Posted by Robert Dilley on April 10, 1999 at 02:40:27:
In Reply to: qRe: We English think we speak about 10 different languages all called English posted by Dave Thewlis on April 10, 1999 at 02:19:19:
Reminds me of when I had southern friends from boarding school and college visit our home on the northern fringes of the Lake District in the 50s and early 60s. I frequently had to act as interpreter, the local dialect being not only heavily accented but full of its own vocabulary. It took time to learn that "I'm fair starved" meant the speaker was cold and "Mind thisen in t'lonning -- it's gey clarty" was a warning to take care in the lane as it was very muddy. My daughters, who have been over most of North America, still hold the Lake District dialect as the furthest remove from English of anything purporting to be that language.