Lakeland Dialect Society

A bulistang doon ut Tarn Hows

Formed in 1939, the Lakeland Dialect Society came about out of a series of "Merry Neets", entertaining get-togethers at which  town and country folk talk, sing and recite poetry, in the dialect of the Lakeland region: Cumberland, Westmorland and the Furness district of Lancashire, now all in the modern county of Cumbria in the English Lake District.

The first Lakeland Dialect Society committee met at Tullie House Museum and Art Gallery in Carlisle on June 10, 1939.

Members agreed that the aims of the society would be to preserve and celebrate the ancient speech of the region.

From the outset the Society was dedicated to the academic study of the Cumbrian dialects and to fostering the dialect speech and writing.

The constitution states: The objects of the Society shall be to encourage interest in the writing of Dialect Verse, Prose and Drama; to stimulate the publication of Dialect Literature and the production of Dialect Plays; to study the origins and history of Dialect, Folk-lore, Folk Songs and Local Customs and Traditions. The Society shall endeavour to bring together lovers of dialect so as to develop interest therein. If possible it shall make tape recordings of the various dialects within the area. These remain our aims today.

Despite difficulties in the years following 1939, the Society got established and flourished. Membership is currently around 250. Members live not only in the Lake District but also throughout the UK, and the rest of the World—all united in a love of “oor mak o’ twoak”!

The Society meets at roughly quarterly intervals, on Saturday afternoons at venues throughout Cumbria. Prospective members or casual visitors are always warmly welcomed, and a good “crack” is always guaranteed! A church service conducted in dialect is held biennially and there are occasional public performances. A Journal, published annually, is free to all members.

To join, contact a member of the society at the email address below, or telephone.

I'll tell the'

We're nut stuck up er prood i't mooth

Fer t'main on us was bred in't fells,

We're nobbut wiet, yammly, fwoak

Off t'seeam switch as yersels.

An' like yersels, we clag tight tull

0't bits o'country ways an' looar;

We like ta hod a crack aboot

T'auld dale-fwoak' at hev gone afooar.

Mi fadder, (an' nea doot he's reet),

Sez t's main o't' fell fwoak er o't seame

They "Hawk tagidder" on a drag,

Till Foxy's brush is hung on t'beame.

He sez 'at t' interest (like t' auld Fox)

Is rousan 'noo fer thee an' me,

Soo join, yersels, an git yer kin

Ta join oor own Society.

From The Works of Lance Porter - Lakeland Treasury

Compiled and edited by Ted Relph and Published by the Society