Brummies (people from Birmingham, UK) use unique slang like "bab" (mate/love), "cob" (bread roll), "mither" (pester), and phrases like "Tara-a-bit" (goodbye) or "it's black over Bill's mother's" (looks like rain), often with distinct vowel sounds, dropping 'h's, and using a glottal stop for 't's, creating a melodic, distinctive accent. They also use local terms for everyday things, from "fizzy pop" (soda) to calling the city centre "the Bull".
Brummie slang refers to the unique words and phrases used by people from Birmingham. It's part of the broader Brummie dialect. Examples include “bostin'” (excellent), “gambol” (forward roll), and “tara-abit” (goodbye). The slang often reflects Birmingham's industrial heritage and local culture.
Sometimes, the vowel shortens and 'ar' becomes 'a' as in the word 'cap'. The 'i' in 'pit' becomes 'ee' in Brummie, making the word sound more like, but not quite the same as 'peat'. In broader versions of Brummie, 'you' becomes 'yow' and the 'y' at the end of the word becomes 'ay'.
If you've ever been to Birmingham (UK), chances are you've heard someone say "Y'aright, bab?" 💬 So what does "bab" mean? It's a local term of endearment — like "love, or "darling", or "mate" — used by Brummies to show friendliness and warmth.
Brummies (people from Birmingham, UK) say "mom" instead of "mum" primarily due to unique, older vowel sounds in the West Midlands dialect, reflecting a regional accent that evolved separately from Southern English variations, with the spelling "mom" directly mirroring the local pronunciation rather than being a recent American import. It's a key part of their distinct identity, linked to the area's industrial past and older English roots.
In such an old-fashioned accent, the words paw, pour and poor would all be said differently: [pɔː], [pʌʊə], [puːə]. In more modern accents, all three are said as [pɔː].
The Welsh, Yorkshire and Cornish accents also all ranked as the top three "most friendly" accents in the UK, with researchers saying that "often our perception of 'friendly' and 'relaxing' can be one in the same".
The most posh British accent is Received Pronunciation (RP), also called the Queen's English, BBC English, or Public School Pronunciation, known for its prestige and historical association with the upper classes, though it's now spoken by few and sounds somewhat dated, with a more modern, neutral RP (like some royals) being more common today, focusing on non-regional clarity and specific vowel sounds rather than overt class markers.
People living in Birmingham often refer to Black Country folk as Yam Yams because they say 'yow am' or 'yow'm' instead of 'you are', whereas the term 'Brummie', used to refer to people from Birmingham, is derived from 'Brummagem' – traditional Black Country speak for Birmingham.
There are many nicknames for parents. Young children sometimes call their mother mummy in UK English or mommy in US English, and they call their father daddy. Mama and papa are also used. These words are old-fashioned in UK English, but informal in US English.
To “gin up” means to concoct excitement; to “cook up” enthusiasm in a cause or belief. Despite the spelling and pronunciation of the word “gin,” it is not, in this expression, linked to the liquor flavored with juniper berries. Instead, it's an abbreviated form of “engine,” the word that means “mechanical contraption.”
😅 🔹 Definition: Hoo-ha = a lot of fuss, excitement, or discussion about something that isn't really important 🔹 How to use it: 🤷 “There was a huge hoo-ha over the new logo — it's just a colour change!” 🙈 “Why all the hoo-ha about his haircut?” 😂 “The neighbours made a hoo-ha about the bin collection again.”
