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Yola dialect

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Yola, more commonly and historically the Forth and Bargy dialect, is an extinct dialect of the Middle English language once spoken in the baronies of Forth and Bargy in County Wexford, Ireland. As such, it was probably similar to the Fingallian dialect of the Fingal area. Both became functionally extinct in the 19th century when they were replaced by modern Hiberno-English. The word {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} means Template:Gloss in the dialect.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> In modern times, there have been efforts to revive the dialect.

File:Yola hut -Tagoat Co. Wexford.JPG
Yola hut refurbished in Tagoat, County Wexford, Ireland

HistoryEdit

{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}}

OriginsEdit

Template:Further Template:Location map The dialect was spoken in County Wexford, particularly in the baronies of Forth and Bargy. This was the first area English speakers came to in the Norman invasion of Ireland, supporting the theory that it evolved from the Middle English introduced in that period. As such it is thought to have been similar to Fingallian, which was spoken in the Fingal region north of Dublin. Middle English, the mother tongue of the "Old English" community, was widespread throughout southeastern Ireland until the 14th century; as the Old English were increasingly assimilated into Irish culture, their original language was gradually displaced through Gaelicisation. After this point, Yola and Fingallian were the only attested relicts of this original form of English.<ref name=Hickey2005>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name=Hickey2002>Template:Cite book</ref>

Modern English was widely introduced by British colonists during and after the 17th century, forming the basis for the modern Hiberno-English of Ireland. The new varieties were notably distinct from the surviving relict dialects.<ref name=Hickey2005/><ref name=Hickey2002/> As English continued to spread, both Yola and Fingallian died out in the 19th century, though Yola continued to be used as a liturgical language by the churches of Wexford well into the 20th century. To this day the Kilmore Choir sings what were once Yola tunes, now adapted to Standard English.

The speech of Forth and Bargy was the only kind in Ireland included in Alexander John Ellis's work On Early English Pronunciation Volume V, which was the earliest survey of dialects of English. The phonetics of the dialect were taken from a local reverend.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Use after the mid-19th centuryEdit

Though the Forth and Bargy dialect ceased to be used as a means of daily communication after the mid-19th century, it continued to see significant usage as a liturgical language, and some personal usage within the linguist community of Ireland, such as Kathleen Browne's letter to Ireland dated to 10 April 1893. Browne was a fluent Yola speaker and wrote a number of articles including "The Ancient Dialect of the Baronies of Forth and Bargy" in 1927.<ref>Browne, Brendan (2016). Kathleen A. Browne. The Past: The Organ of the Uí Cinsealaigh Historical Society. No. 32 (2016), pp. 108-115</ref>

County Wexford native Paddy Berry is noted for his condensed performances of the piece "A Yola Zong", which he has performed for various recordings, the latest of which was in 2017.<ref>Template:Citation</ref> Various Yola rhymes, passed down from generation to generation, can be heard spoken by a Wexford woman in a documentary recorded in 1969 on the present usage and rememberers of Yola in the former baronies of Forth and Bargy.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Yola Farmstead, a community-operated reenactment of a Forth and Bargy village as it would have been during the 18th century, delivered a speech and performance of a song in Yola at their opening ceremony, featured Yola phrases in their advertisements, and hosted events where participants could learn some of the dialect from linguists and other experts on it.Template:Citation needed The Yola Farmstead also hosted a memorial event dedicated to Jack Devereux of the Kilmore Choir, which once used Yola extensively in their Christmas services. Devereux was a preservationist of, and well-versed in, Yola; locals considered him to be an expert on the dialect, and a rendition of the Lord's Prayer translated into Yola was read at his memorial.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

The Yola Farm has since closed down but since 2021 there have been efforts to reopen it.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Wikitongues also has a section dedicated to Yola on its website which hosts language documentation and revitalization resources.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

PhonologyEdit

As in the Dutch language, in southwestern varieties of English and (to a lesser extent) in German, most voiceless fricatives in Yola became voiced. The Middle English vowels are well-preserved, having only partially and sporadically undergone the changes associated with the Great Vowel Shift.<ref>Hickey, R. (1988). A lost Middle English dialect. Historical Dialectology: Regional and Social, 37, 235.</ref>

