Local Lingo

[Wilts]

Any especially typical "Brighton" words that you don't hear anywhere else? Or just different pronunciations of normal words?

From the Hob Nob board... after seeing a BBC article on the local lingo.

Reading dialect:

IDR - Inner Distribution Road
Butts Centre - Broad St Mall
Smelly Alley - Union St
Whitley Whiff - The stench created by the sewers in the Reading district of Whitley
Jammo - The Co Op jam factory off Berkeley Avenue
Chav - Uniformed townie usually in IT
Cheeselogs - Woodlice
Going uptahn - Going up to London
Somewhen - Sometime
J8/9 - Junction 8/9 of the M4
Scran - 1 lb of free broken biscuits that Huntley & Palmers employee received every Friday
Onion Lane - Honey End Lane
Cripps - Crisps
Tilehurst Treacle Mines - A myth that everyone talks about
Rainedabate - Roundabout
Bobs - The Back of Beyond pub

Phrases:

Pain Nates - Old UK currency
I ternt left rain' the rainedabait to gaa dain tahn - Self-explanatory
Ellay, it's good 'ere innit? - Oracle centre opens up
Woy they get ridduv 'Eelas then? - Heelas turns to just being called "John Lewis" after about 100 years.

 

[Dropkick Turnip]

People from Moulscoombe are sometime referred to as Scoomers and I've heard Whitehawk called "The 'Awk" once but I don't think people really go in for it down here.

I'm sure there'll be loads of posts now from indigenous people proving me wrong and showing me up for the tourist that I am.

 

[Lord Bracknell]

Out here in the rural east of Sussex, we take a very dim view of folk who can't pronounce place names properly.

NEWhaven is wrong. NewHAVEn is correct.
Seaf'd is wrong. SeaFORD is correct.
There used to be a station announcer on the railway at Lewes who always got both of these right. But he's been replaced by a recording that is always wrong.

Despite the spelling, it's MAWLing, not MALLing; and Offham is pronounced OAFham, not Off'm.
It's BeddingHAM, not BEDDing'm.
And Alfriston is Awlfiston, not Alfriston.
Michelham Priory is MITCHELHAM, not MICKLEh'm.

Nobody in Brighton can spell Moulsecoomb (and Dropkick Turnip's post proves that). How many people pronounce it properly? MOLESCOOM, not MOOLSC'M.

Some proper pronunciations are disappearing completely. Pidd'nhOOO, for example. And BUR-wick is hardly ever heard in Berwick these days. Out west, how often is CHIDISTER heard in Chichester?

West HoathLYE, East HoathLEE - or so I'm told by friends in both of the Hoathly villages. I've even met people who eat broccolye, not broccoli - but I reckon they're just dumb.

And who knows that Hove used to be pronounced HOOV? Or that Brighthelmstone was pronounced ...er... "Brighton"?

And next time Southern Counties Radio mentions Suthick, when they mean Southwick (in Sussex, not the Hampshire one), write to the Director General of the BBC and suggest they reintroduce local radio.

 

[Turkey]

NEWhaven

 

[Lord Bracknell]

NEWhaven

You deserve a visit from Bernard Matthews.

 

[Sonic]

Out west, how often is CHIDISTER heard in Chichester?

I have to say that I hear Chidister all the time, in fact as time goes on, I reckon it's being used more. It's especially noticeable when it's not a pensioner using it.

 

[Gwylan]

Nobody in Brighton can spell Moulsecoomb (and Dropkick Turnip's post proves that). How many people pronounce it properly? MOLESCOOM, not MOOLSC'M.

Hmm.... I was brought up in Moulsecoomb and I (and my mates) always pronounce it MOLLSCOOM. Have heard MOLESCOOM, normally from outsiders but never heard MOOLSC'M. You must move in posh circles, Lord B?

A word that does seem to be unique to Sussex is twitten. I've never heard it anywhere else and most people look baffled when I say it.

My father always used to tell us to get a shav on when he wanted us to hurry but I could never tell if that his made-up word. slang from when he was a boy or a genuine Sussex word. Anyone any ideas?

 

[Brovion]

An alleyway in Sussex is called a 'twittern'. Unique to us apparently - unless its been used by an emigrant somwhere.

 

[Cheeky Monkey]

All Seaford alleyways are referred to as twitterns. Newhaven can either be referred to as Nu'aven or in colloquial english 'Shitehole.'
Burgess Hill is known as Burglar Bill. Where I work, earlies are known as Liz Hurleys, lates are Gareth Gates and nights are Steve Wrights, as in "Are you on Gareths tomorrow?" "No, I'm on Steves"

 

[Gary Nelson]

Everyone I know calls the Whitehark end of town Hawkers and Scombers for Moulsecombe. But living in Hove I try not to go to far into Brighton.

(actually)

 

[Lush]

I have lived in Sussex most of my life, but tell me - do you pronounce Herstmonceux "Hurst - mon - sew"?

 

[Sam]

An alleyway in Sussex is called a 'twittern'. Unique to us apparently - unless its been used by an emigrant somwhere.

there is an allyway in saltdean officially named "The Twitten"!

 

[Titanic]

or Hurst-mon-so ?

 

[Titanic]

are tipteers and mummers a 'Sussex' thing ?

 

[Hannibal smith]

I'm near Birmingham and the local dialect is like hearing nails on a blackboard. Whilst mockney and the like have taken on a certain type of cool that will never happen here.

'Aweite Bab' means 'Hello Mate'
Tata abit means goodbye
and 'Bostin' Means Great.

I hasten to add if anyone speaks like that I try to avoid them. My Favourite though is how the locals pronounce Solihull where I work. This is akin to Hove and Brighton - The locals hate to be associated with lower class Brum so pronounce it 'So-Lee-Hull' . Twats.

 

[Sorrel]

I have lived in Sussex most of my life, but tell me - do you pronounce Herstmonceux "Hurst - mon - sew"?

I can't talk for those that know better, but everyone I knew called it hurst-mon-zoo.

 

[Lord Bracknell]

Definitely with a zee - as Duncan H says.

 

[CHAPPERS]

CHISLA

 

[Lord Bracknell]

This reminds me of an old joke about the Frenchman who wanted to perfect his English pronunciation and had struggled for years with the peculiarities of "ough" etc. He eventually caught the boat train to Victoria, walked out of the station and committed suicide as soon as he saw the poster outside the Palace Theatre:-

Black and White Minstrel Show - Pronounced Success

 

[looney]

I'm familiar with Twittern.

Always known it was Hurst-mon zoo.

Also know how Happisburg in essex is supposed to be pronounced.
Have a guess?

LB
What part of rural ES are you in? I'm in the Weald.