Keeping Northumbrian language alive

Adapting to change is helping to keep the Northumbrian language alive.
But traditional dialects like 'Pitmatic' seem doomed to disappear, along with the colliery communities in which they were established.
That's the conclusion of Northumbrian dialect expert and poet Raymond Reed. He was delivering the annual Roland Bibby Memorial Lecture at Morpeth Town Hall.
So what is Northumbrian language? According to Mr Reed, it is a speech of old English or Anglo-Saxon, with 'a canny few Scandinavian words hoyed in to enrich it'.
Mr Reed's lecture was illustrated with readings of works written by himself and his late father, Fred.
The event proved so popular that extra seating had to be brought in to accommodate listeners at the ballroom.
Kim Bibby-Wilson, Secretary of the Northumbrian Language Society, said she was delighted by the turn-out.

[@TheHandsomestMale]

I only learned of the Northumbrian language today, and it's amazing how many words have survived all these years in our dialects. We often get told to "speak properly" at school and a lot of the usage seems to be dwindling. To learn this was the way everyone spoke in Old English just reaffirms my identity and my love of the North. Such a beautiful thing.

[@MrOoYT]

Please keep your dialect words in use. Here in the south we now all speak standard English with a standard accent and we don’t have dialects anymore because nobody batted an eyelid

[@EnglishOrthodox]

Old English is unintelligible to both modern English and Northumbrian

[@MrOoYT]

@@EnglishOrthodox you again! Fancy seeing you here

[@TheJollyReiver]

8 Mercians disliked this.

[@limonefiga6810]

Boyl tha heeds

[@robertgreen6027]

Hi! I wasn't expecting to see your comment here! haha Keep up the good work! Keeping folklore alive!

[@robertgreen6027]

I was just watching your video "the black lady of Bradly woods" It's very spooky.

[@Fenditokesdialect]

@@limonefiga6810 O'll sother di yead afooar da knaws owt abaht it lad! Mahrcians forivver nummer 1!

[@JingleJoe]

remember when you could see the number of dislikes?

[@jimmy_jamesjams_a_lot4171]

I met a man from there. He told me there’s a road that brings you to Lindesfarne. And it can only be driven on or navigated while the tide is low enough for the roadway to be visible. If you miss the low tide, you’d be stranded there until the tide goes low again.

[@Shinathen]

Yup it’s true you can drive on it from 8am to like 12pm

[@themajesticbulldog3832]

Proud to be a Northumbrian

[@historywithhilbert146]

Would anyone know if the gentleman in the video is still alive and how, if at all possible, to get in contact with him?

[@MorpethNewsTV]

He is still alive. Try contacting him through Mrs Kim Bibby-Wilson at the Northumbrian Language Society. Email: [e-mail]

[@historywithhilbert146]

Absolutely brilliant, thanks for the quick reply and the details, I really appreciate it!

[@duncanlawrence2300]

The gentleman is Raymond Reed, alive and kicking in his 80's, he lives near Morpeth, his father was Fred Reed, "The Bard of Northumberland" Both father and son are two great Northumbrian's

[@luked6385]

@@croatianwarmaster7872 I second this.

[@saguntum-iberian-greekkons7014]

Kevin of Leornende Eald Englisch might already have entered in contact with him

[@wolf20iw]

Absolutely beautiful to listen to. And also important seeing how much we have in common between England and the beautiful country north of the border.

[@radicalrodriguez5912]

That’s because lowlanders are Anglo-Saxons, too

[@johnmyers8493]

Noo ya reet about that

[@MichaelHenderson1948]

Really enjoyed that. My great grandfather was a Morpeth man, but he died way before my time. Thank you.

[@chrisstucker1813]

The North never forgets its roots ❤

[@SLFinSF]

More than 30 years ago, I was in the pub of the Battlesteads Hotel in Wark in the No. Tyne area of Northumberland. I'd visited the area before, thought it fascinating and beautiful. I love accents and am good a them -- and I'd travelled a good deal over the years all around the UK : Wales, Scotland from the Isle of Lewis to the Rhinns of Galloway, had a Cockney friend (born within the sound of Bow bells in 1940, etc) So I was pretty familiar with a lot of "strong" UK accents. So, I'm sitting at the bar having a beer, and a man in his 60s walked in and said to the young man (maybe 19?) sitting next to me at the bar something that sounded like this to my San Franciscan ear: "Air ye gan yam hinny?" At that point, I just threw my hands up in the air and gave up! (I later came to find that it's "Are you going home, son?" -- "air= are; gan=gone, going; yam= home/hame; and "hinny" is the local word for "son.")

