Aye, heor we hev
Twa Geordies!
(Click on the image to learn more!)
| He spoke English like an Englishman, like a Tynesider, perhaps, but obviously as if he had not spoken it for years. | |
| - | "The Star of the South", C. S. Forester, Admiral Hornblower in the West Indies, Little, Brown, and Company, 1957. |
Without doubt among the most renown celebrities of the Geordie culture are comedians Ross Noble and Sarah Millican. Ross and Sarah have been long time guest panelists of the BBC comedy quiz program Qi (Quite Interesting) where their Geordie origins are sometimes the recipients of barbs and banter.
Good natured barbs and banter, of course!
A Geordie - pronounced JOR-dee - is simply (or not so simply) a native of the area around the River Tyne, particular in the area of Newcastle-upon-Tyne. True, there are some purists who maintain an authentic Geordie has to be born north of the Tyne River and within 1 mile of the center of Newcastle. However, this definition seems to be a bit too tight. Yes, Ross was born in Newcastle-upon-Tyne but Sarah was from the suburb of South Shields on the coast about eight miles down the river.
The stamp of the Geordie is their dialect. The Geordie speech is not just an accent but has its own vocabulary and is one of the oldest forms of modern English still spoken. There are remnants of Anglo-Saxon, borrowings from Scottish, as well creative inventions on their own. Geordie speech is difficult to render in writing or for non-speakers to imitate.
Geordies, like many minority groups, are often subject to stereotyping. The popular picture is that Geordies work as laborers in what Americans call blue-collar jobs with little hope or desire for upward mobility. You'll hear that a typical Geordie likes to party, drinks brown ale, eats pies,1, watches football matches, and they banter happily with each other in their distinctive and incomprehensible patois. Once on Qi Stephen asked the panel about the speech and mannerisms that passengers prefer for commercial airline pilots. Posh Oxbridge accents were seen as reassuring as were Scottish. Australians with their light hearted attitudes were also popular. But what, Stephen asked, about someone with a Geordie accent? Alan Davies replied "He can serve the drinks".2
Footnote
In England these are not dessert pies as in America but the meat pies that Americans would call the "pot pies". English meat pies tend to have more meat than American pot pies which are often more like stews placed between pastry crusts.
Some Geordies point out that the popular characterizations are not necessarily inaccurate. Yes, Tynesiders do like to gather with their friends while sampling the area's cuisine including the Newcastle Brown Ale.3 They are quite passionate in supporting their sports teams which is a trait that is not unusual for those from other parts of England or indeed throughout the world.
Footnote
Although Newcastle Brown Ale - available in parts of America - was originally brewed in Newcastle, it is now produced in the Netherlands.
The Tyneside area became an important center for the Industrial Revolution. Local products like iron, slate, and coal were exported and shipbuilding and locomotive manufacturing were also major employers. The region's prosperity attracted a number of educated people and Newcastle became a center of the English printing industry second only to Oxford and Cambridge. The town also hosted some of the earliest newspapers published in England and 1793 saw the founding of Newcastle's Literary and Philosophical Society. The Society's meetings were among the first to be illuminated with the fancy new incandescent lights which were invented by England's own Joseph Swan and some American chap.
Some American Chap
As happened elsewhere after the Fin de Siècle - the 19th Century's version of the Millennium - there was a downturn in heavy industry. Times got particularly tough in the 1930's with the worldwide Depression that kicked off in the former colonies with the Stock Market Crash of 1929.
Newcastle did remain a city of industrialization and during the Second World War it was the target of heavy air raids. As in all of England rationing continued until 1954 and the industries benefited from the rebuilding efforts throughout the country. By 1957 the Prime Minister Harold Macmillan stated that the British never had it so good even though the mid-50's saw the importation of American culture including cold breakfast cereals, ten-pin bowling, and the music of a former truck driver from Memphis.
