Ulster English


Ulster English is a major variety of English spoken in most of the Irish province of Ulster and throughout Northern Ireland. The dialect has been influenced by the Ulster Irish and Scots languages, the latter of which was brought over by Scottish settlers during the Plantation of Ulster and subsequent settlements throughout the 17th and 18th centuries.
The two major divisions of Ulster English are Mid-Ulster English, the most widespread variety, and Ulster Scots English, spoken in much of northern County Antrim along a continuum with the Scots language. Southern Ulster English is a transitional dialect between Mid-Ulster English and Southern Irish English.

Phonology

In general, Ulster English speakers' declarative sentences end with a rise in pitch, which is often heard by speakers of non-Ulster English as a question-like intonation pattern.
The following phonetics are represented using the International Phonetic Alphabet.

Vowels

In the following chart, "UE" refers to Ulster English, which includes Mid-Ulster English, as well as Ulster Scots. "SSIE" here refers to a mainstream, supraregional southern Irish English, used in the chart for the sake of comparison.
Other, less overarching features of some Ulster varieties include:
The morphology and syntax of Irish is quite different from that of English, and it has influenced both Northern and Southern Hiberno-English to some degree.
Irish has separate forms for the second person singular and the second person plural,. Ulster English mirrors Irish in that the singular "you" is distinguished from the plural "you". This is normally done by using the words yous, yousuns or yis. For example:
Irish lacks words that directly translate as "yes" or "no", and instead repeats the verb in a question to answer. As such, Northern and Southern Hiberno-English use "yes" and "no" less frequently than other English dialects. For example:
This is not necessarily true in Ulster English where "Aye" for yes and "Naw" for no are used, probably a Scottish influence.
The absence of the verb "have" in Irish has influenced some grammar. The concept of "have" is expressed in Irish by the construction ag to create agam. Hence, Ulster English speakers sometimes use the verb "have" followed by "with me/on me". For example:
Much non-standard vocabulary found in Ulster English and many meanings of Standard English words peculiar to the dialect come from Scots and Irish. Some examples are shown in the table below. Many of these are also used in Southern Hiberno-English, especially in the northern half of the island.
Ulster EnglishStandard EnglishTypeNotes
,, annoyance, regret, etc.interjectionPronounced or. Usually used to replace "ah!" and "oh!". Ach is Irish for "but", and can be used in the same context. Och is Irish and Scottish Gaelic for "alas", and again can be used in the same context. Cf. German, Dutch, Frisian ach and English agh, German and Dutch have both ach and och.
, oldadjectivePronounced. From auld, an archaic form of old that is still used in Scots and Northern English dialects.
yesadverbUsed throughout northern Ireland, Scotland and northern England.
General Scots and dialect/archaic English, first attested 1575.
bakemouthnounA different pronunciation and extended meaning of beak. Dutch bek or bakkes are used as rude words for mouth, too.
to break/ruin/destroy,
a mess
verb
noun
Used throughout Ireland; origin unknown.
binecigarettenounPossibly from Woodbine.
bladegirlnounMainly used in Tyrone with different meanings depending on usage, but always refers to a female. "Look at thon blade" – "Look at that girl"; "Our blade" – "My sister/cousin"
to retch/vomit,
vomit
verb
noun
From Scots bowk.
wetland/toiletnounFrom Irish and Scottish Gaelic bogach meaning "wetland".
disgusting, ugly or otherwise generally unappealing.adjectiveProbably derived from bog
a narrow road/lane/tracknounFrom Irish bóithrín meaning "small road".
bout ye?how are you?greetingFrom the longer version "What about ye?", which is also used.
bruunemployment benefitsnounPronounced. Shortened from welfare bureau.
