Go to the main Dialect index page
Lists on this page are in the following order (please scroll) and the contents of the page are copyright, 2017, (see foot of page):
- Animals
- Birds
- Fish
- Insects
- Plants and Fruits
- Trees
ANIMALS
- Ask Newt or lizard (also see ‘watter ask’)
- Blin’ Moose Shrew (also see ‘moose’)
- Braun Wild Boar
- Brock Nowadays a badger but originally (also?) an otter
- Branlins Small worms, great for fishing with.
- Bullhead Tadpole (also ‘Powhead’) ‘Pollywog’ is widespread, not Cumbrian. (See in Fish)
- Charlie Fox (also see ‘todd’)
- Con Squirrel (also see ‘skoperil’ and ‘swirrel’). Con is also used for a squirrel’s nest.
- Fou’mart Polecat (also see ‘Pow Cat’)
- Frosk Frog (also see ‘Paddock’)
- Hae Hare
- Hagworm Snake, or more specifically, an adder
- Kit Young pine marten or polecat
- Moose Not a big Canadian deer with huge antlers…… a mouse! (also see “blin’ moose”)
- Mowdiwarp Mole (Old Norse: moldvarpa)
- Paddick/Paddock Frog (also see ‘Frosk’), sometimes also used for toad
- Paddock-rudd/rid Frog spawn
- Paw Heeds Tadpoles (also see ‘Bullhead’ and ‘Powhead’)
- Pow Cat Polecat (also see ‘Fou’mart’) (Also see ‘pow-cat’ in the plants section)
- Powhead Tadpole (See ‘Bullhead’ and ‘Paw Heeds’) ‘Pollywog’ is widespread, not Cumbrian.
- Rabbets Do you want to guess this one? 🙂
- Skoperil Young squirrel (also see: ‘con’ and ‘swirrel’)
- Snevil (shell) Snail (shell)
- Stot A stoat or, very differently, a young ox
- Sweetmart Pine Marten
- Swirrel Squirrel (also see ‘con’ and ‘skoperil’)
- Teadd or Tiad Toad
- Tod Fox (also see ‘Charlie’)
- Watter Ask Newt (also see ‘ask’)
- Wissel or Wuzzel Weasel
- Wo-Whol Forms in which baby hares & rabbits [sic] hide
BIRDS
- Baltute Coot (also see ‘bellcute’)
- Bare Gawps Nestling birds (also see ‘gorb or gorlin’)
- Baum Partridges’ basking and dust-bath location
- Beck Bessy Dipper (also see ‘bessy dooker’ and ‘watter pyet’)
- Bellcute Coot (also see ‘baltute’)
- Bessy Blackcap Reed Bunting
- Bessy Blakelin Yellowhammer (also see ‘yalla yowderin’)
- Bessy Dooker Dipper (also see ‘beck bessy’ and ‘watter pyet’)
- Bitter-bump Bittern
- Blue Dikey Dunnock (see also “dickey’ and “dikey sparra”)
- Chatter Hen Wren
- Chitty Wren
- Corby Carrion Crow (also see ‘daup’)
- Crag Starlin Ring Ouzel (also see ‘ring wuzzle’)
- Cronk The call of a raven when in flight
- Cushat Woodpigeon (also see ‘wooshat’)
- Cuttery Coo The cooing of a pigeon, but also a secret or whispered conversation
- Daup/Dawp/Dowp Carrion Crow (also see ‘corby’)
- Dickadee Common Sandpiper (‘Tringa alpina‘) (also see ‘willey-wicket’)
- Dickey Dunnock (also see ‘blue dikey’ and ‘dikey-sparra’)
- Dikey-Sparra Dunnock (formerly also called a hedge sparrow) (also see ‘blue dikey’)
- Fell-Fo (or -Faw) Fieldfare
- Fell Thrush Mistle Thrush (also see ‘shellcock’ and surprisingly ‘shillapple’)
- Flecky Flocker Chaffinch (also see: ‘scoppy’, ‘shillapple’ and ‘spink’)
- Glead Kite (but I think this name was widespread, not just Cumbria)
- Gorb or Gorlin An unfledged bird (also see ‘bare gawps’)
- Gowk Cuckoo
- Hammer-bleat Snipe
- Heather-bleat Snipe
- Heronsew Heron (also see ‘jenny-lang-neck’)
- Hoolet/Hiulet/Hullet Owlet
- Jammy-lang-neck Heron
- Jenny-lang-neck Heron (also see ‘heronsew’)
- Jenny-red-tail Redstart (“Sylvia phoenicurus“)
- Laverick Lark (but is ‘laverick’ a more widespread name, not just Cumbria?)
