daniel
I agree with craig to a degree but it depends where abouts in northants you are, for example over towards daventry the accent begins to sound a bit more brummie, around brixworth and pitsford more leicester (words like last instead of larst) and the ares of ashton and hanslope the accent starts to sound more london and the south east.
Edith
We dont say 'coup'.
TL
I am writing a Fictional Story about Corby that involves two children. I was wondering if you could give me some of the "Corby slang" so I could make my characters sound like they are from Corby? I am from the USA by the way. My email is kitty17055@aol.comThanks!!
Carl
corby is wkd mate the accent here is dodgy man its got a wee bit of scottish in it. still i think it is one bad boi accent so dont diss
Craig
I was born in Northampton and I get extremely offended if people say I have a 'Midlands' accent. I would describe the Northants accent as a cross between East Anglian and the South East. I definitely do not talk like someone from the East Midlands (Leicester, Nottingham or Derby) or the West Midlands. The emphasis goes on words like bar, 'baaahr' car 'caaahr' etc etc... No doubt the accent has been influenced by Estuary English. We are closer to London than we are the East Midlands 'capital' Nottingham
Phil Wright
I grew up in Northampton and therefore had (still have - hopefully!) a Northampton accent. It's a great accent and one to be proud of. When I lived 'up North' in the '80's (Scunthorpe to be precise) for a couple of years they thought I was a cockney. I couldn't understand a word they were saying, and vice-versa. Fortunately I wasn't there long enough to pick-up that awful northern accent!! The Northampton accent - probably like the Carlsberg lager that was once brewed there (not sure if it still is) - possibly the best in the world?!
louise
im from northampton but moved up north everyone used to say that they liked my accent but because im young im gettin an hull or how they say it 'ull' accent they would say path and bath but i say parth and barth pronouncing it path is like a different word to me. also they say croggie instead of backie, twagin instead of wagin, breadcake instead of roll and the funniest sandshoes instead of plimsels. i try to keep my northampton acccent because i dont want an hull accent lol
Dan
I'll g'yer it - I'll give you it.I'll bedder be orrrf - I'll better be off.Just some of the pronunciations ive heard in the northampton accent but it seems to be being watered down and seems to be sounding more south east with exceptions to 'cup' which northamptonians still say as its spelt. funny thing though 'orrrf' for off is the same in east london almost but there its 'awf'
carmel cooper
I think corby is a good place i lived there for 12yrs i grew up there u should respect it.
Tom
I live in Northampton, and whenever I go to London, people think I'm a cross between a brummy, a person from Norfolk and a cockney, why is it that our accent is so varied?
daniel
i live near towcester in south northamptonshire which is only ten miles south of the town itself but even there is a bit of a cross over in the way people speak but only from the people that have lived there a long time. 'town' is still pronunced 'tayn' and 'ay up' is a common greeting but the oxfordshire influence shows with the 'r' letter lengthened. ie norrthaaamptonshirrrrrre.Theproper northampton accent though is unique and quite unlike any other part of england.
Rachel from Northampton town centre
I travel into the midlands every day for college, and i can safely say that YES, northamptonians do have a destinctive accent. Having lived in the town centre all my life the pronounciation of words such as "grass" as [grarse] and "glass" [glarse], generally a more upper class pronounciation is prominent. Im studing english language at a level so these things interest me. Certain abbreviations are used like "ent" and "won'" which are common across the country are also in Northampton now, but this could be down to the mass communication. I know i have an accent as i hear myself compared to my college friends every day - but i love my accents and lets pray the northampton accent doesnt die out!!!
Jan Collins
My family and other Northants rural families use a word "dillin", presumably derived from "little one" to mean smallest or runt of a litter e.g. of piglets, kittens etc. Do you know of this word? Are you aware of it appearing in written form, and if so, how is it spelt?
Teresa from Rushden
The northamptonshire old accent is gradually fading for example "shalada goo" in other words "I will have to go" and "lets tek dug for walk" - "Lets take the dog for a walk". "Enna gunna" - "I am not going to". However children still use things like "ent and shent". If you listen to an older person the Northamptonshire accent is very loud and clear. I do think we have an accent but perhaps not as strong as it used to be.
