List of British regional nicknames
 | This article's factual accuracy is disputed. (May 2008) |
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (February 2018) |
In addition to formal demonyms, many nicknames are used for residents of the different regions of the United Kingdom. For example, natives and residents of Liverpool are formally referred to as Liverpudlians, but are most commonly referred to as Scousers (after their local dish). Some, but not all, of these nicknames may be derogatory.
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A - B
- Aberdeen
- Dons (originally a football term, it is now used to describe anyone from Aberdeen and surrounding area)
- Arbroath
- Red Lichties or Lichties, Codheids
- Barnsley
- Barnzolians, Tykes,[1] Colliers (a former mining community), Dingles (by people from Sheffield)
- Barrow in Furness
- Shipbuilders, Jack Beales
- Belfast
- McCooeys, Dunchers
- Beverley
- Bevsters
- Birkenhead
- Bin Dippers, Plastic Scousers (or Plazzies)
- Birmingham
- Brummies[2]
- Black Country
- Yam Yams,[3] Nineheads
- Blackpool
- Sand Grown 'Uns, Donkey Lashers, Seasiders
- Bolton
- Trotters (originally a football term, it is now used to describe anyone from Bolton and surrounding area)
- Bramley
- Villagers (by people from other areas of Leeds)not a
- Brighton
- Jugs (archaic)[citation needed]
- Bristol
- Wurzels
- Britain
- Limeys in Canada and the United States[4] Pommies in Australia and New Zealand[5] :Les Rosbifs in France[6]
- Tommy, Island Monkey in Germany.[7]
- Burnley
- Dingles, a reference to Burnley's proximity to Yorkshire and the interrelated family from the TV soap opera Emmerdale (normally used by people from Blackburn, Preston and other parts of Lancashire)
- Bury
- Shakers (originally a football term, it is now used to describe anyone from Bury and surrounding area)
C - D
- Caernarfon
- Cofi
- Caithness
- Gallach[8]
- Canterbury
- Canterburians, Cantuarians
- Carlisle
- Gimps, Gilligans
- Ceredigion
- Cardi[9]
- Chatham
- Chavs[10][failed verification]
- Chesterfield
- Spireites, Chessies
- Cleethorpes
- Meggies
- Colchester
- Colchies, Romans, Camuloonies, Steamies, Castlers, Cross 'n' Crowners (after Colchester's coat of arms).
- Corby
- Plastic Jocks
- Cornwall
- Kernowicks, Merry-Jacks, Mera-Jacks, Uncle Jacks or Cousin Jacks (when abroad).
- Coventry
- Godivas
- Crawley
- Creepy Crawlies, Insects[11]
- Darlington
- Quakers, Darloids
- Derby
- Sheep Shaggers, Rams
- Devon
- Janners
- Doncaster
- Flatlanders (especially by people from Sheffield), Knights, Doleites
- Dorchester
- Dorchvegas
- Dorset
- Dorset Knobs (from the famous biscuit), Dumplings
- Droitwich Spa
- Monners
- Dumfries
- Doonhamers
- Duns
- Dingers
- Durham
- Posh Mackems, Posh Geordies, Cuddies, Pit Yackers (due to Durham's mining heritage)
E – G
- Eastbourne
- Winnicks or Willicks (dialect name of a guillemot or wild person)[12]
- Edinburgh
- Edinbourgeois, Edinbuggers
- England
- Sassenachs (offensive, used by Scottish and Irish; Anglicised form of the Scottish Gaelic word "sasunnach", meaning "Saxon"), Red Coats, Inglish,[13] Nigels, Guffies (in Northeast Scotland), Sais, Englandshire (in Scotland), The Shire (in Scotland)
- Essex
- Essex Calves (archaic), Easties, Essers, Wideboys, Saxons, Scimitars (from the county Coat of Arms)
- Fleetwood
- Codheads
- Forest of Dean
- Foresters, Deaners
- Fraserburgh
- Brochers[14]
- Flamborough
- Inbreds
- Frodsham
- Jowie Heads (from old Runcorn area Cheshire meaning turnip, reference to the rural position of the town)
- Galashiels
- Pale Merks (from the claim that Gala was the last major town in Scotland to have plumbing/running water)
- Glasgow
- Keelies,[15][16] Weegies[17]
- Goole
- Goolies
- Great Britain