cat-melodeonawfuladjectiveProbably a combination of cat and melodeon, referencing the sound of a screeching cat and badly-played melodeon tunes.
The second part is pronounced.
coldadjectivePronounced. From Scots cauld meaning "cold".
carlin'old womannounFrom Norse kerling meaning "woman".
quarrelsome/irritableadjectiveFrom Scots.
claggerdcovered with something adhesive adjectiveFrom Scots claggert meaning "besmeared".
cowpto tip over/to fall oververbFrom Scots.
crack, craicbanter/fun/gossip/news
nounCrack is originally a Scots/Northern English word meaning something like "news", "gossip" or "fun". Originally spelt crack but the Gaelicized spelling craic started in the 1960s and is now common.
, a term of endearment
nounFrom the Hiberno-English pronunciation of creature where ea is realised and -ture as archaic rather than the standard affricate.
culchiefarmer/rural dwellernounOrigin uncertain—either from Irish coillte meaning "woods"; from Irish cúl a' tí meaning "back of the house" ; or from the -culture in "agriculture".
walknoun/verbFrom Scots or Northern English.
dead-onokay/no probleminterjection
adjective
Origin uncertain.
drawk,
drawky
to soak/drench,
wet/showery
verb
adjective
From Irish droch-aimsir meaning "bad weather" or "wet weather" or the less likely Scots draik/drawk.
idiotnounFrom the Hiberno-English and Scottish English pronunciation of idiot. Popularised in England to some extent by Terry Wogan.
a mild form of fuckinterjectionGained popularity following its frequent use in the 1990s comedy TV series Father Ted, and is more commonly found in Hiberno-English.
mannounFrom English fellow; ultimately from Norse felagi.
fidget/waste timeverbVia Scots fouter from Old French foutre.Perhaps from Irish fútar.
fernenst/forninst/fornenstin front of/facing/against/opposite/besideadjectiveFrom Scots or Northern English.
founder,
foundered
cold,
to be cold
noun
adjective
From Scots foundert/foondert/fundert which can mean " chilled".
geg, geggin'joke, jokingnoun/verbFrom English gag.
glenvalleynounFrom Irish gleann.
, mouthnounFrom Irish gob, which can mean "mouth".
grubfood-
gutties, guddiesrunning shoesnounFrom Scots, in which it is used to mean anything made of rubber. Note also the phrase "Give her the guttie" meaning "Step on it ".
hai, heyan exclamation to call attention or to express pleasure, surprise, bewilderment, etc.exlamationPopularised by Irish TV show Hardy Bucks
halliona good-for-nothingnounFrom Scots hallion meaning "rascal".
hespa scolding old womannounPerhaps from Irish easpan. Cf. Scots hesper: a hard thing to do; a difficult person to get on with.
to search for/to forage
verbFrom Scots howk.
partynounOrigin unknown; perhaps a variant of Irish céilí.
houlholdverbPronounced. From Scots/Northern English.
japto splatter; to splash; emit tiny 'sparks' of hot fatverbFrom Scots jaup.
jouk, juketo dodge/to goverbFrom Scots jouk meaning "to dodge".
,
,
to lament/to wail,
lamenting/wailing,
shrill
verb
noun
adjective
From Irish caoin meaning "lament". Keening was a traditional practice done by woman at Irish funerals.
lock'aan unspecified amount
determinerFrom Irish loca meaning "a pile of" or "a wad of", or simply an extended meaning of "lock" as in "a lock of hair".
loch, loughlake/sea inletnounPronounced. From Irish loch.
earnounFrom Norse. Originally used to mean "an appendage".
Used throughout Ireland.
, nonsensenounProbably from Irish.
munyagreat/lovely/attractiveadjectiveOrigin unknown.
armpit/under-armnounFrom Scots. Dutch oksel = armpit
ice-creamnounFrom Scots poke meaning "bag" or "pouch".
potcheenhooch/bootleg alcoholnounFrom Irish poitín.
quare, kwervery/considerable
adjective
adverb
A different pronunciation and extended meaning of "queer".
Used throughout Ireland.

Furthermore, speakers of the dialect conjugate many verbs according to how they are formed in the most vernacular forms of Ulster Scots, e.g. driv instead of drove and driven as the past tense of drive, etc.. Verbal syncretism is extremely widespread, as is the Northern subject rule.