One striking characteristic of Yola was the fact that stress shifted to the second syllable of words in many instances: {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} "morsel", {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} "hatchet", {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} "dinner", {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} "reader", {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} "wedding", etc.<ref>Template:Cite book Reprinted 1972 by the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, Template:ISBN.</ref>

OrthographyEdit

{{ safesubst:#invoke:Unsubst||date=__DATE__ |$B= {{ safesubst:#invoke:Unsubst||date=__DATE__ |$B= Template:Ambox }} }} An exact spelling system for Yola has never been codified, beyond general trends listed in Jacob Poole's writings. Most of the spellings are meant as comparisons to standard English ones of his day and the pronunciations are largely reconstructed. The following are listed here:<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Yola orthography
Yola spelling Phoneme (IPA) Example Notes
Aa main}}, {{#invoke:IPA|main}} (unstressed) lang}} "angered", {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} "below"
Aa aa main}} lang}} "any"
A(a)i aai, A(a)y a(a)y main}} lang}} "barrel"
A(a)u a(a)u, A(a)w a(a)w main}} lang}} "care"
Bb main}} lang}} "brain"
Cc main}}, {{#invoke:IPA|main}} (before Template:Vr) lang}} "comfort", {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} "lace" soft c used mainly in analogies to English words
Ch ch main}} lang}} "chough" main}}
Dd main}} lang}} "dead"
Dh dh main}} lang}} "thunder"
Ee main}}, {{#invoke:IPA|main}} (unstressed) lang}} "ass, donkey", {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} "else" silent at the end of a word, but not in unstressed syllables
Ea ea main}} lang}} "eel"
Ee ee main}} lang}} "iron"
E(e)i e(e)i, E(e)y e(e)y main}} lang}} "just now"
Eou eou, Eow eow main}} lang}} "cow"
Eu eu, Ew ew main}} lang}} "few"
Ff main}} lang}} "fleece"
Gg main}}, {{#invoke:IPA|main}} (before Template:Vr) lang}} "grace", {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} "bridge" soft g used mainly in analogies to English words
Gh gh main}}, {{#invoke:IPA|main}} (word-initial) lang}} "faith", {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} "pranks" never silent

possibly also {{#invoke:IPA|main}}

Hh main}} lang}} "horn" silent in consonant clusters not listed here
Ii main}} lang}} "in"
Ie ie main}}, {{#invoke:IPA|main}} (word-final) lang}} "eyes", {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} "where"
Jj main}} lang}} "judge"
Kk main}} lang}} "cover"
Kh kh main}} lang}} "to teach" main}}
Ll main}} lang}} "lace"
Mm main}} lang}} "meadow"
Nn main}} lang}} "next"
Oo main}} lang}} "of" rarely used alone
Oa oa, O...e o...e main}} lang}} "one"
Oee oee main}} lang}} "joy"
Oo oo main}} lang}} "our"
O(o)u o(o)u main}} lang}} "gun"
Ow ow main}} lang}} "hoe (gardening tool)"
Pp main}} lang}} "pray"
Ph ph main}} lang}} "when" used mainly as an analogy to English words spelt with Template:Vr or Template:Vr
Qq main}} lang}} "quern" used mainly as an analogy to English words spelt with Template:Vr
Rr main}} lang}} "rouse"
Ss main}} lang}} "scald"
Sh sh main}} lang}} "she"
Tt main}} lang}} "tape"
Th th main}} lang}} "trust" main}}
Uu main}} lang}} "understand"
Ui ui, Uy uy main}} lang}} "boy"
Vv main}} lang}} "fear"
Ww main}} lang}} "waste"
Xx main}} lang}} "fox" used mainly as an analogy to English words spelt with Template:Vr
Yy main}}, {{#invoke:IPA|main}} (consonant) lang}} "idler", {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} "gate"
Y...e y...e, -ye main}} lang}} "grain"
Zz main}} lang}} "sister"
Zh zh main}} lang}} "sheep"

Note that the spellings can be somewhat inconsistent, due to many words attempting to draw comparison to English cognates and variation within the dialect. Not too much of the above, particularly regarding the vowels, is exactly certain.