- Limeys in Canada and the United States,[4] Pommies in Australia and New Zealand, [5] Les Rosbifs in France,[18] Tommy, Island Monkey in Germany[19]
- Grimsby
- Codheads, Haddocks, Grimmies
- Gillingham, Kent
- Medwayers
- Gosport, Hampshire
- Turk Towners
- Great Yarmouth
- Yarcos
H - K
- Hampshire
- Hampshire Hogs, Bacon Faces (reference to Hampshire as a pig-raising county in former times)
- Hartlepool
- Monkey Hangers,[20] Poolies
- Hawick
- Teri
- Haydock
- Yickers
- Heywood
- Monkeys [21]
- Highlands and Islands (of Scotland)
- Teuchters, used by other Scots and sometimes applied by Greater Glasgow natives to anyone speaking in a dialect other than Glaswegian
- Hinckley
- Tin Hatters
- Huddersfield
- Dog Botherers
- Hull
- Codheads, Hully Gullies, 'Ullites
- Ipswich
- Tractor Boys
- Irthlingborough
- Irthlings
- Isle of Wight
- Caulkheads (named after the caulking of boats)
- Kettering
- Sheep shaggers, Ketteringers pansies
- Kilbarchan
- Habbie
L
- Lancashire
- Yonners (specifically south-eastern Lancashire around the Oldham and Rochdale areas)
- Leeds
- Loiners [22]
- Leicester
- Rat Eyes (from the Roman name for the city: Ratae), Chisits (from the pronunciation of "how much is it," which sounds like "I'm a chisit"); Foxes, Bin Dippers (named after Foxes)
- Leicestershire
- Bean Bellies (from the eating of broad beans)[23]
- Leigh
- Lobby Gobblers, Leythers
- Lincolnshire
- Yellow Bellies (after a species of frog common in the Lincolnshire and East Anglian Fens)[24]
- Linlithgow
- Black Bitch, from the burgh coat of arms
- Littlehampton
- LA, from the local accent being unable to pronounce the 'h' in Hampton[citation needed]
- Liverpool
- Scousers (from the stew known as scouse),[25][26]
- Plastic Scousers or Plazzies (a person who falsely claims to be from Liverpool), [27]
- Woolybacks or Wools (a person from the surrounding areas of Liverpool, especially St Helens, Warrington, Widnes, or the Wirral) [28] [29]
- Llanelli
- Turks [citation needed]
- London
- Cockneys
- Lossiemouth
- Codheids [citation needed]
- Louth
- Luddites
- Luton
- Hatters
M - N
- Manchester
- Manc, the shortened version of the demonym Mancunians
- Mansfield, Nottinghamshire
- Scabs - offensive, linked to the divisions during the UK miners' strike (1984–1985) [citation needed]
- Malmesbury
- Jackdaws
- Middlesbrough
- Smoggies.[30]
- Montrose
- Gable Endies
- Nantwich
- Dabbers[citation needed]
- Neath
- Abbey-Jacks, Blacks, Blackjacks.
- Newcastle upon Tyne
- Geordies
- Northampton
- Cobblers, after the ancient shoe industry that thrived in the town.
- Northern Ireland
- Paddies, Huns (sectarian offensive term for pro-British Unionists), Taigs (sectarian offensive term for pro-Irish Nationalists)
- North Shields, Tyne and Wear
- Fish Nabbers[citation needed]
- North Wales
- Gogs[31]
- Northwich
- Salter Boys[citation needed]
- Norwich
- Canaries, Country Bumpkins, Norfolk Dumplings
- Nottingham
- Boggers, Scabs (insult; see Mansfield)
- Nuneaton, Warwickshire
- Codders, Treacle Towners[citation needed]
O - R
- Oldham
- Yonners (from Oldham pronunciation of 'yonder' as in 'up yonner'), Roughyeds, Biffos
- Paisley
- Buddies,[32]
- Peterhead
- Bluemogganers, Blue Tooners
- Plymouth
- Janners. Originally a person who spoke with a Devon accent,[33][34] now simply any West Countryman.[33] In naval slang (where the place is referred to as Guz[35]), this is specifically a person from Plymouth.[34]
- Portsmouth
- Pompey (shared by the city, the naval base and the football club), Skates
- Redcar
- Codheads
- Rotherham
- Chuckles, Rotherbirds
- Royston, Hertfordshire
- Crows
- Rye
- Mudlarks[36]
S
- Scotland
- Scotties, Jocks[37] Macs, Sweaties (offensive; from rhyming slang "Sweaty Sock" for Jock).