Mid-Ulster English

The speech in southern and western County Donegal, southern County Tyrone, southern County Londonderry, northern County Fermanagh, north County Armagh, southwestern County Antrim and most of County Down form a geographical band across the province from east to west. On the whole, these areas have much more in common with the Derry accent in the west than inner-city Belfast in the east. This accent is often claimed as being the "standard" Northern Irish dialect as it is the most widely used. Parts of the north of County Monaghan would roughly fall into this category, but only to a certain extent. Bundoran, a town at the southern extremity of County Donegal, also has quite a western Ireland accent, as do parts of the south-west extremity of County Fermanagh.

Belfast and surroundings

The broad, working-class Belfast dialect is not limited to the city itself but also takes in neighbouring urban areas in the local vicinity, as well as towns whose inhabitants originally came from Belfast. It is generally perceived as being associated with economically disadvantaged areas, and with youth culture. This however is not the dialect used in the media. Features of the accent include several vowel shifts, including one from to before or after velars. Nowadays, this shift largely only happens before, so pack and peck are homophones as.
The Belfast dialect is now becoming more frequently heard in towns and villages whose inhabitants would have traditionally spoken with a distinctively rural accent. Examples of such areas are Moira, Ballyclare, Dromore and Ballynahinch. It could be said that many young people in these areas prefer to use the more cosmopolitan city accent, as opposed to the local variant that their parents or people in other areas would use.
Other phonological features include the following:
Some of the vocabulary used among young people in Ulster, such as the word "spide", is of Belfast origin.

Londonderry and surroundings

The accent of Derry City, which is also heard in northeastern County Donegal, and northern and western County Tyrone. There is a higher incidence of palatalisation after and its voiced equivalent , perhaps through influence from Southern Hiberno-English. However, the most noticeable difference is perhaps the intonation, which is unique to the Londonderry, Letterkenny and Strabane area. The accent of the Finn Valley and especially The Laggan district, both in East Donegal, together with the accent of neighbouring West Tyrone and the accent of the westernmost parts of County Londonderry, are also quite Scottish sounding. A variety of Ulster Scots is spoken in these areas. This West Ulster variety of Ulster Scots is considered to be quite similar to the Scots spoken in Ayrshire in south-west Scotland.

Ulster Scots English

This region is heavily influenced by the historic presence of Scots and covers areas such as northern and eastern County Antrim, the Ards Peninsula in County Down, The Laggan district in County Donegal and northeastern County Londonderry. The strong Scots influence is noticeable in those districts and Scots pronunciations are often heard. People from here are often mistaken by outsiders as Scottish. This area includes the Glens of Antrim, where the last native Irish speakers of a dialect native to what is now Northern Ireland were to be found. It has been stated that, in the written form, Gaelic of this area continued to use standardised Irish forms, while the spoken dialect continued to use the Scottish variant, and was in effect not different from the Scots Gaelic of Argyll and Galloway.
In the 1830s, Ordnance Survey memoirs came to the following conclusion about the dialect of the inhabitants of Carnmoney, east Antrim: "Their accent is peculiarly, and among old people disagreeably, strong and broad." The BBC conducted a sociolinguistic survey of Ulster Scots grammar. East Donegal also has a strong Ulster Scots dialect.

South Ulster English

South Armagh, south Monaghan, south Fermanagh, south Donegal, north Leitrim, and north Cavan natives speak their own distinct variety of English. Areas such as southern and western County Armagh, central and southern County Monaghan, northern County Cavan and the southern 'strip' of County Fermanagh are the hinterland of the larger Mid-Ulster dialect. The accent gradually shifts from village to village, forming part of the dialect continuum between areas to the North and Midlands. This accent is also used in north County Louth and in part of the northern 'strip' of County Leitrim.There are areas that show a mixture of accents with Ulster-English and Hiberno-English.
These areas fall along the east coastline. South Ulster English's phonology is markedly different from Ulster Scots and majority Ulster English in several aspects, including preservation of dichotomous pattern of phonemic vowel length seen in Middle English. Another feature of South Ulster English is the drop in pitch on stressed syllables. A prominent phonetic feature of South Ulster is the realisation of /t/ as a fricative with identical characteristics of the stop, i.e. an apico-alveolar fricative in weak positions.