GrammarEdit

Personal pronounsEdit

Yola pronouns were similar to Middle English pronouns.<ref>William Barnes, Jacob Poole: A Glossary, With some Pieces of Verse, of the Old Dialect of the English Colony in the Baronies of Forth and Bargy, County of Wexford, Ireland. Formerly collected By Jacob Poole: And now edited, with some Introductory Observations, Additions from various sources, and Notes, By William Barnes. London, 1867

  • ich is mentioned on p. 133
  • ich, wough, ouse, hea, shoo, thye, aam; oor, yer (= your, but singular or plural?), aar (= there/their); meezil, theezil, himzil are in the glossary
  • mee (possessive), thee (personal and possessive), ouse, oor & oore & our (possessive), he, shoo, it (objective), hi, aar (possessive), theezil (reflexive), aamzil (reflexive) occur in A Yola Zong (p. 84-92), mee (possessive), wough, ye (pl. nom.), our (possessive), hea, his (possessive), aar (possessive) in The Wedden o Ballymore (p. 93-98), ich, her in The Bride's Portion (p. 102f.), ich, mee (personal and possessive), ye (pl. nom.), hea & he, his (possessive), thye, aar (possessive) in Casteale Cudde's Lamentations (p. 102-105), hea, him, his (possessive), shoo, aam, aar (possessive) in a song recited by Tobias Butler (p. 108f.), wee, oure (possessive), ye (pl. for sg. obj.), yer (possessive, pl. for sg.), ourzels (reflexive), yersel (reflexive, pl. for sg.) in To's Excellencie Constantine Harrie Phipps (p. 114-117)</ref>
Yola personal pronouns
1st Person 2nd Person 3rd Person
Singular Plural Singular Informal Plural/ Singular Formal Singular Plural
Feminine Masculine Inanimate
Nominative lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}}
Oblique lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}}
Genitive lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}}
Reflexive lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}}

ArticlesEdit

The definite article was at first {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} or {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}, which was later replaced by {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}.Template:Citation needed

VerbsEdit

Yola verbs had some conservative characteristics. The second and third person plural endings were sometimes {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} or {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} as in Chaucerian English. The past participle retained the Middle English "y" prefix as {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}.<ref name="Poole 1867, p.133">Poole 1867, p.133.</ref>

NounsEdit

Some nouns retained the {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} plural of ME children, such as {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} 'bees' and {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} 'trees'.Template:Citation needed

VocabularyEdit

The glossary compiled by Jacob Poole provides most of what is known about the Forth and Bargy vocabulary. Poole was a farmer and member of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) from Growtown in the Parish of Taghmon on the border between the baronies of Bargy and Shelmalier.<ref>Jacob Poole of Growtown.</ref> He collected words and phrases from his tenants and farm labourers between 1800 and his death in 1827.

Although most of its vocabulary is Old English in origin, Yola contains many borrowings from Irish and French.

All the Yola etymons are Middle English unless stated otherwise. Yola words derived from a non-standard Middle English form list the variant first, followed by the variant in parentheses.

Interrogative wordsEdit

Yola interrogative words
English Yola Yola etymon West Riding Yorkshire Scots West Frisian Low Saxon
how lang}} wou
how 		haa lang}}
{{#invoke:Lang|lang}} (Doric Scots) 		lang}} lang}}
what lang}} whad (what) what lang}}
{{#invoke:Lang|lang}} (Doric Scots) 		lang}} lang}}
when lang}} whanne when lang}}
{{#invoke:Lang|lang}} (Doric Scots) 		lang}} lang}}
where lang}} whider wheer lang}}
{{#invoke:Lang|lang}} 		lang}} lang}}
which lang}} whilch which lang}} lang}} lang}}
who lang}} hwā (Old English) who/whoa lang}}
{{#invoke:Lang|lang}} (Doric Scots) 		lang}} lang}}
why lang}} wherto (why) why lang}}
{{#invoke:Lang|lang}} (Doric Scots) 		lang}} lang}}

