Phrases & expressions you only ever hear in Sheffield

[gularscute 10]

in our house, Gowl was the gritty stuff you got in your eyes overnight (Also known as "Sleep", as in "You've got some sleep in your eye" )

 

That's the first time I've ever heard anyone outside of my family use the word 'gowl'! Fantastic. I always thought it was one of the words and phrases that were the sole preserve of me mum.

[friend 10]

People that live in Eckington, call people duck, thats what my cousin calls me.

[Phanerothyme 12]

**** sparra??

 

 

Biggsy

 

****?

....

 

What's Cocksparrer got to do with Sheff?

 

It's east end of Laahndan

 

see sig below

 

Probably not confined to Sheffield, but I do like the expression all the same. The same expression, substituting fauna that are indigenous to the locale, are used all over the place. When I lived in Newfoundland, people used to say "me old trout."

 

 

The Cockney Sparrow is more or less extinct, not that it was a separate species - and in my experience denotes a chirpy, busy kind of person, often a woman - slight and loud, and also a cockney.

 

Calling people "****" is an old thing, and probably dates back to Chaucer as a term for a strutting, crowing young man.

 

Being called "**** Robin" on the other hand alludes to the tragic victim of the eponymous poem, and is something I've only ever heard in the west country.

[frankieO 10]

Hi, Im not from Sheffield nor any of the family, but from the High peak area; i can remember the word Kaylied?? from yrs ago, my dad used to say it when people were drunk, had the one too many, Had forgotten all about that one.

[mrnmrswild 10]

My parents always used to say when i turned on big light turn them bleedin blisha beakons off for god sake lol x But the dee and dar and bloody and bleedin and chuffin are still used in our house hold now lol u can take the girl outta Sheff but you carnt take the Sheff outta the girl

[Ms Macbeth 76]

None of these are Sheffield sayings though.

 

As a Southern Migrant I think there are a few that shocked me when I first moved here.

 

I remember when I started my new job I asked a colleague what shift she was on"9 while 5" was her reply. That expression still doesn't make sense to me.

 

I walked into a sandwhich shop and asked for a "chicken roll with lettuce and cucumber" and the lady looked dumbfounded. "Do you mean a breadcake?" I assumed this was an iced bun or something and said no. This went on for awhile.

 

I will never forgot the bus driver who looked me straight in the eye and said "Thanks Love", only in Sheffield do men refer to each other as love.

 

As a northern migrant who first came to Donny long before I moved here, the 'while' bit threw me too. Imagine Dolly Parton singing 'working 9 while 5' etc. I struggled with the rolls/breadcakes stuff as well. Always rolls in Scotland, if it had 'cake' in the name I expected it to be sweet, iced and with cream or chocolate somewhere.

 

Mardy and nesh are used across South Yorkshire, they're not specific to Sheffield. And even in Scotland we used to say our shoes were 'clarty' or 'clarted' (in muck).

 

But after 40+ years in S.Yorks, I've never heard 'shunkly' - what a brilliant word!

[laineyiow 10]

My parents always used to say when i turned on big light turn them bleedin blisha beakons off for god sake lol x But the dee and dar and bloody and bleedin and chuffin are still used in our house hold now lol u can take the girl outta Sheff but you carnt take the Sheff outta the girl

 

Funnily enough I was born and bred in Sheffield (over 50 years) but have never.used any of those words nor have our household - suppose it.depends in which.part of Sheffield you were raised.

[mrnmrswild 10]

Lived In Gleadless when i was born then was raised up in Darnall then i moved to Beighton when i was 20 with my children then i moved to Arbourthorne with council but my parents were brought up round Bramhall Lane

[lyndyloo 10]

If I was putting too much marge or jam on a slice of bread mam would say don't larup it on.

[monkey104 10]

I call Owlerton, Ollerton!!!

[LastResort 10]

This is brilliant. It's really making me chuckle. Seems "clarty" is a fairly common one, but I must confess I'd never heard of "slakey". The word used in our house to describe summat really filthy was "loppy" - my brothers, sister and I were always shouted at to "wesh them loppy 'ands" before we sat down for our tea.

 

I distinctly remember being told not to "larrup" too much butter, marge etc on my bread and being told not to "gollop it dahn" if I was swigging my drink too fast.

 

Another word I've only ever heard my mum use is "slottened" .... meaning entirely covered in, or saturated with. For example, the sheets or pillowcases were "slottened in blood" when one of us had a heavy nosebleed during the night, or my sister and I were accused of being "slottened in make-up" when we went out clubbing ....... or at least it was called "clubbing" in my sister's 80' hey-day. It was known as "disco-ing" in my time!

[Grappler 12]

Great thread, I know most of these words, what a trip down memory lane lol