I used the word snicket to describe an alley the other day and my friend looked at me like I had three heads. It’s the bap/roll/cob debate all over!
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ginnel!
Stabby nook
Twitchel.
I love how many words we’ve got for this. Great way of spotting outsiders.
This one is my favourite. It’s almost onomatopoeic for the kind of people who hang out there.
Used to practically live down the twitchels as a kid, playing dobby.
Then go home for a chip cob.
Great way of spotting outsiders.
Local alleys for local people.
Will more strangers come, Edward?
And cob to go with that.
Jitty, or the more accurate pronunciation ‘jitteh’
Correct.
Close here in Edinburgh
I use alley, but my mum always used ginnel.
Would usually say cutaway. Certain themed ones will go by dog shit alley or the needle exchange
Entry or jigger or cooee are the main ones that I hear used but there are more: back crack, eenog and jowler, apparently but I can’t recall hearing them.
Entry or jigger definitely, only ever heard my auntie call it a cooee. Never heard the last three at all.
Yeah, I think I only ever heard my Dad call it a cooeee. I think he just liked the sound of the word.
It is a good word tbf to him haha
Ginnel (Yorkshire) or yob death run, depending on where in Leeds you live!
Alley, Norfolk. Didn’t know it even had other names!
I’ve never heard most of these haha. Is my southerness showing?
Out of interest, what do you define as north England?
I love asking English people this question, it varies massively depending on where in England they’re from. A Londoner friend told me it’s “anything north of the M25”, whereas a Nottum said it was “somewhere above Sheffield”.
Anything north of the M25. My in-laws from Bedford are definitely not Northern in my mind haha. So most of Essex is Northern to them.
I dont know where I’d draw the line to be honest. I’d consider anywhere around Manchester and Liverpool as Northern. Looking up Sheffield, I’d say yeah, Northern.
I dont know how far south of Sheffield I’d still consider Northern before its Midlands. I’ve met people from Lincoln who said they were for the Midlands, so there can’t be much in it.
Aye, lad.
In East Sussex it was a twitten for the older people. My generation called it an alley.
I grew up in a “ginnel” region - but it developed over the years to one where ginnel, alley and snicket were all separate.
Ginnels had wooden fences on either side, alleys had the walls of buildings on either side, snickets were mud paths between trees or hedges.
I now live further east, where they use the fairly unique “tenfoot” for all of the above.
Often called an ope in Cornwall - but specifically between two buildings, normally when they overhang the alleyway
Just alley for me down in Kent