PrepositionsEdit

Yola prepositions
English Yola Yola etymon Yorkshire West Riding Scots West Frisian Low Saxon
about lang}} abouten abaat lang}} lang}} lang}}
above lang}} abuven aboon lang}} lang}} lang}}
against lang}} ayens agean/agen lang}} lang}} lang}}
among lang}} amang amang lang}} lang}} lang}}
around lang}} around araand lang}} lang}} lang}}
at lang}} ed (at) at lang}} lang}} lang}}
before lang}} avore (afore) afoor, befoor lang}} lang}} lang}}
below/beneath/under lang}} alow below/beneeath/under lang}} lang}} lang}}
beside lang}} beside beside/aside lang}} lang}} lang}}
between/betwixt lang}} betwix between/atween/betwixt/atwixt lang}} lang}} lang}}
by lang}} by by/bi lang}} lang}} lang}}
for lang}} vor (for) for lang}} lang}} lang}}
from lang}} vram (fram) fra/thra/throo lang}} lang}} lang}}
next, next to lang}} next next lang}} lang}} lang}}
in lang}} in in/i lang}} lang}} lang}}
out lang}} out aat lang}} lang}} lang}}
over lang}} over ovver/ower/o'er lang}} lang}} lang}}
through lang}} thrugh through/thrugh lang}} lang}} lang}}
upon lang}} upon upon/upo' lang}} lang}} lang}}
with lang}} with wi lang}} lang}} lang}}

DeterminersEdit

Yola determiners
English Yola Yola etymon West Riding Yorkshire Scots West Frisian Low Saxon
all lang}} all all lang}} lang}} lang}}
any lang}} any
aught 		ony lang}} lang}} lang}}
each, every lang}} everich eeach, ivvery lang}} lang}} lang}}
few lang}} few few, a two-or-thry lang}} lang}} lang}}
neither lang}} nóhwæþer (Old English) nawther lang}} lang}} lang}}
none, nothing lang}} naught, nothing noan, nowt lang}} lang}} lang}}
other lang}} another other lang}} lang}} lang}}
some lang}} sum some lang}} lang}} lang}}
that lang}} that lang}} lang}} lang}}
this lang}} this lang}} lang}} lang}}

Other wordsEdit

other Yola words
English Yola Yola etymon Yorkshire West Riding Scots West Frisian Low Saxon Irish
day lang}} day day lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}}
fear lang}} fǽr (Old English)
feerd 		fear lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}}
friend lang}} frind (frend) friend lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}}
land lang}} lond (land) land lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}}
old lang}} eold (Old English {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}) owd lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}}
sun lang}} synne (sunne) sun lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}}
thing lang}} thing thing lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}}
go lang}} goan go/goa lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}} (go), {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} (go away), {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} (go along)
Wexford lang}} lang}} (Old Norse) Wexford lang}} lang}} lang}} lang}}

Cardinal numbersEdit

Yola cardinal numbers
# Yola Yola etymon West Frisian
1 lang}} oane lang}}
2 lang}} tweyne lang}}
3 lang}} thre lang}}
4 lang}} vour (four) lang}}
5 lang}} vyve (five) lang}}
6 lang}} siex (Old English six) lang}}
7 lang}} seven lang}}
8 lang}} eahta (Old English) lang}}
9 lang}} nine lang}}
10 lang}} ten lang}}
20 lang}} twonty (twenty) lang}}
30 lang}} thirty lang}}
100 lang}} hundred lang}}

Modern South Wexford EnglishEdit

Diarmaid Ó Muirithe travelled to South Wexford in 1978 to study the English spoken there.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> His informants ranged in age between 40 and 90. Among the long list of words still known or in use at that time are the following:

  • {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}: 'going on amain' = getting on well
  • {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}: an unfriendly person
  • {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}: a little
  • {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}: threadbare
  • {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}: confusion, in a fash
  • {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}: to peep
  • {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}: to sunbathe, to relax in front of the fire
  • {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}: very, extremely
  • {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}: seaweed