The Truck Driver from Memphis
Today the city is quite diverse and has become a popular tourist spot particularly for its nightlife which includes not just pubs, restaurants, and clubs but also live theaters. Although Newcastle is in the northeast of England - it's about 250 miles north of London and 90 miles southeast of Edinburgh - the climate is moderated by its proximity to the ocean (actually the North Sea) and there are a number of beaches on the coast. Given the area's high latitude the summer days are the longest in England.4
Footnote
Of course, this is referring to England not to Great Britain which is the island and environs that also contains Scotland and Wales. During the summer the Orkney Islands of Scotland have the longest days in Great Britain with over 18 hours of daylight on June 20. Excluding twilight, there are only two hours of true night.
As far as the etymology of the word, the obvious derivation is correct that it is the local rendering of the name "George". But specifics vary from it being a particularly popular name among the miners, because the population supported King George during the Jacobite Rebellion, and that the industrial engineer and inventor George Stephenson was giving testimony to Parliament in 1826 about the building railways when his Tyneside manner of speaking caught the ear of the posh Londoners who began to refer to George and his fellow Tynesiders as "Geordies".
As stated above Geordie speech is not just an "accent" but is a true dialect with its own vocabulary. Americans, though, may note some shared words. For instance, it's nippy outside means it cold and is a common expression in America as well as with Geordies. "Galluses" is an old rural term for "suspenders" and means the same thing in Newcastle ("braces" is what English call them). A Geordie might be "afeard" of something and in America the old term was "afeared".
The history of the North East England extends way back into ancient times and Hadrian's Wall begins in Wallsend - an apt name - which is only three miles east of Newcastle. In 866, the Vikings attacked and occupied York which is about 80 miles south. The region was also the last to be overcome by William the Conquerer, and its proximity to Scotland made it inevitable that Newcastle would end up taking the brunt of much of the fighting between the two countries. Students of English history will also remember that in 1536 the inhabitants of the North East joined the Pilgrimage of Grace which was not a Pilgrimage much less one of Grace but was actually a revolt against Henry VIII.
A Guy Named Will.
Newcastle-upon-Tyne is the largest city in North East England which is an official statistical region of the country. To American ears attaching the names of rivers to towns seems a bit strange. For instance, Minneapolis isn't Minneapolis upon Mississippi nor is Cookietown called Cookietown upon the West Cache.5 Of course, the most famous "upon" town is Stratford upon Avon which was the home of some guy named Will. But in the early days rivers were the most convenient mode of travel and it helped to know what river the town was settled on. If a village or town wasn't near a river it still needed a water supply and it might have been named after an early settler who dug a well. So if Mr. Roth settled down and dug a well, you learned you could stop at Roth's well. As the area grew up the town that emerged would be named Rothwell.
Footnote
Actually the West Cache is not a river but a creek and is a tributary of Cache Creek which ends in the Red River.
The first introduction most Americans have to England's North East - perhaps lamentably and it's not strictly about Geordie culture - is the cartoon strip Andy Capp. Andy and his wife Flo live in Hartlepool which is only a 25 mile drive to the south of Newcastle. "Poolies" like Andy share favorite pastimes with their Geordie neighbors including enjoying a pint at the local and an enthusiasm for football (better known as soccer to Americans).
References and Further Reading
"Tyneside Pride: Who is a Geordie?", David Simpson, England's Northeast, November 26, 2017.
"18 Geordie Stereotypes That Are True and We're Actually Proud Of", Lisa Hutchinson and Charlotte Pickering, Chronicle Live, August 31, 2020.
"How To Understand the Geordie Accent", Newcastle University, March 6, 2020.
"Geordie Dictionary", England's North East.
"British Place Names Derived from Rivers and Streams", Look and Learn, July 26, 2013.
"Geordie Dialect", Inside Out, BBC, January 17, 2005.
"Geordie Guide: Geordie Dictionary", University Library, Newcastle University.
"Newcastle-upon-Tyne", Historic UK.
"The Cities Of Northern England", England Explore.
"History", Qi, Stephen Fry (presenter), Alan Davies (permanent panelists), Rob Brydon (guest panelist), Sandi Toksvig (guest panelist), David Mitchell (guest panelist), BBC, January 14, 2011.