Letter N - 1892 Mid-Antrim Glossary
Author: ‘F.L.’ (William James Knowles)
Date: 1892
Source: Nine lists of local (mid-Antrim) words and sayings, with notes, published in the Ballymena Observer between April and August 1892. See 1892 Ballymena Observer (Mid-Antrim) Word Lists for original articles (USLS/TB/Hist/1800-1899/012).
Comments: This serialised ‘glossary’ was compiled in response to a letter published in the Ballymena Observer, 19 February, 1892, from P W Joyce, whose book, English as we Speak it in Ireland, was in preparation. Dr. Joyce was appealing throughout Ireland for help in amassing a record of Irish Dialect, including words of Scotch origin. The first response from the readers of the Ballymena Observer was a significant glossary of local words by ‘F.L.’ on April 8. This word list began with an appeal for other readers to “add to it and throw light on meanings which they will see are rather obscure to me”. Further word lists introduced by ‘F.L.’ then appeared on April 22; April 29; May 6; May 27; June 17; July 1; and August 18. The identity of F.L. as William James Knowles, MRIA (1832–1927), a distinguished antiquarian from Cullybackey, was confirmed by Joyce when English as we Speak it in Ireland was published in 1910. Numerous entries sourced from this ‘Ballymena Observer’ glossary were also published in the English Dialect Dictionary (1898) and the Scottish National Dictionary (1929–1946). A complete A–Z ‘merged’ glossary has been created from these entries, and appears as the ‘1892 Mid-Antrim Glossary’ in this website.
Doc. ref. no.: USLS/TB/Hist/1800-1899/013-n
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Nag – A wooden ball used in playing a game of shinney.
Neb – the bill of a bird.
Neerbegot – stingy, I think; but I believe it means ne’er begotten, unearthly; as, You neerbegotten devil you.
Neety – Miserly; stingy; as, He is a neety body, very wee in his turn.
Newins – something new; Newins aye comes yinst a year; It’s newins tae see a sicht o’ you.
Niddlin – trifling; as, What are you niddlin aboot ?
Nigherin – neighing, coarse laughter; as, What are you nigherin at ?
Nignoys – playthings.
Nirlin’ – Cold or frosty and drying; as, A dry nirlin’ win’, or very nirlin’ weather.
Nirls – a disease with little pimply eruptions that children are subject to.
Nitterin’ – constantly grumbling or muttering complaints.
Noddle – the head; as, A’ll gie you on the noddle; that is, I’ll strike you on the head.
Noggin – a wooden mug or drinking vessel.
Noit, Nutyon – a projecting knob from some of the joints of the feet, especially from the root of the big toe. A numbskull would be called a noit.
Noitle – a small noit or projection. There’s a wee noitle o’ a peat bink there that A could get a wheen kerts oot o’.
Nool-kneed – in at the knees.
Note – the time of the cow’s calfing. Hir note will be up on such a date.
Notionate – headstrong, having fanciful opinions and holding firmly to them.
Nurr – a crowl; as, a nurr o’ wee pig; You’re a nurr.
Nyappy – hungry.
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