Determiners

One of the most well-known features associated with northern dialects of English in England is the variety of forms taken by the definite article. Twelve forms are recorded in the Survey of English Dialects, not including the (most) standard [ðə], [ðiː] and [ðɪ] forms. The majority of these forms can be described as instances of ‘definite article reduction’, usually represented in writing as <t'>, as in <t'pit>. Nineteenth century sources point to a wide distribution of these forms across northern England; but in contemporary Britain the feature is very much associated with Yorkshire and Lancashire. However, SED does record the following for Northumberland and Durham (Upton et al. 1994: 479-80):

• • [t] in Du before breeches, wick, ground, scruff, neck, heat, other and sun. From this list, only other occurs with [t] in Nb;

  • [ð] appears before other in Nb and Du, and oven in Nb;

  • [ʔ] appears before breeches, table and heat in Du;

  • [tʔ] appears before table in Du.

The geographical labels seem to suggest that the further north the SED fieldworkers went, the fewer instances of DAR occurred (especially when the article precedes a consonant). This distribution seems to match the pattern in the nineteenth century, with the EDD reporting in its entry for the that it is ‘Only heard in the extreme s.-west corner of the county’ of Northumberland. While this entry does not mention County Durham, evidence from citations in other EDD entries suggest some usage here: ‘Clot them stanes into t’cart’ (associated with south Durham). Heslop in Northumberland Words seems certain that the ‘TH, in the’ within ‘Northumberland and that portion of the county of Durham lying on the right bank of the river Tyne from Wylam to Jarrow’ is ‘never shortened to a mere t’’ (1892: vii, xviii), though in ‘the southern part of the county of Durham … in speech a short t’ is used for the’ (ix).

This feature is represented orthographically in RTG with <t’> or <th’>.

(1) I did a cycle up that way t’other day (2019)

(2) I can’t tell the difference between one and tother (2019)

(3) Get down t’pit (2015)

(4) How pet, just purrit in th’oven (2010)

It is difficult to judge whether or not these examples represent ‘actual’ usage in the dialect. Certainly t’other and tother reflect attested pronunciations in North East speech (see DECTE for examples), as does th’oven. However, t’pit is likely being used jocularly.

More

More as a determiner is sometimes presented in such a way in RTG as to indicate forms in -ai- and -e- and -a-. More is discussed further in the section on adverbs.

(1) “Wa had mer cornas than yas” (2016)

(2) Mair free tea here for anyone interested (2012)

(3) My livers pleading “please sir i divnt want nee ma” (2019)

NW records this form widely amongst its citations: ‘“Put mair coals on, the oven’s getten slack”’; ‘“Give ‘or a bit mair ankor”’ (1893: 652 and 1892: 14).

No

As a quantifier (‘there are no books in the house’) no is etymologically a variant of none, with loss of final -n. In NEE, the pronunciation of no as a quantifier often preserves an earlier unrounded vowel, typically [i:] or [e:], resulting in spellings such as <nee>, <nae> or <ney>.

(4) I wad have nee reason to go into town for owt (2014)

(5) Nae wonder I was hooked from that moment on! (2012)

(6) young lad, ney bairns, ney responsibilities, just hobbies (2012)

Nee has a long northern history. For example, it occurs in Cursor Mundi, a poem probably written by a Northumbrian in c. 1300 (‘nee pride o pane’). Neen (none) appears in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales (c.1390): ‘By goddes sale, it sal neen other bee’. The Chaucerian example is from the Reeve’s Tale. It is a line given to Aleyn, a student at Cambridge University who is from North East England.

For no as a response form go here. See also negation.