Pitmatic, is a dialect of English used in the counties of Northumberland and Durham. It developed as a separate dialect from Northumbrian and Geordie due to the specialised terms mineworkers used. An example of this is the word 'Cuddy'. In Northumberland and Tyne and Wear this term is an abbreviation of the name Cuthbert, but in Durham Pitmatic, as in Lowland Scots, it denotes a horse, specifically a pit pony .

Traditionally, pitmatic, together with some rural Northumbrian communities incuding Rothbury, used a distinctive soft rolled R produced at the very back of the throat. Since the closure of the areas deep mines, and the subsequent dilution of the areas identity, this usage is now less frequently heard, with many young people speaking in a more generic 'Geordie-like' way. However, it can still sometimes be detected, especially amongst elderly populations in more rural areas.

While in theory Pitmatic applies to the whole Great Northern Coalfield, from Ashington in Northumberland to Trimdon in County Durham, early references apply specifically to Durham [1].

See also

• British English
• Languages in the United Kingdom

External link

• www.pitmatic.co.uk] - newsletters February 2003

Reference

• Dictionary of North-East Dialect, Bill Griffiths (Northumbria University Press, 2004).