- Lingy “The ground lark, from the Alaunda genus of birds.” (also see ‘Moor-tidy’, . ‘Mosscheeper’ and ‘Mosschilper’) – Skylark
- Miller’s Thumb “Willow Wren” (“Sylvia trochilus“) n.b. Willow Warbler (also see ‘Milly Thoom’)
- Milly Thoom “Willow Wren” (“Sylvia trochilus“) n.b. Willow Warbler (also see ‘Millers Thumb’)
- Moor-tidy Described by Ferguson as a ‘ground lark’ so perhaps a meadow pipit, but by . William Dickinson as “the ground lark, from the Alaunda genus of birds” which . would make it a sky lark (see ‘Lingy’)
- Mosscheeper/chilper See ‘Moor-tidy’ plus ‘Lingy’
- Nettle Creeper This is one I want to know. Knowledgeable answers only, please; not wild guesses.
- Peggy White Throat “One of the willow wrens.” Logically a whitethroat or lesser whitethroat.
- Plivver “The plover bird, “Charadrius.” (i.e. the lapwing or peewit, so see ‘Tewit’)
- Pyatt / Piet Magpie (Note: A ‘teally piet’ is a person who is a tell-tale or betrayer)
. A raven in flight. Copyright 2015, Eddie Wren
- Reavven Raven
- Ring Wuzzle Ring Ousel (also see “Crag Starlin”)
- Scoppy Chaffinch (also see ‘flecky flocker’, ‘shillapple’ and ‘spink’)
- Shep / Shepster Starling
- Shellcock Mistle Thrush (also see ‘fell thrush’ and surprisingly ‘shillapple’)
- Shillapple Chaffinch (also see ‘flecky flocker’, ‘scoppy’ and ‘spink’) BUT…
- Shillapple Mistle Thrush (also see ‘fell thrush’ and ‘shellcock’)
- Spink Chaffinch (also see ‘flecky flocker’, ‘scoppy’ and ‘shillapple’)
- Steg Male goose
- Tewit / teufit Peewit (Note: ‘Tewet Tarn’ on Low Rigg is pronounced ‘Teufit Tarn’ by locals) . (Also see ‘plivver’)
- Throstle / throssel Thrush
- Tommaty Taa/Tee “Tom Tit” so a blue tit
- Watter Tee The “water wagtail” – now Grey Wagtail
- Yalla Yowderin Yellowhammer (also see ‘Bessy Blakelin’)
- Watter Pyet Dipper (also see ‘beck bessy’ and ‘bessy dooker’)
- Willey-wicket Sandpiper (also see ‘Dickadee’)
- Wooshat Woodpigeon (also see ‘Cushat’)
FISH
- Bass Perch
- Bull-heed Bullhead (but also see ‘Bullhead’ in the ‘Animals’ section.)
- Brandlings Young salmon parr
- Fleukk Flounder
- Hing A male salmon or trout
- Kipper An ignominious name for an out-of-season salmon
- Kittle The act of tickling a trout
- Looatcher Loach
- Liggy (Boddam) Loach (“Cobitis barbatula“)
- Mennoms Minnows (“Leuciscus phoximus“)
- Paddock Fish Toadfish (a saltwater fish – “Batrachoididac“)
- Pinks Young smelt of salmon (also see ‘sparling’)
- Pricky back Stickleback
- Skelly “Chub”
- Sparling Salmon smelt (also see ‘pinks’)
- Tommy-looatches Loach
- Troot Trout
INSECTS
- Atter (cob) Spider (web) – yes, I know spiders aren’t insects! 🙂
- Attercrop Spider’s web
- Atter-mite Pond Skater
- Beegle Beetle
- Bessy Clocker Black beetle – kill a bessy clocker an’ it’ll rain!
- Brackin Clock Small brown beetle, used as fish bait in June
- Bullstang Dragonfly (A ‘stang’ is dialect for both a sting and a pole. People used to think . these beautiful, harmless creatures could sting, and even kill, bulls!). Also:
- Bullstang Hornet
- Bummle Bumble Bee
- Bustard A type of fly used on a hook, by fishermen, on summer evenings.