Harmony
Yes England is known for the tonns of accents but the way we speak or rather txt we shortern it so therefor we tend to speak it. I myself av a little accent from where i grew up but since i moved away it is not as strong except when i visit family its like it never left me!
Its good to sound different its wot makes us us.
steven coleman
i fink most ov the towns in northants hav there own accent am from corby and have moved arnd most of the twns and all av a thing about my accent corby has a very different accent 2 all of northamtonshires towns and fink tht corby was the 1 2 give all ov thm tht accent and slang words.but notice corby has a lot of scotish and is name little scotland but do aprove on your comment
Ruth Thomas
I think Northampton has a strong accent: town = "tane"
boy = by
line = loin
go = goo I respect Colin's opinion since he is brilliant about anything to do with Northampton but I definitely think it is more related to Norfolk that the Midlands
Jayne
Born in Corby and still live there. I don't have a Scotch accent. I have no scotch blood in me. 100% English. The younger people in Corby (under 40) tend to have a more Leics boarder accent. I don't have baths I have barths. I don't say "me duck" or "hen" and you don't hear that in Corby so much unless it's the oldre people.
Keith, Teeton
Northamptonians have a strong accent. If my nan (89 years old) was to say I shall have to go to town in my brown trousers, she would say: "I shalada be orf daen taen in my brayn traesers me duck". Where else in the UK would you hear that...!
Mark
How anyone can say that Corby is reperesentitive of a Northants accent just because it's different from the rest of the county "ent shaarp" in my book. For that reason, you discount Corby because it's a accent was paracuted in by all the migrant Scots in the 30's. Unique yes, Northants, no. And I'm not knocking Corby because I like the place. Apparently Daventry has a bit of a brummie twang for the same reason that loads of West Midlanders moved there in the "new town" days. Wellingborough and Northampton's accents have been diluted by the "overspill" and Nick in Rushden may say ain't and shaint(?) but we still say ent and shent and I kent and ent gunna change! Artlenock till I die be ol boodies! Apparently, Market Harborough is the dividing line between the shortened vowels of the north as in grass, path, bath and south of the town vowels are extended is extended as in grarss, parth, barth, but I'd agree with everyone about the Northants 3 a's instead of one. My mates at college in B'ham used to delight in asking me to say badge and barge. Baadge and baaarge was the answer! Oowwer!
Dan C
I was born in Northampton, and move to Yorkshire in 1986. The accent there is VERY noticable, but I still retain my Midlands tongue. I now live near Leeds. A fantastic city, and well worth a visit, but the difference in accent does make visitors from the South stand out a bit.
Jade
Grew up here and part of my familly is from Northampton.
I sound as if i come from Oxfordshire, because my mother refused to let me have an accent. My sister on the other hand has an extreemely thick accent.
However This town is not a "new" town and i think it's very incorrect to call it so. Especially since Parliament was at one point in Northampton. It's a shame the accent is changing, it has been extreemely unique to these parts for a long time. However in Kingsthorpe i know it is one place where the accent will never fade, especially since some of the famillies there have been living there for over a century.
Ian
Mr Eaton the linguistic expert (?) seems to only be aware of Northampton in his appraisal of Northamptonshire accents. The town of Corby close by has one of the most unique accents in the land, with its close proud ties to Scotland. The accent here would offer a great study choice for this nationwide investigation. It is also interesting to see how neighbouring villages have had an impact from the Corby dialect. There are also strong differences in Kettering, Desborough, Oundle and Market Harborough.
nic
it seems to really depends on where you live i think. and even more importantly your social group/school and so on. i can certainly often tell a teenagers school simply from their accent.
Liane
Born & grew up in Northampton town. Didn't think I had an accent until I moved to Windsor and suddenly became aware I was talking through my nose a lot and Flattening the 'A' in most words, ie. Park, Mark, Bar, and people couldn't understand me. In turn when I moved back I got a job in Thrapston and was having trouble understanding my colleagues who were local to that area.
