In dealing with popular customs I have selected those that are less well known, and others concerning which I have myself collected information, and have omitted many which are readily accessible in works such as Hone’s Year Book and Chambers’s Book of Days.
I may mention that in collecting my material from very many miscellaneous sources, printed and oral, I have not felt justified in normalizing the orthography of the dialect quotations, especially where these have been taken from glossaries. This accounts for a certain amount of inconsistency in the orthography.
At the end of the table of contents will be found a select list of the works which I have found most useful in writing this book.
ELIZABETH MARY WRIGHT.
Oxford,
July, 1913.
CONTENTS
| PAGES | |
| INTRODUCTION | [xix] |
| [CHAPTER I] | |
| DIALECT SPEAKERS | |
| Decay of pure Dialect | [1] |
| Stories concerning Yorkshire people, &c. | [2-5] |
| [CHAPTER II] | |
| RICH AND EXPRESSIVE VOCABULARY | |
| Variety of terms for expressing one and the same idea; namesfor a fool, the smallest pig of a litter, the woodpecker,the foxglove, a stream of water, a girl | [6-9] |
| Forceful and descriptive dialect words difficult to translateinto standard English | [10-18] |
| Appropriate compound words | [18-19] |
| Fine shades of meaning expressed by slightly different words | [19-20] |
| [CHAPTER III] | |
| SPECIMENS OF DIALECT | |
| Specimens of dialect sentences | [21-24] |
| Misunderstandings between dialect speakers and speakers ofstandard English | [25] |
| An old Dame’s School | [26-27] |
| [CHAPTER IV] | |
| CORRUPTIONS AND POPULAR ETYMOLOGIES | |
| Some apparent corruptions shown to be old forms | [28] |
| Corruptions of Latin and French phrases such as: nolensvolens, Pater noster, rendezvous, &c. | [29-30] |
| Standard English words used in the wrong places, e.g.sentiment for sediment, profligate for prolific, &c. | [30-31] |
| Misplaced suffixes | [32] |
| Popular etymologies | [33-35] |
| Corruptions of standard English words | [35] |
| [CHAPTER V] | |
| ARCHAIC LITERARY WORDS IN THE DIALECTS | |
| Old words from early literature surviving in the dialects | [36-37] |
| Substantives | [37-43] |
| Adjectives | [43-46] |
| Verbs | [47-53] |
| Archaic words from the Authorized Version of the Bible | [53-54] |
| Archaic words from Shakespeare | [54-61] |
| Dialect words in Johnson’s Dictionary | [61-67] |
| Dialect words supply meanings to difficult forms in Old andMiddle English literature | [67-71] |
| Old words and forms preserved in surnames | [72-76] |
| [CHAPTER VI] | |
| ARCHAIC MEANINGS AND FORMS IN THE DIALECTS | |
| Old meanings of standard English words surviving in thedialects | [77-84] |
| Historical forms surviving in the dialects | [84-86] |
| Old grammatical distinctions preserved in the dialects | [87-89] |
| Regular forms in the dialects compared with irregularitiesin standard English | [90-91] |
| Doublets, such as: challenge beside the dialect formcallenge, &c. | [92-94] |
| Variants due to Scandinavian borrowings | [94-95] |
| [CHAPTER VII] | |
| FOREIGN LOAN-WORDS | |
| French loan-words | [96-102] |
| Scandinavian loan-words | [103-104] |
| Celtic loan-words | [105-106] |
| Latin, and Dutch loan-words | [107-108] |
| Poetical and learned words in the dialects | [108-109] |
| [CHAPTER VIII] | |
| LITERARY WORDS WITH DIALECT MEANINGS | |
| Quotations illustrating the meanings given in the dialects toliterary words | [110-118] |
| Dialect words alike in form to existing literary words, butdifferent in meaning and origin, e.g. damsel, a damson,&c. | [118-120] |
| [CHAPTER IX] | |
| ALLITERATIVE AND RHYMING PHRASES AND COMPOUNDS | |
| Alliterative compounds | [121-122] |
| Phrases containing two synonymous verbs | [122-123] |
| Rhyming compounds and phrases | [124-125] |
| [CHAPTER X] | |
| PHONOLOGY AND GRAMMAR | |
| The classification of dialects | [126-127] |
| Characteristics of the various dialect groups | [127-128] |
| Phonology of the dialects compared with standard English | [129] |
| Vowels | [130-132] |
| Consonants | [132-140] |
| The Articles | [140-141] |
| Nouns | [141-144] |
| Adjectives and numerals | [145-146] |
| Pronouns | [146-152] |
| Verbs | [153-156] |
| Negation | [156-157] |
| [CHAPTER XI] | |
| POPULAR PHRASES AND SAYINGS | |