- Cleg A gad fly, sting fly or common horsefly
- Deeth Clook The tapping of a death-watch beetle – a bad omen
- Fuzzy-Ganny A hairy caterpillar (or a hairy witch!)
- Jimmy Twitcher Centipede or millipede
- Jinny-Spinner Jimmy-Longlegs (crane fly)
- Kest Swarm (e.g. bees)
- Kiad Sheep louse
- Kurk (Kirk?) Louse Woodlouse
- Mawk Midge Blue-bottle or flesh-fly
- Meg-o-many-feet Centipede (but see a similar name in the Flowers section)
- Pissimire Ant. Also recorded as ‘pishmidder’, pissamoor’, pissimer and pissmudder. . (Also see ‘Pissimire’ in the ‘Flowers’ section)
- Pissimire Bed Ants’ nest
- Sleugh A white grub found in watery places and used as fish bait
- Teadd Spit The same as ‘cuckoo spit’, the froth of a froghopper
- Tom Beagle Cockchaffer / may-bug
- Tom Tayleor “A water insect” – very vague but that is the only description
- Twing “A small, scarlet-coloured insect said… to occasion fatal illness in cattle.”
- Twitch-bell Earwig
- Warble A maggot in a cow’s hide
- Whamp Wasp
- Willy-Wi’t-Wisp Fireflies (“Varra flaysome things“)
- Wireworms Millipedes
PLANTS, FLOWERS & FRUITS
While some flowers’ names strongly appear to be Cumbrian dialect, it is possible that some are simply just the regional, or even national, period names for such. So even though those included here are listed in 19th Century dictionaries of our dialect, I cannot be sure how accurate this aspect is.
- Agreen Ragwort (“Senecio Jacoboea“) (Also see ‘Grundswaith’, ‘Grunsel’,’Muggert’)
- Bird-Een Bird’s Eye – “Bonny bird-een, the bonniest flooer at ivver waz seen.”
- Black Kites Blackberries, Brambles (also see “Bumbli-kite”)
- Bleaberry/Blebbery The Bilberry or Whortleberry(“Voccinium myrtillus“) (from Old Norse blaber)
- Bog onion Flowering fern (“Osmunda Regalis“)
- Buck-Bean Bog Bean – “Buck-bean tea, grand fer tekkin’ fur off yer teeth.“
- Bulls and Cows Lords and Ladies! (Both names coming from the flower’s phallic appearance.)
- Bullace Wild plums
- Bumbli-kite Blackberries, Brambles (also see “Black Kites”)
- Choops Rosehips (also see ‘shoops’)
- Clents Coltsfoot
- Clot Bur Burdock (also see “Cuckelty Burs”)
- Coo Stripplins Cowslip
- Creaanns Cranberries (“Oxycoccus palustris“)
- Cuckelty Burs The seed heads of Burdock (also see “Clot Bur”)
- Cuckoo bread & cheese – The leaves and flowers of Wood Sorrel (“Oxalis Acetosella“)
- Daffy-Dum(0r Down)-Dilly – Daffodil
- Death Come Quickly Herb Robert (“Geranium Robertianum“)
- Dee/Deaa Nettle Dead Nettle (“Lamium album“)
- Deed Tongue Cowbane (“Circuta virosa“)
- Devil-in’t-Bush (I’m working on this one!)
- Dusty Miller “The flower of the Auriculus”
- Easter-Man-Giants Easter Ledges (Bistort) (also see ‘Easter-mun-jiands’ and ‘Wasterledges’)
- Easter-mun-jiands (“Polygonum bistorta“)
- Eldin Butter Burr (“Petasites vulgaris“) Once used as a firelighter, hence ‘eldins’
- Fitch Vetch
- Fiz Bo Puff-ball fungus
- Gale Wild Myrtle
- Grundswaith Ragwort (“Senecio Jacobaea“) (Also see ‘Agreen’, ‘Grunsel’, ‘Muggert’.)
- Grunsel Ragwort (“Senecio Jacobaea“) (Also see ‘Agreen’, ‘Grundswaith’, ‘Muggert’.)
- Gull Corn Marigold (“Chrysanthemum segetum“)
- G’yus-goggs Gooseberries
- Heed-wark Red Campion (literally translated: “head-ache”!)