[@williammills9852]

Hinny is a term of affection. The word can be both masculine and feminine and is not always age specific, so can be directed at a younger or older person. You're right though, it can be used to mean "son".

[@rollerbrush-]

Himny flower n pet are dieing out tho av noticed more people in northumberlamd are speaking like the south or off tv my own mam rekons its cause we sound poor n un educated but a stick by my roots

[@canyoudigit6321]

Nice to see him decked out in traditional Northumbrian Shepherds plaid which goes back further than a Lot of Scottish tartans.Although technically English,like myself and many other Northumbrians,we have always felt like a separate nation,similar to how Cornish people feel in relation to the rest of the u.k.

[@GB_GeorgeF]

Major Tommy Cornwall wants to be be independent of England, should we also fight for independence?

[@debbielough7754]

Funnily enough, if somebody asks me where I'm from, I say British or Northumbrian - England doesn't really come into it.

[@Rhodiac]

@@debbielough7754 an as Aussie that's cool

[@tallulahbaddulah]

yeh, I actually bought my husband a scarf with this check, or very similar because it was called the 'Burn check' I bought it just a bit further up, Rotherbury area

[@Dom-fx4kt]

The difference is the Cornish were a separate people from the Germanic Anglo Saxon tribes. Their people, culture and language are closer to the Welsh and they're the ancient Britons, the celtic tribes, and were once regarded as separate from England and the English like Wales and Scotland are, Cornwall was included with that, and are essentially a different ethnicity from the English but were taken over by England. Northumbrian's however are English, the are the Angles which spoke old English and part of the Anglo Saxon peoples which all had a common language and culture which made England. So you can't be compared to Cornwall. Like it or not, you're just English, or Northumbrian English.

[@avalondreaming1433]

I can only understand about half of what he's saying but the cadence is beautiful.

[@ianbrown1967]

Wey a can sartinly keep me owld pitmatic twang gan,av lived up in north Scotland noo fo sivinteen yeeahs and ferk still cannit bend tha heeds roond me accent,man.Al niva loss me twang or me roots,proud Northumbrian forever.

[@rollerbrush-]

Shouldnt have to change ya accent for a job or people doon south we are the border reevers n proud northumbrians i respect what u say bro

[@NovaAlbionRecords]

Neat stuff; Northumbrian dialect is so interesting.

[@maverick7873]

Amazing!!!

[@David-vx4mx]

Although I was born in Wallsend, my Dad served in the military and we moved about a lot throughout the country, and I didn't move back to Newcastle till 1977.I have asked a few people if I have a Geordie accent, but it's mostly no.Some people have told me I have a refined Geordie accent, and even though I feel a little sad over it at times, I'm still fiercely proud to be born up here.

[@gibmattson1217]

Funny thing. I'm from Manchester originally but live in Devizes, Wiltshire now. It's a bit of a crossroads between East and West. Mostly it's good old west country accents with the older folks seeming to have stronger accents. But a lot of Londoners are coming in and I reckon the accent will change a bit (but not completely) over the next generation.

[@nmatavka]

Is it possible to get Mr Reed's "Life's a Bugger" poem somewhere? It is absolutely hilarious and I can relate - want to print it out and post it in the office!

[@raosprid]

Would be nice if more would adapt to Northumbrian instead of the other way round...

[@ashleywilkins1390]

Black Country folks spake like it Dow we

[@celiabarrett2107]

In Carlisle we use the verb "hoy" as well. At least when I lived there. Meaning to throw as it does here.

[@rollerbrush-]

I live in a colliary village n still speak broader than all my mates a put it doon to my.step favva being one of the last.open cast northumbroan coal miners n his broad accent wouldnt change it for.nowt

[@connorsmith1797]

Ah love this me. Like I divnt hear that many people tahk like this nuw. Proper Northumbrian. Proper ashington!

