Nottingham Local Custom Tips by iwys Top 5 Page for this destination

Nottingham dialect

I like the Nottingham accent, which is halfway between a Brummy (Birmingham) and a Yorkshire accent. But, Nottingham not only has its own accent, it also has its own dialect.

Possibly the best know Nottingham expression is the greeting, "Aye up me duck." You will hear this a lot from older ladies. Also what is known as a bread roll in London, in Nottingham is called a "cob". Sometimes, you will see cobs advertised outside cafes and bakeries.

A lot of the Nottingham dialect expressions date back many centuries to when it was a major trading centre for foreign merchants. "Gizza glegg" meaning let me have a look, comes from the Danish glegg for look, while "jitteh" meaning alleyway, comes from colloquial French. There is also a unique Nottingham word for cat, "mazzi", and sometimes in a pub, you may here an old man say: this beer's like mazzi water! Another popular expression nowadays is, "He is well 'ard" meaning he is tough.