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Language
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The language spoken by Londoners is as varied as the ethnic and cultural backgrounds from which they come. You will hear many different accents in the centre especially amongst bar and restaurant staff. Of the 'London English' there is a range from 'BBC-English' (the kind spoken with perfect clarity which used to be favoured by the BBC) to the broad Cockney dialect of the East End. Made famous by the likes of Henry Higgins, or rather 'Enery 'Iggins in My Fair Lady, Cockney cuts out the 'h' at the start of words, and the final 'g' from words which end -ing. Statements of fact are also often confirmed by the use of the term 'innit?' (isn't it?). The most famous aspect of the Cockney language is rhyming slang, an insiders vocabulary which was developed among street traders for clandestine communication, for example telephone becomes 'dog and bone', and may be abbreviated just to 'dog'! Below are a few examples. You may hear the occasional word in a locals' pub or shouted out at street markets. In the latter case it may well be tongue-in-cheek - a touch of local colour put on specially for British tourists as much as foreign visitors. Don't worry if you don't get it. Most Londoners will be equally baffled! If you want to delve more deeply, however, you'll find whole books and even mini-dictionaries devoted to the language of Cockney rhyming slang.
| Common Cockney rhyming slang | ||
| apples and pears | stairs | |
| barnet (fair) | hair | |
| boat (race) | face | |
| daisy roots | boots | |
| dog and bone | telephone | |
| (h)'alf inch | pinch, steal | |
| 'ampstead 'eef | teeth | |
| have a butcher's (hook) | to have a look | |
| jam jar | car | |
| loaf (of bread) | head | |
| mince pies | eyes | |
| my old china (plate) | mate, friend | |
| plates (of meat) | feet | |
| porky (pie) | lie | |
| rabbit (and pork) | talk, chatter- usually meaningless | |
| rubadubdub | public house | |
| tea leaf | thief | |
| tit fer (tat) | hat | |
| trouble (and strife)/Duchess (of Fife) | wife | |
| two an' eight | state/mood | |
| whistle (and flute) | suit | |
| Other common colloquialisms to be heard in London | ||
| Awright mate? | How are you? | |
| boozer | pub (or person who drinks heavily) | |
| bobby, copper, the (old) Bill | policeman | |
| bovver | trouble, fighting | |
| chippy | fish and chip shop | |
| a face | a well-known person | |
| geezer | man, person | |
| guv | boss | |
| fag | cigarette | |
| innit | isn't it (at end of sentence and not meant as a question) | |
| leave it out! | stop it | |
| scarper | to run away | |
| the smoke | London | |
| the sticks | the provinces (anywhere outside London) | |
| straight up | honest | |
| sussed out | found out | |
| wotcher mate | another familiar term of greeting | |
| would you adam and eve it? | Would you believe it? |
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