- Scunthorpe
- Yellow Bellies
- Selkirk
- Souters
- Shavington
- Tramps[citation needed]
- Sheffield
- Dee Dars, Steelmekkers.[citation needed]
- Sheringham
- Shannock
- Southampton
- Scum(mers)
- South Shields
- Sand Dancers
- Southern England
- Southern Fairies, Shandy Drinkers
- Southport
- Sandgrounders, Groundies
- Stalybridge
- Stalyvegas
- Stockport
- Stopfordians (from an old name for Stockport), Hatters
- Stoke-on-Trent
- Potters, Clay Heads, Stokies, Jug Heads, kidsgrove spiders,
- Strood
- Long Tails, Stroodles
- Stroud
- Stroudies
- Sunderland
- Mackems[38]
- Sutherland
- Cattach
- Swansea
- Jacks, Swansea Jacks
- Swindon
- Moonrakers
T - V
- Tamworth
- Tammies, Sandybacks (after the Tamworth Pig), Three Wheelers (after the Reliant Robin)
- Tarbert, Loch Fyne
- Dookers (named after guillemot and razorbill, sea-birds once a popular food among Tarbert natives)
- Teesside
- Smoggies, 'Boro Boys (after Middlesbrough)
- Telford
- Telfies, Chavs
W
- Wales
- Taffs [Mid/West Welsh] (sometimes considered offensive),[39] Taffies.[40]
- Wallingford, Oxfordshire
- Wallies
- Walsall
- Saddlers
- Warrington
- Wire, Wirepullers (after the local wire industry), [citation needed] Woolybacks or Wools (in Liverpool)
- Welshpool
- Soup Heads
- Westhoughton
- Keawyeds (Cowheads, after local legend)
- West Riding of Yorkshire
- Wessies (in other parts of Yorkshire)
- Weymouth and Portland
- Kimberlins (Portland name for a person from Weymouth)
- Weymouth
- Weybiza (due to the wild nightlife the town has adopted)
- Whitehaven
- Marras, Jam Eaters, Wetties
- Widnes
- Woolybacks or Wools (in Liverpool)
- Wigan
- Pie-eaters, Pie-noshers, Purrers [41]
- Wiltshire
- Moonrakers
- Wolverhampton
- Yam Yams (from local dialect where people say "Yam" meaning "Yow am" meaning "You are")
- Worthing
- Pork Bolters[36]
- Workington
- Jam Eaters
- Whitby
- Codheads
Y - Z
See also
- List of regional nicknames
- Lists of nicknames – nickname list articles on Wikipedia
- Demonym
Citations
- ^ "tyke", (Partridge, Dalzell & Victor 2007, pp. 674)
- ^ "Brummie", (Partridge, Dalzell & Victor 2007, pp. 95)
- ^ "Wolverhampton researches Black Country dialect". The Guardian. 27 January 2003. Retrieved 3 October 2010.
- ^ a b "limey", (Partridge, Dalzell & Victor 2007, pp. 401)
- ^ a b "pommy", (Partridge, Dalzell & Victor 2007, pp. 506–507)
- ^ "Why do the French call the British 'the roast beefs'?". BBC News Online. 3 April 2003. Retrieved 7 November 2016.
- ^ "Few laughs for 'humorous' Kraut". BBC News Online. 24 October 2001. Retrieved 7 November 2016.
- ^ Transactions of the Gaelic Society. Gaelic Society of Inverness. 1907. p. 97. Retrieved 30 September 2010.
Gallach caithness.
- ^ "Cardi", (Partridge, Dalzell & Victor 2007, pp. 119)
- ^ "Definition of Chav in English". Oxford Dictionaries. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
- ^ "MOST Crawley residents have probably, at some time, referred to the town by its well-known nickname – Creepy Crawley". This Is Sussex. 20 October 2010. Retrieved 9 June 2014.
- ^ Wales, Tony (2000). Sussex as She Wus Spoke, a Guide to the Sussex Dialect. Seaford: SB Publications. ISBN 978-1-85770-209-5.
