Successful marketing communication is all about conveying the appropriate message to the intended audience at just the right moment. This article offers a mix of humor and knowledge, exploring how dialects and expressions have transformed over time in Wiltshire, providing essential insights for both marketers and creative professionals.
The Old Man Next Door
"Ow’s thee didlin?" This phrase from my childhood still echoes in my memory. It was the familiar greeting from my neighbor, Bob Collingborne, whenever I met him in our gardens. Bob was in his mid-eighties when he passed away in the early 1980s. I fondly recall hopping over the white picket fence that divided our gardens to join him for stories and rich tea biscuits.
Back in the mid-1970s, the unique Wiltshire dialect, marked by its strong accent, was a regular part of daily life. Bob and my father often shared drinks and conversations at the Old Inn in Minety, sometimes joined by Mr. Davies, the local school headmaster. Mr. Davies once suggested to my father that he should record Bob's distinctive voice and stories to preserve this fading dialect, but it never happened. Now, that language and its speakers are part of a bygone era, having merged into a more generic version of the Wiltshire dialect.
A recent conversation with a colleague, who had similar childhood experiences, brought these memories back to life. It's astonishing to think that just 30 years ago, a dialect so unique and distinct was spoken here, one that to some sounded almost foreign, even earning the speakers the nickname 'zammys', a term for simpletons.
Wiltshire Words of Old
Here are some classic Wiltshire words, some you may have heard of and others you definitely wouldn't have. Thanks to Salisbury Journal for compiling the list...
Ahmoo. A cow. Used by mothers to children, as ‘Look at they pretty ahmoos a-comin’!’
All-a-hoh. Lopsided
Aloud. Smells very bad, as 'That there meat stinks aloud.'
Anan, 'Nan. What do you say?
Bat-mouse. The usual term for a bat, also known as a flittermouse.
Belly vengeance. Very small bottles of bad beer.
Birds’-wedding-day. St. Valentine’s Day.
Bittish. Somewhat. ''Twer a bittish cowld isterday.'.
Bobbish. In good health. 'Well, an' how be 'ee to-day?' 'Purty bobbish, thank 'ee.'
Buddle. To suffocate in mud. ‘There! if he haven’t a bin an’ amwoast buddled hisel’ in thuck there ditch!’
Butchers' Guinea-pigs. Woodlice. These were also known as curly-buttons
Cocky-warny. The game of leap-frog.
Cow-baby. A childish fellow, a simpleton.
Cribble about. To creep about "as old people do".
Crumplings, Crumplens. Small, imperfectly grown apples..
Dumbledore. A bumblebee (which was also known as a humble-bee).
Firk. To worry mentally, to be anxious, as 'Don't firk so,' or 'Don't firk yourself.'
Fitty. In good health. 'How be 'ee?' 'Ter'ble fitty.'
Flamtag. A slatternly woman. Wiltshire folk used several terms to describe women they didn't like, including flib-me-jig, floppetty, he-body, huckmuck,hag-mag, yelding, hummocksing... The list goes on.
Flowse. You ‘flowse,’ or splash, the water over you in a bath.
Garley-gut. A gluttonous person.
Glory-hole. A place for rubbish or odds and ends, as a housemaid’s cupboard, or a lumber room.
Gossiping. A christening.
Hen-hussey. A meddlesome woman (another for the list of words to describe women!)
Hullocky! ‘Hullo! look here!’. This is usually pronounced Hellucky, and is a contraction of ‘Here look ye!’
Jiffle. At Bishopstone in thee 1830s, an old bell-ringer was supposedly heard to accuse the younger men of having got into a regular ‘jiffle’ while ringing. There is no formal translation.
Lady-cow. The Ladybird.
Maggots. Tricks, nonsense. 'Her's at her maggots again.'
Moonied up. Coddled and "spoilt by injudicious bringing up".
Pissing-candle. The smallest candle in the pound, put in to make up the weight
Quanked. Overpowered by fatigue.
Rumple. To seduce. The full force of the word can only be given by example, as 'He bin rumplin’ that wench o’ Bill’s again laas’ night.’
Shitsack, or Shitzack. An oak-apple
Skug, Sqwug. A squirrel.
Toad-stabber. A bad blunt knife.
Shoooort Ayce
By the time I started my career in the early 90’s most of the expressions and phrases I had spoken at school had now been replaced with new terminology. Local dialect like a foreign language changes from county to county in the UK with slight or massive variations depending on where you visit. For example, the main phrase at school as a teenager in Wiltshire was ‘short ace’ which was pronounced 'shoooort ayce' which meant 'good' or 'very good' depending on how long you pronounced the O vowel. This word later transformed over time into ‘cool’, pronounced “cooool”.
I mean 'sick' not 'sick'
Back in the 1950s, the M4 motorway which runs from London in the east to Bristol in the West Country was built. In my opinion, it has had a major influence on the Wiltshire accent. I now call it the M4 gutter dialect. A London based twinge interspersed with the Wiltshire accent… Ooh Arr geezer. Another major influence includes American and Australian TV shows. I don’t eat sandwiches anymore at lunch, I eat sarnies, then occasionally I pop downtown for a walkabout. Teenagers or the youth of today use words like ‘sick’ which isn't the lumpy substance you see on the pavement on a Friday night in a major city but a word to point out something is cool.
Cockney Patwa
It’s difficult to appreciate how intricate and expressive the English language is until you have travelled. I have found that whilst abroad I end up using a simplified version of English. Rather amusingly I heard an American woman on a plane talking to her travel companion about how she had no problem understanding the Brits. Maybe she should visit the east end of London and ask a local for directions. I am not sure she would understand Jamaican Patwa delivered in a Cockney accent… neither would I come to think of it.
Where's the pussy?
It’s difficult to appreciate how intricate and expressive the English language is until you have traveled. I have found that whilst abroad I end up using a simplified version of English. Rather amusingly I heard an American woman on a plane talking to her travel companion about how she had no problem understanding the Brits. Maybe she should visit the east end of London and ask a local for directions. I'm not sure she would understand Jamaican Patwa delivered in a Cockney accent… neither would I come to think of it.
Pickled Peppers
As a Creative Agency, it’s important to keep abreast of trends, the way we communicate, and terminology. It’s not too difficult to find a universal message that encompasses all the local and regional trends in your language. For example, I had thought of a clever idea for a campaign the other day that used an English tongue-twisting rhyme. However, how do you explain to a German or Spanish customer that Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers? A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked. If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers, Where’s the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked? They literally wouldn’t see the funny side of it, nor would it translate correctly into their respective languages.
I remember explaining to a Swedish woman on a beach in India that I was feeling worse for wear having drunk too much alcohol the previous night. I told her I had a hangover. What is that she asked. I explained and she laughed. In Sweden, we call the 'Towing the red line' where one can have a drink or two sensibly without consequences, but if you take it too far you will overstep the mark and get a baksmälla.
We Speak Your Language
Situated just 8 miles north of Swindon, nestled in the picturesque Cotswolds, and conveniently placed between Cheltenham, Bristol, and Cirencester, Scott's Studio stands as a beacon of creativity. Though our way of saying hello has shifted from the traditional Wiltshire dialect to a simple greeting, our dedication to comprehending and fulfilling business needs remains unaltered.
At Scott's Studio, we excel in capturing the essence of both local and global trends, creating impactful messages that connect with audiences. Our expertise in Creative Ideation, Branding, and Graphic Design, as well as Website, Digital, and Print Design, is further enhanced by our commitment to not just communicate in your language, but to genuinely understand and respond to your requirements.
Reach out to Scott's Studio to transform and elevate your creative endeavors.
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