Geordie

From Freepedia

Geordie refers to a person originating from Tyneside (England) and the adjacent former coal mining areas of northern County Durham or the dialect spoken by such people. There are a number of rival theories to explain how the term came about, though all accept that it derives from a familiar diminutive form of the name "George".

In recent times Geordie has also been used to refer to a supporter of Newcastle United football club no matter their origin, including people from outside the traditional area.

Derivation of the term

One explanation is that it was established during the Jacobite Rebellion of 1745. The Jacobites declared that the natives of Newcastle were staunch supporters of the Hanoverian Kings, in particular of George II during the 1745 rebellion. This contrasted with rural Northumbria, which largely supported the Jacobite cause. If true, the term may have derived from a popular anti-Hanoverian song, which calls the first Hanoverian king "Geordie Whelps", meaning "George the Guelph".

An alternative explanation for the name is that local miners used "Geordie" safety lamps designed by George Stephenson, rather than the "Davy Lamps" designed by Humphry Davy which were used in other mining communities.

The term Geordie is often incorrectly used to cover all the peoples of the North East of England, though this usage is generally confined to people from other parts of the United Kingdom, and is considered an insult by North-Easterners who do not come from Tyneside, due to intense local rivalries. To North-Easterners the term exclusively refers to persons from Tyneside; since about 1991 people from Wearside have been termed Mackems; people from Hartlepool are known as monkey hangers, whilst natives of the Teesside conurbation are generally referred to as Smoggies. People from the countryside in between these urban areas are generally referred to as 'farm yackers' or 'pit yackers' (particularly in Northumberland around the Ashington area).

The Geordie dialect

Geordie derives much less influence from French and Latin than does Standard English, being substantially Angle and Viking in origin. The accent and pronunciation, as in Lowland Scots, reflect old Anglo-Saxon pronunciations, accents and usages.

Personal pronouns differ markedly from Standard English: Geordies use "youse" for plural "you", "me" for "my", "us" for "me", "wor" for "our". The word "wor" is sometimes placed before the given name of the person being the subject of conversation to denote that they are a family member, for example "wor Allan" or "wor da" (father). It is also quite common for Geordies to use the word "man" for both men and women, as in "howay man" (c'mon you).

Vowel sounds are also quite unusual. "er" on the end of words becomes "a" ("father" is pronounced "fatha", both "a" sounds as in "hat"). Many "a" sounds become more like "e": "hev" for "have" and "thet" for "that". Double vowels are often pronounced separately as dipthongs: "boat" becomes "boh-ut". Some words acquire extra vowels ("growel" for "growl", "cannet" for "can't"). This property of the dialect has lead Geordie to be known for putting as many vowels as possible into a word. The "or" sound in words like "talk" becomes "aa", while "er" sounds in words like "work" becomes "or". The "ow" in words like "down" or, most famously, "town" becomes "oo", hence "the Toon" meaning Newcastle. In Wearside, the "oo" in words like "cook", "book" or "look" becomes "uu", although this accent has come to be known as Mackem, not Geordie.

Geordie also has a large amount of vocabulary not seen in other English dialects. Words still in common use today include "canny" for "pleasant" (it should be noted that the Scottish use of canny is often somewhat less flattering), "hyem" for "home", "divn't" for "don't", "bairn" and "grandbairn" for "child" and "grandchild", "hacky" for "dirty", and "gan" for "go". "Howay" is broadly comparable to the invocation "Come on!". Examples of common use include "Howay man!", meaning something like "come on" or "hurry up", "Howay the lads!" as an encouragement for a football team, or "Howay!?" expressing incredulity or disbelief. The word "hyem" for "home" is inherited from the Old Norse language. The word "tab" for "cigarette" is thought to derive from Ogden's Tabs, a once-popular brand of cigarettes.

Much of the vocabulary is a preserved form of Old English, the north having not been so affected by the Norman conquest. Pronouncing Old English with a geordie-like accent, rather than the more commonly recommended German, results in a form more comprehendible to those with knowledge of the meaning of Geordie vocabulary. When a Geordie uses the word "larn" for teach, it is not a misuse of the English word "learn"; the word is derived from the Anglo Saxon word "laeran", meaning to teach.

Geordie is also sometimes used to describe the distinctive dialect of the people of Northumbria. However strictly speaking, South East Northumberland (the mining area bordering Tyneside) has its own similar, but distinctive dialect known as Pitmatic.

In recent times, the Geordie accent has featured prominently in the national media, arguably more so than ever before. TV Presenters such as Ant and Dec, and Marcus Bentley, are happy to use their natural accents on air. The commentator on the UK edition of Big Brother is often perceived by southerners to have a Geordie accent (North-East accents do sound very alike to the untuned ear), however, he grew up in Stockton on Tees). Brendan Foster and Sid Waddell have both worked as television sports commentators. However, in general, the Geordie accent still tends to be employed for comedy effect as opposed to serious usage.

The accent was also popularised by the comic magazine Viz, where the accent itself is often conveyed phonetically by unusual spellings within the comic strips. Viz magazine itself was founded on Tyneside by a couple of Geordie lads, Chris Donald and his brother Simon.

It is said that the Roma influenced much of the Geordies' words eg. "charva" is an old word meaning child in Roma and used by Geordies to describe troublesome people. The word "gadgie" for man is derived from the similar-sounding Roma word for a non-Roma. There is a high percentage of Roma origins in the North East and Newcastle hosts a large Gypsy travelling-fair, the "Hoppins", which has been held annually on the Town Moor every year for over a century.