|
The way we speak says so much about who we are. Our
accent points to where we are from, our social background and our heritage.
| "Dialect is a richness of
language... and I like the rhythm of the language" |
| Sue Worth |
Growing up in Dorset, Brian Caddy speaks with a natural
local lilt. Like his contemporaries, speaking with the dialect comes natually
for Brian - a tradition passed down through generations. But is the dialect
still as widespread today?
"The dialect is still quite strong with village people",
Brian said. "On Market day you'll probably hear it more in Dorchester
than you would any other time during the week."
The migration of people from elsewhere in the country,
coupled with the a pervasive mass media has diluted the strength of local
dorset identity.
"You lose a bit of your identity", added Brian
"Even in the villages a lot of the inhabitants aren't Dorset born
and bred so consequently I think you do lose a bit of the identity of
Dorset."
| GLOSSARY: How
do you say it? |
| Slang
Term |
Definition
of term |
| aggy |
to gather eggs |
| a-stooded |
sunk into the ground
|
| ballyrag
|
to scold |
| bit-an'-drap
|
a meal |
| dewbit
- |
the first meal of
the morning |
| joppety-joppety
|
nervous trepidation |
| noggerhead
|
blockhead |
| tinklebobs |
icicles |
 |
| Sue Worth
loves the rhythm of language |
Dorset Drowners
Sue Worth - also a Dorset local - remembers the tales that were told
to her as a child.
"We were warned to keep away from water meadows
when they were in full flood", she said. "Not for the very rational
reason that you might drown but because of the beautiful creatures that
lived in the water.
"They would leave toys or trinkets for the children
to reach into the water - and as the children reached in they would get
sucked further and further into the mud.
"If they were lucky somebody would see them and run
and save them. If not they would be taken by the Drowners and their family
and friends would never see them again", added Sue.
|