[@cowboyschad5x778]

Apparently my family came from Northumbria before immigrating to America so I’ve become interested in the place and people there

[@saluki8748]

you should come visit, northumbria is full of friendly people and cool places :)

[@Shinathen]

@@saluki8748we’re probably the most friendliest people of the uk

[@saluki8748]

@@Shinathen too right! Everyone here is so nice

[@carolilseanne2175]

Like listenin te me Granda except he also rolled his "r" Hardly ever hear this now I live in Bedfordshire and 'speakers' are all gone 😢

[@johnnyfartypants1973]

Stakeford legend

[@tallulahbaddulah]

My Granda sounded a bit like this, more so and the end when he wasn't being so Northumbrian.

[@callum0592]

I certainly got this off me Granda and Dad like. Born and bred nothing better

[@lornaburgess9762]

Northumbrian born and bred . I live in Seghill and still taak proppa. Pitmans daughter and proud of iit.

[@DonegalRaymie201]

The more research I do, the more amusing it gets; THIS is how the Old Angles talked......the first English speakers on this island were Geordie speaking folk, and Chaucer & Beowulf translate better into Geordie/Northumbrian, than Modern, (i.e. 'Southern' English!) Haway man, dae ye not know aught??? Lol!!!

[@BrandydocMeriabuck]

Ar aye man, a reckin a knaa a canny bit aboot wor tung compared ti most like mate. Where di yi dae yi resorch like?

[@DonegalRaymie201]

Nick Appleby Here ye go, should shut up those Southern jessies this: "With it’s singing, swinging upbeat rhythm and distinctive sound patters, the Geordie accent and dialect owes much of its uniqueness to its preservation of many historical features that have been long since dropped by most other accents of English. It is in fact the most direct continuous evolution of the Anglo-Saxon language that can be found in the British Isles, the dialect still being strongly influenced by the language spoken by Anglo-Saxons who settled in the area in the 5th century." www.thevoicecafe.net/the-voice-cafe-blog/geordie-the-oldest-english-dialect "Geordie, the ORIGINAL English", LOL!!

[@DonegalRaymie201]

Nick Appleby Here's more, grand stuff so it is: "Oldest Living English? The Angles and Saxons brought with them to Britain a language which was the forerunner of modern English and indeed it was the Angles of Denmark that gave England its name - meaning the Angle land. Over the centuries the old Anglo Saxon language changed beyond recognition with the gradual introduction of Latin, Norman-French and other foreign influences. Today the only part of England where the original Anglo-Saxon language has survived to any great extent is of course the North East. Here the old language survives in a number of varieties, the most notable of which are Northumbrian and Geordie. It is from the ancient Germanic and Scandinavian language of the Angles that the unique local dialects of Northumberland and Durham primarily owe their origins. Geordie Words Angle origins Distinctively Geordie and Northumbrian words are more than 80 % Angle in origin, compared to standard English, where the figure is less than 30 %. Modern English words by comaprison are predominantly of Latin origin because modern English derives from the dialects of southern England which were continuosly influenced by the Latin and Norman French favoured by the educated classes of Oxford, Cambridge and London. Geordie words should not therefore be seen as sloppy pronounciation or a poor use of language, as they are in fact of great antiquity. Indeed many old words and phrases commonly used in the old works of Chaucer and Shakespeare which are no longer used in other parts of Britain have survived as common usage in the North East. Of course some Geordie words are of more recent origin or are corruptions or words borrowed from other regions, but often the similarities between Anglo-Saxon and Geordie can be quite surprising. For example Geordies in the same way as the Anglo-Saxons use the word `WIFE' as term for a woman whether she is married or not, while the Anglo-Saxon word ALD (OLD) is similar to the Geordie (AAD). Thus in Anglo-Saxon ALD WIFE literally meant `Old Woman' . Sometimes a Geordie may appear to be using words incorrectly , but this may not always be the case. For example a Geordie may say Aaal Larn yer (meaning I'll teach you) as in the Anglo Saxon Laeran which meant teach. Other Geordie words of Anglo Saxon origin include Axe (ask) from the Anglo-Saxon Acsian, Burn meaning stream, Hoppings meaning fayre and Gan which is the Geordie and Anglo saxon word meaning to go. The unique way in which Geordies and Northumbrians pronounce certain words is also often Anglo-Saxon in origin. Thus Geordie words like Dede, Coo, Cloot, Hoos, Wrang, Strang and Lang are in fact the original Anglo-Saxon pronounciations for Dead, Cow, Clout, House, Wrong, Strong and Long. These old words have survived in the North East for a number of reasons primarily associated with the region's historical remoteness and isolation from southern England. The turbulent border history of this region was also a major factor in discouraging outside influence although some Viking words have crept into the local dialect from the neighbouring Viking settled areas of Yorkshire, South Durham and Cumbria." www.englandsnortheast.co.uk/GeordieOrigins.html

