National Poetry Day 2017 is celebrating and protecting local dialects with 12 poets across the country creating work that promotes local words and phrases.
The theme of this year's National Poetry Day is Freedom, and the #freetheword project is taking the opportunity to highlight local words which often get overlooked.
Freetheword is a partnership between BBC English Regions, National Poetry Day and the Oxford English Dictionary to find unrecorded words used in everyday speech around the UK.
Twelve poets with a connection to a regional dialect are taking on local words chosen by language experts.
19-year-old poet and spoken-word artist Isaiah Hull is writing a poem featuring all 12 words and all the poems are being broadcast by the BBC today.
Lexicographer and face of Countdown's dictionary corner Susie Dent said: “Our local words and expressions are very much part of an oral tradition, and printed records are often hard to find.
“The shortlist of words reflects some of the verve and vibrancy of our local tongues. I’m probably not allowed to be biased, but Devon’s ‘dimpsy’ has long been a favourite of mine.”
The chosen words are...
Berkshire: Cheeselog (a woodlouse)
Bristol: Gurt (great or very)
Cumbria: To twine (to complain)
Devon: Dimpsy (twilight)
Humberside: Didlum (a community savings scheme)
Leeds: Ginnel (an alleyway)
Leicester: Mardy (moody)
London: Fam (a familiar form of address for a friend)
Merseyside: To geg in (to butt in)
Suffolk: On the huh (lopsided, wonky)
Sussex: Twitten (an alleyway)
West Midlands: Bobowler (a large moth)
So on National Poetry Day when dialect is in the spotlight, can you decode this old Devon poem?
It was written in 1907 by an unknown author and appears in the collection Devonia.
The Road to Moreton
‘Tis a mucksy rawd to Moreton een the lonely wintertime,
Whain the ‘adges zeemth to shrink wi’ vrawst an’ snaw,
An ’tis cruel whish vor anybody crossin’ ‘long the taps
Whain the winds vrom off old Dartymoor do blaw.
But ’tis comfortin’ to think that whain you gets there arter all
You’ll vorget about the vreezin’ and’ the mire
As you vinds a ‘earty wulcome an’ they tulls ‘e to draa vore
An to yett yurself bevore a Moreton vire.
Oh ! the mucksy rawd to Moreton might be wiss
If zo be as ‘ow it did’n laid to this:
A chimney corner waitin’
An’ a vrawsy wantin’ aitin’,
Oh ! the mucksy road to Moreton might be wiss.
‘Tis a purty rawd to Moreton een the bustin’ days O’ spring,
An’ there’s company to cheer ‘e all the way,
What wi’ gookoos callin’ “Gookoo” awver every other vield.
An the greybirds an’ the blackbirds een the May.
There’s primrosen, violets, bluebells, snap jacks, greydaisies, too,
‘Nough to maake a vitty posy vor a queen,
An’ there’s many maids to Moreton what’ll taake the best you’ve picked
Wi’out ezactly axin’ what you mean.
Oh ! the purty rawd to Moreton can’t be bait
Whain you knaws that t’other aind there’s maids who wait
Vor the vlowers what you taakes there,
An the flickets what you maakes there.
Oh ! the purty rawd to Moreton can’t be bait.
‘Tis a disty rawd to Moreton een the leary zummer time,
When the zin ‘e scorchth like vire awver-‘aid,
An’ if you’m luggin ‘ome along a middlin’ ‘evay load
‘Tis quite enough to maake ‘e veel ‘alf-diad.
But although the pillum chucks ‘e an’ you zweat’th list like a bull
There’s a zomethin’ that’ll always keep ‘e up:
That there’s a thoughtvul volks at t’other aind who knawth jist what you wants
An’ draas zome zider een the biggest cup.
Oh ! the disty rawd to Moreton maakes ‘e dry,
An you’m vury glad to get there by an’ bye,
Vor you knawth that though you’m zweating’,
There’ll be coolth an’ zomething wettin’,
‘Cuz the disty rawd to Moreton maakes ‘e dry.
Can you do better? Add a poem as a comment below!