Katie
I have lived in northampton shire for most of my life and think that most people here have an accent but it is very subtle when compared to others especially northern accents. I have a friend from norwich who tells me off every time i say "I'm goin' town" because it is not correct english but i'm convinced it's a county thing!
Peter
Nuthampton born and bred I have to agree that the accent started to change with the expansion in the county and the influx all them 'furreners' moving up from London. I am quite passionate about the accent myself and many of my friends from farther afield have learnt 'ent, kent, shent, woont & enna gunna'.
I personally think that the true accent can be found within the triangle of Irthlingborough, Rushden and Raunds and find it very much in evidence out there.
Anyone who has never come across the 'air Aida' cartoons should try to find them, they are fascinating and really take some looking at before 'avin a goo. The Chron also ran some one liners back in the early eighties called 'The Things People Say'. I wonder where Ali's from and how annoying his accent is?
Ali
The Corby accent is perhaps unique in the UK as it is so localised and so very different to those of its neighbours. Its blend of Scots, Irish and English accents and slang is a testament to the history of inward migration to the town. It seems strange that your accent 'expert' seems to have ignored Corby, which, I would have thought, would have been the first place any liguistic academic would look when examining accents in Northants. In the context of the Corby accent, I do agree with him that the glottal stop and 'Estuary English' will become more prevalent in Corby with the new influx of migrants to the town from London and the south-east. I am not from Northants, but if I were, then I would choose the Corby accent. The people of the rest of Northamptonshire seem to have no idea how awful their accents sound or just how annoying all those "me ducks" really are.
drobin2643
I was born in Norhtampton back in 1955. I joined the Army in 1971 and at that time people could not place where i came from. I have more of a german accent now as i have been here for the last 28 years.
Georgina Dunkley
I was born and bred in Northampton, but have been living in the North East for the past five years. I always thought I never really had an accent, particularly compared to the geordies with their famous dialect, but people always say I sound posh, and I'm really proud of the way I speak. I think it creates a good first impression!
robbie, Lydd
Corby has one of the most unique and distinctive accents in the Country (whether you like the sound of it or not) which makes it authentic in a way than rediscovered 'old northants' (me booties). There cannot be many towns which stand out quite so much from their immediate surroundings. Although my accent has moved on (a bit RP these days) i still find odd words surfacing from time to time. I am not sure that the Northants accent is as unique and judge that, like your expert says, it fits into a broader East Mids pattern. I think there should be more study of the Corby accent 'island', it provides an excellent model of how these things develop. Interesting to see how the recent influx from the Western Balkans will effect it. I do not think its is a variety of scottish anymore, as other postings on this page have suggested.
Ian Anderson
the older residents of northampton still have the full on accent. they seem to pronounce t's as d's. wha' ch'aadder? = what are you after.also sch'ladder = i shall have to, which is an odd one. go becomes gew which is a bit brummie. a friends mother swears she used to sing a childrens song at primary school to the tune of 'z-cars' which began, "i'm gewing dein tein in a pair o' breign treysers..." anyone else know the song?
Richard
I've lived in Northants all of my life and i have noticed that the letter 'H' gets left off the begining of words,for example, "Where yuh bin, i've bin to the 'ospital or 'ome or in me 'ouse" or you might be talking to someone and say "come over 'ere, instead of "here", I would be interested to know if anyone agrees with me, or am i just a bit "backuds"?
Vicky
I lived in Northampton when i was growing up before moving to Grimsby where everyone thought i spoke posh! I have a hybrid accent now and i still say "caaa paaark", but "Naaaah" has become "Nerr". I definitely notice the accent when i visit my dad, whose girlfriend says "Norfaaampton".
Frank
My roots are from West London, But listening to Northamptonians it is clear to me that the "a" in words are elongated and it would appear that it sounds as though there are 3 "a"'s in words such as "Park" so it becomes Paaark, quite nice just the same
Martin Ryan
I recently moved to Northern Ireland and (as the same as my friends)never really thought of myself as having an accent. Though recently I have noticed my accent, and somebody over here laughed and thought i was putting on a voice when I said say "Gaaarden". Proud of it though.