[@wenqiweiabcd]

It's nothing like Middle English or Old English, just like any other surviving English dialect. It went through its own set of sound shifts and it doesn't have the complex case and gender system of Old English. I read the article a while ago, and it's frankly bollocks. For one thing how are the percentages of native English words in "distinctly Geordie words" and the general English vocabulary even comparable? Northumberland dialect is not the pure English language this article makes it out to be. Just listen to this old man, there's hardly a sentence that doesn't contain a Romance or Greek loanword. "They never *moved*. They lived, they worked, they played, they *socialised* in the same town. So they hadn't any *reason* to *change* the *dialect*." "With a canny few *Scandinavian* words hoyed in, and they *enrich* our *language*" Alfred, Cynewulf and Bede did not talk like this.

[@wenqiweiabcd]

***** I read that bit; that's precisely the problem: the two numbers are not comparable.

[@friendlydark]

proud to be northumbrian ❤️💛

[@JingleJoe]

you're not really allowed to speak the northumberland accent unless you have visible nose and ear hair, mark of wisdom earned through experience that is.

[@dermotsullivan9058]

Was this filmed in 2013 or before?

[@MorpethNewsTV]

2013

[@N00bSaib0tf0r7h3l1nku31]

Northumbrian is belta a divint why people neva speak it

[@BrandydocMeriabuck]

Me neither mate.

[@toffa121]

could not agree more mate

[@bobdownes162]

Tends to sound a bit Posh when reciting.

[@rabbiconduit4835]

Is he still alive?

[@maestrotheoretically519]

noone, subtitles at 2:13 **music**

[@julieinglis8276]

Icon💋

[@MarkMark-mn4jo]

A very distinct dialect but not a separate language. Easier to understand than Lowland Scots which is considered by many as a separate language or a sister language of English.

[@NymeriaMeliae]

+Mark Mark Lowland Scots comes from Northumbrian

[@leornendeealdenglisc]

That's right. The Northumbrian Dialect of Old English.

[@debbielough7754]

Lowland Scots is Northumbrian, because Lowland Scotland was Northumbria. But if not a language, given the comprehensibility test, please translate: Then wu’ll tyek wor pipe an blin heor time thi reek gaans oot, an set wor dowps amaang thi pittleybeds an forgit aboot this bale world. An gyep it thi cuddies, an thi gobby, donnart craas wi thor feckless cries an thi lowpin yows an dunchin coneys i thi grass.

[@ColaBobsHICKMAN]

me granda from bedlington .. He used to have a dug 🤔

[@twangbarfly]

I thought they all had dergs in Bedlington... :-)

[@FortunePodcast]

@@twangbarfly I grew up in Bedlington, they are definitely dergs haha

[@alanmcdonald4423]

@@FortunePodcast Bedlington Terriers?

[@loganl3746]

My great grandfather came from Bishop Aukland to America back in the 1920s, but even 3 generations down, the accent still creeps around! My mom used to complain about my dad and grandpa's "mumbling", but really it's just that accent. Learning more about the phonology makes how my family cuts up words make much more sense.

[@Charlotte-td8qq]

I’m from Spennymoor but went to school in Bishop Auckland. My dads family are from Bishop Auckland and West Auckland. We all are around 5 miles apart but slight accent changes!

