The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #41386   Message #597041
Posted By: Steve Parkes
21-Nov-01 - 05:42 AM
Thread Name: Black Country Dialect
Subject: RE: Black Country Dialect
Ah doh know--sorry, I don't know of the whole thing being rewritten; I can't imagine anyone would spend so much time, and it's even less likely that anyone would want to publish it! I have come across Bible stories, especially the Nativity, in BCD ("Theer wuz this wench naermed Mary, an' 'er wuz 'ovvin' a babby ..."). There have been some booklets published, although I can't give you details. The Black Country Bugle has poems and other pieces in dialect, and have probably had Bible stories from time to time; you can write off for back copies, or write to the letters page & ask the readers. And here's a promising-looking website, and here's another.

I don't mean to pour code waerter on a bostin' idea, but I've always found stuff in dialect very difficult to read; it's usually in a different version of the one I grew up with, and the spelling is often idiosyncratic (you can't pronounce it if you're a southerner, or even a Brummie!); and it ignores the fact that if you use conventional spelling but BC dialect words and sentence structures, you get the desired resutl by reading it in the right accent.

But let us know how you get on!

Stayve