| Humorous similes | [158-160] |
| Metaphorical and figurative phrases and sayings | [160-170] |
| Proverbial sayings | [171-174] |
| Phrases referring to death | [175-176] |
| Answers to inquisitive questioners | [176] |
| Dialect forms of greeting | [176-177] |
| Contemptuous and derisive expressions | [178] |
| Local similes | [178-179] |
| Local nicknames and rhymes | [180] |
| Local sayings and jibes | [181-182] |
| Historical allusions | [183-189] |
| Ethnological evidence afforded by the dialects | [190] |
| [CHAPTER XII] | |
| SUPERNATURAL BEINGS | |
| Belief in ghosts | [191-192] |
| Boggarts | [192-195] |
| The Gabriel Ratchets | [195] |
| The Devil and his Dandy-dogs; Tregeagle | [196] |
| The Seven Whistlers | [197] |
| Imaginary monsters referred to in threats to children | [198-199] |
| Mine-goblins | [199-200] |
| Will o’ the wisp | [200-201] |
| Hob | [201-202] |
| The Devil in dialect lore | [203-206] |
| Fairies and pixies | [207-210] |
| Witches, and white witches | [211-213] |
| [CHAPTER XIII] | |
| SUPERSTITIONS | |
| Death-portents | [214-217] |
| Superstitions concerning magpies, cats, robins, &c. | [217-219] |
| ‘Unlucky’ things | [220-223] |
| Signs foretelling gifts and guests | [223-224] |
| ‘Lucky’ things | [224-226] |
| Miscellaneous legends and popular beliefs | [227-229] |
| [CHAPTER XIV] | |
| CHARMS AND MEDICAL LORE | |
| Devices for warding off witches | [230-235] |
| Superstitious remedies | [236] |
| Dialect phrases describing states of health | [237-238] |
| Medicines for general debility | [239] |
| Remedies for various diseases and other afflictions | [240-254] |
| The seventh son, and the water-caster | [254-255] |
| Charms against cattle-diseases | [255-256] |
| [CHAPTER XV] | |
| DIVINATION | |
| Love-divination by means of plants, apple-pips, &c. | [257-260] |
| The hempseed charm | [261] |
| The dumb-cake charm | [262] |
| Wedding-cake under the pillow | [263] |
| St. Mark’s Eve customs, and divination by Bible and key | [264] |
| [CHAPTER XVI] | |
| BIRTH, MARRIAGE, AND DEATH CUSTOMS | |
| New meanings grafted on to old practices | [265] |
| Superstitious customs at the birth of a child | [266-267] |
| The birth-feast, and the special dainties prepared for it | [267-268] |
| The christening | [269] |
| Concerning wedding customs | [269-270] |
| Banns of marriage | [271] |
| ‘Lucky’ and ‘unlucky’ days for a wedding | [272] |
| ‘Unlucky’ omens on the way to church | [273] |
| Ceremonies after the wedding | [274] |
| Wedding sports | [275] |
| Riding the stang | [276] |
| Customs and superstitions concerning death | [277-278] |
| Funeral customs | [279-281] |
| Telling the bees | [281-282] |
| [CHAPTER XVII] | |
| CUSTOMS CONNECTED WITH CERTAIN DAYS AND SEASONS | |
| The New Year | [283-286] |
| Twelfth Day, and Plough Monday | [286-288] |
| Candlemas Day | [289] |
| Shrovetide | [290-291] |
| Sundays in Lent | [291-292] |
| Good Friday | [292-293] |
| Easter | [293-296] |
| May-day | [296-297] |
| Rogation Days | [297-298] |
| Whitsuntide | [298] |
| Rush-bearing | [298-299] |
| Halloween | [299-300] |
| All Souls’ Day, and St. Clement’s Day | [300-301] |
| St. Thomas’ Day | [301-302] |
| Christmas | [302-304] |
| Childermas Day | [304] |
| Feasts and fairs | [305-306] |
| [CHAPTER XVIII] | |
| GAMES | |
| Historical importance of children’s games | [307] |
| Girls’ singing-games | [308] |
| The game of marbles | [309] |
| Children’s rhymes addressed to birds and insects | [310-311] |
| [CHAPTER XIX] | |
| WEATHER LORE AND FARMING TERMS | |
| The weather as a topic for conversation | [312-313] |
| Signs of rain and of fine weather | [314-317] |
| Prophecies concerning seasons and crops | [317-318] |
| Thomas Tusser and his ‘good husbandlie lessons’ | [318-320] |
| Decay of old farming customs | [321] |
| Harvest customs | [322-324] |
| Names for hay-cocks, labourers’ meals, &c. | [325] |
| Calls to animals | [326] |
| Sheep-scoring numerals | [327] |
| [CHAPTER XX] | |
| WEIGHTS AND MEASURES | |
| Varieties of weights and measures in the dialects | [328-331] |
| [CHAPTER XXI] | |
| PLANT NAMES AND NAMES OF ANIMALS | |
| Dialect plant names | [332] |
| Biblical names | [333-335] |
| Old English names | [336] |
| Miscellaneous names | [337-339] |
| Personal names for animals | [339-341] |