings of some of the stories from Northern Sheffield.

Old Words Used - Sheffield
A few extracts from 'A glossary of words used in the neighbourhood of Sheffield', first published in 1888, gathered and edited by Sidney Oldall Addy.

Yorkshire Words of Norse Origin
The Viking Network's Yorkshire dialect words of Old Norse origin.

Calderdale Companion - Dialects           << NEW
When visiting the Halifax and Calderdale area, you will encounter local variants of standard English words and linguistic forms. Some of the words shown below are standard English forms – and meanings – but are used more frequently here than in other parts of the country. I also include some older terms which may be encountered when researching local and family history. As with most regional dialects, the local forms are more likely to be used by the older population, as the young adopt the received forms from radio, television and popular culture.

BarnsleyLife.com
How many of these Barnsley sayings can you say out loud and understand?

Yorkshire-Dialect.org
Some of the verses have been recorded (where possible by the author), and when you see a button next to the text of a recorded verse, you can use it to hear it read out to you. See also their online Dictionary.

BBC Voices
Listen in to the diverse voices of the British Isles – from Shetland to Penzance. Eavesdrop on Rotarians in Pitlochry and Travellers in Belfast. Drop in on skateboarders in Milton Keynes. Overhear pigeon fanciers in Durham.

Yorkshire Dialect Society
The Yorkshire Dialect Society was originally founded in Bradford on 27th March, 1897, by the committee which had worked for three years on the Yorkshire section of Joseph Wright's English Dialect Dictionary. The Society immediately prospered and attracted many new members interested not only in purely philological study but as much in the enjoyment of their native tongue.

Yorkshire Dialect Poems 1673-1915
Yorkshire Dialect Poems and Traditional Poems Compiled with an Historical Introduction by F. W. Moorman (Professor of English Language, University of Leeds). In volume and variety the dialect poetry of Yorkshire surpasses that of all other English counties. Moreover, when the rise of the Standard English idiom crushed out our dialect literature, it was the Yorkshire dialect which first reasserted its claims upon the muse of poetry; hence, whereas the dialect literature of most of the English counties dates only from the beginning of the nineteenth century, that of Yorkshire reaches back to the second half of the seventeenth.

Dialect in the North East
Place names, origins, dialect and regional identity of North East England.

Online Slang Dictionary & Links
List of links to British slang and language related sites.

Yorkshire Colloquialisms
Wikipedia's Yorkshire colloquialisms, (sometimes referred to as Yorkshireisms), are colloquialisms or slang commonly spoken in Yorkshire, England. These colloquialisms begin to occur as one travels into Yorkshire, alternating with great variety depending upon one’s exact whereabouts within the region. Yorkshire colloquialisms should not be confused with Yorkshire dialect, which generally hails from a greater antiquity and possesses a complete orthographical and grammatical system. Yorkshire dialect also has much in the way of written substance whereas the colloquialisms, with very few exceptions, are used in speech alone. Although not always true, most Yorkshire colloquialisms are of fairly recent origin.

Elizabethan Online Dictionary
Some interesting facts and information about Life can be found in the Elizabethan Online Dictionary. Forgotten words, lost in the passage of time can be found in this free online Dictionary. If you are reading the works of William Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe or any other famous authors you will definitely find words that you will not know the meaning of! This free Elizabethan online dictionary provides a fascinating insight into the origins and meanings words contained in the plays of William Shakespeare.

Best of British - Slang
Humorous American's Guide to Speaking British explains Slang in the UK.

Rhymes, Stories, Folk Tales, Ghost Stories, Legends, Games Etc
Sheffield Indexers collection of Rhymes, Ballads, Folk Tales, Ghost Stories, Legends and Games of Old Sheffield.
 

More Expressions

Ah wor fair capped - I was amazed.

Ah'm fair clemmed - I'm very hungry.

Ah'm fair moidered - I'm nattered, in an anxious way.

Ah'm nobbut fair to middlin - I'm in average health.

Ah've just bethowt missen - I've just remembered.

Cans't tha thoil it? - Can you convince yourself it's worth buying.

Frame thissen lad - Put your back into it.

He'd nivver give a hand turn - He won't help anyone.

He's gormless - Ninepence to t'bob.

He's Laikin - He's unemployed, playing.

He's nobbut ninepence to t'bob - He's rather dim.

He's reight sackless - He's very lazy.

His eyes are bigger than his belly - He's put too much on his plate.

His wife's an offcomed-un - His wife comes from another town.

I'm fast for weft - I've run out of yarn.

It's muck or nettles - You've only the choice of two evils.

It's varry snoo - It's very smooth, slippery.

Mash the tea - Brew or make tea in teapot.

She wor allus a brazzen hussy - She was always shameless.

She'd nip a currant I'two - She's very mean.

She's a right mawk - Very haughty, stuck-up.

She's as thrang as throps wife - Always busy.

Side the pots - Clear tea or dinner things.

Tha'd better stop chunterin - Stop being cheeky or else.

Tha'll get warmed - You'll get spanked.

Tha's got to keep t'band in t'nick - You've got to keep going.

That's a reight bobby dazzler - That's a super one.

The're living ower t'brush - Living together unmarried.

We wor at t'band-end - We were exhausted, at the end of our tether.

Wheers ta bahn? - Where are you going?

 
More Sheffield History

Sheffield Indexers, Sheffield History
Sheffield Indexers collection of links to historical Sheffield including; Sheffield History, Laws & Acts, Living & Working Conditions, Historical Land & Buildings, Sheffield Flood and War Memories.

Sheffield Indexers, Other Historical Info
Sheffield Indexers collection of links to more articles of interest relating to Sheffield including; Sheffield Stories, Newspaper Articles, Editorials & General Interests, Sheffield Rhymes Etc, Cherished Sheffield Family Memories, Recipes of Olde Yorkshire, Old Sheffield Picture Post Cards and Yorkshire Expressions.

Yorkshire & Surrounding Counties            << MORE
Sheffield Indexers list of links to websites for family members recorded in the counties of Yorkshire, Cheshire, Derbyshire,  Durham, Lancashire, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire and Westmorland/Cumbria.