Shelton
I was born and learned to talk in Croydon (SW London) and i speak very differently from Northamptionians (I live there now).
All people from northants, moreso in the villages, say bers for bus whereas i pronounce it bus with a short "uh" sound. In northants the "u" is always said "er" or "urr". I cannot even imitate the sound and ive been living here for the best part of my life!
also many of the older people here say "m'duck" which is... unusual...
i do say "et" for the word ate, albeit with a very sharp sound. yes, the "caaaaa paaark" is true. words ending in a vowel sound are drawn out like caaa and the word no is pronouced by all children "naaaah" and drawn out. whereas ive always said it "nao" but very quickly.
Paul Graves
I was born and raised in Northampton but have spent time in other parts of the country although I'm back here now. Folks in Norwich, where I lived for a while said I sounded posh, but in London people think my accent is a bit farmer-ish. Also people always rib me about the way I say words like car and park. Apparently we Northamptonians say 'caaaa paaark'
David
I lived in Flore for five years having made the short move from Bedford and found the local accent very distinct. To me it is the crossover accent that links East Anglia with the Midlands. There is a real hint of Cov' or Brummie in there. Regardless of the local phrases such as me duck, any outsider who has tried to pronounce 'Nene' clearly shows themselves as a tourist rather than a local.
THE CORBY LOON
I come fae Corby and I'm not sure what Catherine Davies means about many Corby folk having "Scottish/Liverpool accents"-Liverpool? The majority of Corby folk are of Scots descent and proud of the fact. Wir accent is totally different to a Northamptonshire accent "Here’s tae us, Fa’s like us, Gey few and they’re a’ deid"
denise elliott
well here in Phoenix Arizona, USA, people think my accent is cute, but i do think we are losing it and it is certainly getting watered down, I have been living in the area untill a year ago anf it has changed over the last 30 of them
Gail
I'm not originally from Northampton and often get told I must be from London because of my accent. However the Northampton town accent is very different from the accent of those living in the surrounding villages. Their accents tend to be a lot softer and more yokelly.
Nick
I'm from Rushden, where the ain't, shain't and enna gunna can still be heard in the High Street.
The "air Aida" accent is diminishing with all the newcommers to the town, but you can still hear it.
A lot of the kids in the town speak with "TV accents" i.e. the so called "chav" accent now due to the overwhelming cultural impact of hip hop etc. I suppose that's everywhere these days, but it seems especially prevelant around here.
Craig
In Corby the accent is unique from the rest of the County. It's a mix of scots and irish, which has been watered down into it's own unique accent. People who come to the town have trouble getting their heads round it. Some words like 'bampot' for a daft person, or 'ginger' for fizzy drinks are heard in Corby
Charles Smith
I lived in Northampton for a number of years, from when I was a teenager to my early twenties and I noticed that there was a Northants accent, but people in the town would never admit to having it and I could never understand why. Almost ever area has its own accent and it is something to be proud of as it is part of your comunity. Unfortunatley I have moved from place to place and dont have a specific accent myself.
kelly taylor
IM FROM NORTHAMPTON, NOW LIVING IN NOTTINGHAM.. SOME PEOPLE HERE SAY THAT WHEN I TALK I SOUND POSH, WHILST OTHERS COMPARE MY ACCENT TO A FARMER,AND COUNTRY FOLK. WHICH IS 2 RATHER DIFFERENT COMPARISONS.
catherine davies
Where i come from is Corby in Northants and many people have a scottish/liverpool i think liverpool voice. Its such a cool accent whatever it is
gillian taylor
Born and lived in Northamptonshire all my life. Not aware of a strong accent but others have commented it sounds "rural" and has a definite "burr". Short sentences often end in "then" - such as "Alright then", "Cheerio then" and often with "my duck", but this may be localised to the south of the county, I don't know. People who have lived in our village for all their lives definitely have a distinctive way of speaking which probably sounds very rural to outsiders who have moved into the village.
