The Phonology of the Living Dialect of Neston in Cheshire

Description

A study of the dialect spoken in Neston, Cheshire. An introduction to the town and the collector's informants is followed by six chapters which present a descriptive account of the sounds of the dialect recorded in 1958, describe the development of Middle English sounds in the living dialect (vowels of stressed and unstressed syllables), describe changes in consonantal sounds from the Old and Middle English periods down to 1958, present a tabular summary of Old English, Middle English, Scandinavian and Old French equivalents of stressed vowels in the living dialect, and provide information on accidence (the verbs to be, can, personal pronouns and the Definite Article). A large proportion of the data was collected from local fishermen, and the study includes an appendix detailing the vocabulary of the fishing industry at Parkgate, near Neston. This includes occupational words, recorded phonetically and accompanied by the collector's definitions. Photographs, copied from originals loaned by informants, and line drawings of boats, clothing and nets are included. A second appendix details the vocabulary of the farming industry at Neston. Photographs and line drawings of farm implements, a cart and a plough, are also included. The third appendix provides information on the pronunciation in Neston of place names in the Wirral. The final appendix contains phonetic and orthographic transcriptions of extracts from an audio recording made by the collector in August 1957. Two male Neston speakers are recorded. A Word List is also included.

Metadata

Identifier n41y3w9n
IRN 410262
Class Mark LAVC/SRP/2/226
Level File
Type of Record Archives - ISAD(G)
Peristent Link http://prototype1.library.leeds.ac.uk/n41y3w9n
Collection(s) Leeds Archive of Vernacular Culture
Category Archive
Parent Record Undergraduate Dissertations
Creator(s) Barry, Michael V
Date 1958
Size and Medium 145 bound ms. leaves; 13 b/w photographs.

Related Records