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How to Speak Like a Geordie (Part 2)
Gan on, wor young’un
Further to my recent post about the Geordie dialect, here is another crop of north-eastern nuggets that will soon have you ordering a beer like Oz from Auf Wiedersehen, Pet.
Wor = Our
During a recent televised football game, Newcastle United substituted their Paraguayan star, Miguel Almiron, and the home crowd showed their appreciation for the effort he had put in by giving him a standing ovation.
As he walked from the field of play, the commentator, not a native of the north-east, remained silent, allowing the applause to serve as the accompaniment to Almiron’s departure, only interrupting to say the player’s nickname, Wor Miggy.
The fans have taken Almiron to their hearts, and so have bestowed on him a nickname that expresses that fondness. Because in these parts, wor, which is pronounced exactly like war, means our. Hence, Our Miguel.
The word is in common use, appearing in such phrases as wor hoose (our house), wor lass (my wife or girlfriend), and wor young’un (my younger sibling). The word also forms the basis of a story that is similar to the or a meringue tale of my previous post on this subject, which I shall now relate.