- ^ "Sassenach", (Robinson 1985, pp. 581)
- ^ Room, Adrian (2003). Placenames of the world: origins and meanings of the names for over 5000 natural features, countries, capitals, territories, cities, and historic sites. McFarland. p. 426. ISBN 978-0-7864-1814-5.
- ^ Brewer, E. Cobham. "Nicknames". Dictionary of Phrase & Fable. Retrieved 29 September 2010 – via Bartleby.com.
- ^ "keelie", (Robinson 1985, pp. 335)
- ^ Castillo, Michelle (20 August 2009). "Off the Brochure Travel Guide: Glasgow, Scotland". Peter Greenberg Travel Detective. Retrieved 29 September 2010.
- ^ "Why do the French call the British 'the roast beefs'?". BBC News Online. 3 April 2003. Retrieved 7 November 2016.
- ^ "Few laughs for 'humorous' Kraut". BBC News Online. 24 October 2001. Retrieved 7 November 2016.
- ^ "The Hartlepool Monkey, Who hung the monkey?". This is Hartlepool. Retrieved 29 September 2010.
- ^ Dawson, Chris. "Hey, Hey, We're Monkey Town". Ten Thousand Years in Monkey Town.
- ^ "Loiner", (Partridge, Dalzell & Victor 2007, pp. 406)
- ^ Evans, Arthur Benoni (1881). Evans, Sebastian (ed.). Leicestershire Words, Phrases, and Proverbs (enlarged ed.). London: N. Trübner for English Dialect Society. p. 101.
- ^ Brewer, E. Cobham. "Yellow-belly". Dictionary of Phrase & Fable. Retrieved 30 September 2010 – via Bartleby.com.
- ^ Fazakerley, p. 24
- ^ "Mickey Mouse" - rhyming slang for "Scouse", (Partridge, Dalzell & Victor 2007, pp. 429)
- ^ "Plastic Scouser". Allwords.com.
- ^ "Woolyback". Slang.org.uk.
- ^ "Woolyback". Allwords.com.
- ^ Harley, Shaun (16 July 2007). "I was made in Middlesbrough". BBC News Online. Retrieved 29 September 2010.
- ^ "gog", (Partridge, Dalzell & Victor 2007, pp. 295)
- ^ "Paisley Buddies". Paisley Scotland. 6 April 2014. Retrieved 9 June 2014.
- ^ a b "janner", (Partridge, Dalzell & Victor 2007, pp. 363)
- ^ a b Tawney, Cyril (1987). "Glossary". Grey funnel lines: traditional song & verse of the Royal Navy, 1900–1970. Taylor & Francis. p. 167. ISBN 978-0-7102-1270-2.
- ^ "Plymouth's nickname 'Guz' and the reasons behind it". Plymouth Live. 29 September 2019.
- ^ a b Arscott, David (2006). Wunt Be Druv - A Salute to the Sussex Dialect. Countryside Books. ISBN 978-1-84674-006-0.
- ^ "jock", (Partridge, Dalzell & Victor 2007, pp. 369)
- ^ "Quiz: How Much of a Mackem are YOU?". Sunderland Echo. 4 January 2009. Archived from the original on 11 September 2012. Retrieved 29 September 2010.
- ^ "taff", (Partridge, Dalzell & Victor 2007, pp. 369)
- ^ Cf. the nursery rhyme "Taffy was a Welshman / Taffy was a thief / Taffy came to my house / To steal a piece of beef."
- ^ Dialect term for "kicker"
References
- "Liverpudlian". Cambridge Dictionaries Online.
- Fazakerley, Fred (2005) [2001]. Scouse English. London: Abson Books. ISBN 0-902920-94-4.
- Partridge, Eric; Dalzell, Tom; Victor, Terry (2007). The concise new Partridge dictionary of slang and unconventional English. Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-21259-5.
- Robinson, Mairi (1985). Concise Scots Dictionary. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press Ltd. ISBN 1-902930-00-2. Retrieved 29 September 2010.
- Ronowicz, Eddie; Yallop, Colin (2006). English: One Language, Different Cultures. Continuum International Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-8264-7079-9. Retrieved 30 September 2010.
- Pinniped; Mu Beta Beta. "Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire". History. h2g2. Retrieved 13 March 2013.