Amain is a Norman word which means 'of easy use'.Template:Citation needed

ExamplesEdit

A Yola songEdit

The following is a song in Yola with a rough translation into English. Template:Verse translation

Address to Lord Lieutenant in 1836Edit

Congratulatory address in the dialect of Forth and Bargy, presented to the Earl of Mulgrave, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, on his visit to Wexford in 1836. Taken from the Wexford Independent newspaper of 15 February 1860. The paper's editor Edmund Hore wrote:

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The most remarkable fact, in reality, in connexion with the address is this. In all probability it was the first time regal or vice-regal ears were required to listen to words of such a dialect; and it is even still more probable that a like event will never happen again; for if the use of this old tongue dies out as fast for the next five-and-twenty years as it has for the same bygone period, it will be utterly extinct and forgotten before the present century shall have closed.

In order for a person not acquainted with the pronunciation of the dialect to form anything like an idea of it, it is first necessary to speak slowly, and remember that the letter a has invariably the same sound, like a in 'father.' Double ee sounds as e in 'me,' and most words of two syllables the long accent is placed on the last. To follow the English pronunciation completely deprives the dialect of its peculiarities.

{{#invoke:Lang|lang}}

English Translation

To his Excellency, Constantine Henry Phipps, Earl of Mulgrave, Lord Lieutenant-General, and General Governor of Ireland. The humble Address of the Inhabitants of the Barony of Forth, Wexford.

MAY IT PLEASE YOUR EXCELLENCY – We, the subjects of his Most Gracious Majesty, William IV., and, as we truly believe, both faithful and loyal inhabitants of the Barony of Forth, beg leave at this favourable opportunity to approach your Excellency, and in the simple dress of our old dialect to pour forth from the strength (or fulness) of our hearts, our sense (or admiration) of the qualities which characterise your name, and for which we have no words but of 'Governor,' 'Statesman,' &c. In each and every condition it is with joy of heart that our eyes rest upon the representative of that Sovereign, William IV., under whose paternal rule our days are spent; for before your foot pressed the soil, your name was known to us as the friend of liberty, and he who broke the fetters of the slave. Unto ourselves – for we look on Ireland to be our common country – you have with impartial hand ministered the laws made for every subject, without regard to this party or that. We behold in you one whose days are devoted to the welfare of the land you govern, to promote peace and liberty – the uncompromising guardian of the common right and public virtue. The peace – yes, we may say the profound peace – which overspreads the land since your arrival, proves that we alone stood in need of the enjoyment of common privileges, as is demonstrated by the results of your government. The condition, this day, of the country, in which is neither tumult nor disorder, but that constitutional agitation, the consequence of disappointed hopes, confirms your rule to be rare and enlightened. Your fame for such came before you even into this retired spot, to which neither the waters of the sea below nor the mountains above caused any impediment. In our valleys, where we were digging with the spade, or as we whistled to our horses in the plough, we heard the distant sonnd of the wings of the dove of peace, in the word Mulgrave. With Irishmen our common hopes are inseparably bound up – as Irishmen, and as inhabitants, faithful and loyal, of the Barony Forth, we will daily and every day, our wives and our children, implore long and happy days, free from melancholy and full of blessings, for yourself and our good Sovereign, until the sun of our lives be gone down the dark valley (of death). {{#if:|{{#if:|}}

— {{#if:|, in }}Template:Comma separated entries

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"The maiden of Rosslare"Edit

This following is a Yola poem from an original document containing accents to aid pronunciation;Template:Citation needed

Template:Verse translation

"A song of Barony Forth"Edit

This following is a Yola poem taken from Kathleen Brownes glossary of Forth and Bargy

Template:Verse translation

"Three old maidens"Edit

This following is a Yola poem taken from Kathleen Brownes glossary of Forth and Bargy

Template:Verse translation

NotesEdit

Template:Reflist

ReferencesEdit

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External linksEdit

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