Since the Explorer was not born and raised around Grey County, he had always had a fascination with the way local people talk. Now, you may not know it, but we do not have a distinct style of speaking around Grey Bruce and Simcoe Countries. This perception was recently reinforced by the discovery of an article by Ruth Hunt in an old history of the former Township of Egremont. She called it, The Way We Talk in Egremont.
According to Mrs. Hunt, Egremont speech reflects the Scottish or Irish tendency to slow, thoughtful speech that is strictly utilitarian in purpose. It was not exactly a compliment in times past to say that someone “was a great talker.” Instead, area people use careful phrasing that is meant to spare the feelings of the hearer. People do not die. They “pass away.” And then there are the gentle descriptions of those in the community who are described as being “a shingle off the roof or “he lacks a round of being square or – the Explorer’s favourite – someone who is “six pickles short of a jar.”
And how about the indirect way of asking for a favour. “You wouldn’t be using your tractor this afternoon, would you?” Then there are the idioms – the small ways of saying things that Hunt claims are peculiar to our small portion of Ontario. How often as your go about your daily life do you hear the welcome, “G’Day” or listen to someone answer a question with the affirmative statement, “T’is so!.” Or the neighbour who can turn the question of how are you today into a single word that sounds somewhat like “Haryut’day?”
“Dinner’s is eaten at noon in Egremont. When you are forced to spend the night away from home because of the snow, you are “storm-stayed.” A female sheep is a “yo” not a ewe (you) and someone given to over-reacting is said to be “cutting up Dido.” To order from Eaton’s was to “send to the catalogue” while any place south of Arthur was “down-country.” We all have our pet ways of saying thing – what are yours?
Originally aired May 21st 2016
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