[@Charlotte-td8qq]

We cut words up to shorten them, most people from America seem to think I’m either irish or Scottish. Not many know about the Northumbrian/Durham accent

[@misterprozilla2293]

I'm from Bishop Auckland, now live in Newcastle (~30 miles further North). The BA/Durham accent isn't quite as strong as more Northerly accents like Geordie or Northumberland, where I still come across unfamiliar words from older generations. Colleagues in Newcastle will say things like, "Where ye gannin' tiv?" (Where are you going to?"). The Durham accent is a little softer, like a cross between Geordie and a Yorkshire accent, and you'll still hear traditionally Yorkshire words like 'nithered' (cold), but it has been further softened since the days of coal mining in the area when Pitmatic - a dialect that included mining jargon - was a thing. My family was from Evenwood, a mining village near BA, where my granda was a coal miner, and you'll still hear some traces of pitmatic there.

[@amilcarschettini5290]

I finally found it. I now know exactly where Jamaicans get their accent from.

[@aharonfernandez6359]

while I do here it a bit...Jamaicans sound more like irish from cork

[@brettharter143]

Jamaicans speak padwa and its nothing like this lol

[@benwest7420]

I wish I spoke a dialect. I live in london so the only 'dialect' I've grown up in is the mind numbing roadman speak

[@jsbart96]

Ben West it’s still a dialect tho! There is no right and wrong in language, it just is! Learn to accept and love it for its richness, no matter how it sounds

[@cadfael4598]

Way man I’m reet sorry but my grandma yust te yews the Jorman glottal rrrrrollin “r” an she wor as Northumbrian as a lass cud be hinnie

[@alanmcdonald4423]

@Cad Fael A Northumbrian would never say "reet" nor "yews". They are Tyneside pronunciations - Geordie if you wish to put an accent on it.

[@jaggass]

I can sort of see where the Nigerian The Gambia, Ghana etc dialect comes from.

[@amadiohastruck4331]

Lol

[@ashleywilkins1390]

Your accent sound like mine and I am not even from your area

[@StillAliveAndKicking_]

I can’t understand a word, mainly because the acoustics are atrocious.

[@eswaa9246]

i am northumbrian and i talk like a geordie

[@PortsladeBySea]

🤣🏆🤣🏆🤣🏆🤣

[@jd3052]

Shame that the daughter on this clip has a very modified north east/ northumbrian accent. Bet her dad is rrrrollin in his grraave. The only difference I see between Geordie and Northumbrian is the rolling of the r. Aaeshingtun, howevva, is a totally different dialect.

[@kimbibby-wilson562]

As the daughter, I am well aware that I am a victim of Standard English education and automatically go into "bland" mode when subjected to the stresses of being recorded. My father was bilingual, which I would never claim to be.

[@alanmcdonald4423]

@@kimbibby-wilson562 I knew your father very well. I spoke to him on more than a few occasions, and I would say he had a "modified" Morpeth accent. I never heard him speak in a true Northumbrian accent.

[@underdawg2743]

This is just regional English, not another language FFS!

[@shutupworkid9735]

Course it is.

[@alanmcdonald4423]

@Under Dawg I agree with you despite being born in Ashington and lived in and near Morpeth until I was 35. Having moved around the world a lot since then I have found that several places pronounce words and/or use what are not normally in the English language but are Northumbrian dialect words - e.g. Portmahomack and other places further north including Orkney and Shetland. I have even heard the occasional word spoken in Australia. My understanding, although I could well be wrong, is that these words originate from Viking invasions.

[@celiabarrett2107]

A language is a dialect with an army, so say the linguists... Interesting concept.

[@shanefelkel9966]

What is this Norse-Dutch? Hit gladmot me. Seriously, love the different dialects. Is this Geordie or no?

[@johnmyers8493]

Heard it arl me life love it and its meaning ! It is different but it's so funny yad wet yasell laughing ! This and other dialects and challenging accents should be encouraged not overlooked they're essential 2 the reality of sanity ! Why should the fun be taken out of what's our heritage ?

[@agekarlsson1318]

It is a nonsense, there is no such a thing like "Scandinavian" words. There is no such a language like "Scandinavian" peoples. Scandinavia is neither a language nor a ethnic group, it is just a territory, Scandinavian is geographical term, nothing more. There is only northern Germanic languages and ethnicities. Learn this.