- Hine-berry Raspberry
- Hip-haws Hawthorn berries
- Horse Knop Knapweed (“Centaurea nigra“)
- Kesh Cow Parsnip or any other “hollow stem”
- Kites Berries
- Knop Flower bud
- Lamb-tails Hazel catkins
- Lockin Gowan Globe Flower (“Trollius Europoeus“) N.B. Marsh Marigold is ‘Oppengowan’.
- March Malice (I’m working on this one!)
- Meg-wi-many-teazz – Creeping Crowfoot/Buttercup (“Ranunculus repens“) (See similar, in Insects)
- Mekkin Yellow Flat [sic] but ‘Flag’ (“Iris pseudacorus“) (also see ‘seag’ and ‘seggin’)
- Mosscrops “The flowers [sic] of Eriophorum vaginatum” (Hare’s Tail Grass)
- Muggert Ragwort (“Senecio Jacoboea“) (Also see ‘Agreen’, ‘Grundswaith’, ‘Grunsel’)
- Mushamer Mushroom or fungus
- Naked Ladies Autumn crocus
- Oppengowan Marsh Marigold (“Caltha palustris“) N.B. Globe Flower is ‘Lockin Gowan’.
- Paddock Peyp Common of Field Horsetail (also see ‘teadd pipe’)
- Paddock Steull A mushroom or toadstool; all non-edible fungi
- Pissimires Dandelion flowers before the ‘clocks’ appear (but also see ‘Pissimire’ in ‘Insects’)
- Pow-cat The stink-horn fungus, “Phallus impudicus.” (Named after the smell of the polecat)
- Ramps Ramsons or Wood Garlic
- Redshanks Common Persicaria
- Resh Rushes
- Rheumatism Plant Angelica
- Robin-run-in’t-dike (I’m working on this one!)
- Seag (“Iris pseudacorus“) (also see ‘mekkin’)
- Seeaves / Seeves Rushes (“Juncaceae“)
- Seggin (“Iris pseudacorus“) (also see ‘mekkin’ and ‘seggin’)
- Shoeless Horse Common Moonwort fern (“Botrychium lunaria“)
- Shoops Rosehips (also see ‘choops’)
- Sleeas Sloes
- Teadd Pipe Common of Field Horsetail (“Equisetum arvense‘) (also see ‘paddock peyp’)
- Vagabond’s Friend Solomon’s Seal (good for facial injuries from fighting)
- Wasterledges Easter Ledges or Bistort (also see ‘Easter-mun-jiands’)
- Watter Kesh “Angelica sylvestris” Wild Angelica
- Watter Thistle “Cnicus palustris” now Cirsium palustre, the marsh or European swamp thistle
- Wattertwitch “Agrostis vulgaris” Bent Grass
- Whin Gorse or Furze
- Yowe-Yorlin (Also Yow-yonuts or Yow-yornel) Earth nuts / pig nuts
- Yur “Corn Spurrey, Spergula arvensis“
TREES & NUTS
- Akkerns Acorns
- Birk Birch
- Boretree / Burtree Elder (‘Bawtree Johnny’ is Elderflower wine)
- Chats Ash seeds
- Cock Drunks The fruits of the Rowan or Mountain Ash
- Dogberry Rowan / Mountain Ash, or alternatively a cherry tree
- Eck/Egg/Heck Berry Bird Cherry (“Prunus padus“)
- Ellar Alder
- Ellar berries Can be either Alder or Elder berries
- Emmal Elm
- Esh (chats) Ash (seeds)
- Eysh Ash
- Leemer Hazlenuts that have ripened and come free from there husks (“broon leemers”)
- Liggers Long branches, partly severed and laid horizontal when laying a dyke (hedgerow)
- Ome Elm
- Rowntree Rowan / Mountain Ash
- Saugh or Saughtree Willow
- Seal-Seugh Willow
- Seel Willow
- Sevein Juniper
- Skybel An oak twig
- Wand “The one-year-old shoots of the willow”
- Wiggin Rowan / Mountain Ash
- Witch Wood Rowan / Mountain Ash
- Yak / Yek Oak
Go to the main ‘Dialect‘ index page
When first published, on 25 January 2017, the initial contents of this Web page were based on an article titled ‘Can you tell a yak from an esh?’, written by Eddie Wren and first published in the Cumbria Life Magazine in April 2003 (page 30). This page has since been significantly expanded.
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This page (along with the rest of this website) is Copyright, 2016-17, of Eddie Wren (writer of novels under the pseudonym of ‘Steve Shearwater’). All rights reserved.