Cockney rhyming slang to the untrained ear, can often sound like a different language altogether – instead of a unique variation of English. To outsiders, at first listen, this bizarre way of speaking may seem as if the speaker is randomly ascribing multiple words or phrases to a single noun or purposely rearranging a sentence beyond all recognition. But to a Cockney, every replaced word has a hidden meaning perfectly decipherable to any other Cockney within earshot.
Who is a Cockney?
A Cockney traditionally refers to someone born within the sound of Bow Bells, the bells of St Mary-le-Bow Church in Cheapside, London. These bells can be heard as far away as six miles from where they are rung. This specific definition ties Cockney identity to a particular geographic area within East London. However, the term has also come to represent a broader cultural identity characterized by a distinctive accent and dialect, as well as a set of cultural norms and practices, fashion, and style.
The Cockney accent is one of the most recognizable in the United Kingdom. If you’ve ever heard the stereotypical greeting, “‘Ello, Guvna” or seen Dick Van Dyke’s (albeit very inauthentic) characterization in Mary Poppins, then you are already somewhat familiar with this unique style of talking – the omission of the “h” sound at the beginning of a word and a glottal stop in place of a “t” sound is a familiar aspect of the dialect.
What is Cockney Rhyming Slang?
Even outsiders who are somewhat familiar with the sound of the Cockney accent may still be unaware that many Cockneys use rhyming in their unique brand of slang to codify their conversations against outsiders. The Cockney rhyming slang method usually involves replacing a word (typically a noun) in a sentence with a phrase that rhymes with it to obscure the word from eavesdroppers who are unfamiliar with the dialect. In a common example, the words, “China” and “plate”, replace the word “mate”, a common term in England for “friend” or “pal”. So if you’re in East London and you hear something like “What’s up, China plate?” They likely mean “What’s up, mate?”
To make things even more complicated for someone who may be listening in, Cockneys often drop the first word of the replacement phrase. So in the same example, you may hear something like “How’s it going, me old China?” instead.
How Did Cockney Rhyming Slang Develop?
Like many forms of slang, the origin of Cockney rhyming slang is often attributed to the criminal underworld who developed their unique dialect as a way to obscure their conversations from outsiders, particularly law enforcement.
To understand the origins of Cockney rhyming slang fully, you need to understand the context of what was happening in London’s East End in the 19th Century. Prior to this period of time, there was no centralized law enforcement apart from the military and a sort of “secret police” force of paid individuals within the community. Even if an individual was paid to look out for crime in the East End, this person was often a familiar person in the community who could be bribed, threatened, blackmailed, or dismissed, allowing crime to generally go unchecked.
However, this changed in the early 19th Century. As an official police force (known as the Bow Street Runners) began patrolling the streets of the East End, Cockneys within the criminal underworld began developing their unique way of speaking in order to covertly communicate with each other, even if they were being watched or followed by law enforcement or informants. If a Cockney during this time thought that they were being watched, they might say something like “Meet me by the apples” meaning, “Meet me by the stairs”, the omitted word being “pears”. Once they met at the stairs, they could resume their private conversation again.
Cockney Rhyming Slang Today
The unique dialect developed by Cockneys did not die in the 19th Century. In fact, Cockney rhyming slang is used all over the English-speaking world. When criminals were transported to Australia in the early 1800s, many of them were Cockneys and thus, they brought their dialect with them nearly 10,000 miles away.
Many English speakers from around the world are familiar with the unique slang that Austrailians use, but some may be unaware of how closely related Cockney slang and Austrailian slang are. Americans who have traveled to Australia may be familiar with the term “seppo” a pejorative term used by Australians towards American tourists. In Cockney fashion, Seppo is short for “septic tank” which rhymes with Yank, which is short for Yankee.
Americans may be surprised to learn that Cockney rhyming slang is even used today in the United States. In the early 1900s, many Australians immigrated to the US bringing their slang with them. For a brief period, the West Coast enthusiastically took to the unique rhyming slang brought over by the Australians and even published several slang dictionaries to make translation easier.
This trend has mostly died out as the number of Australians immigrating to the US has slowed considerably. However, one common phrase still remains today – “blowing a raspberry”. In Cockney slang, “raspberry and tart” translates to “fart”. There are many American parents who are unlikely to say “blowing a fart” when describing the sound made by blowing on their child’s belly. But in a wholesome turn in history, a slang term describing flatulence originating from a criminal underworld in London’s East End passed on through the transportation of convicts in Australia and finally brought nearly 20,000 miles from its country of origin became a term almost unambiguous with the sound of a child shrieking with laughter.
Image credit: View of St. Mary-le-Bow Church from Cheapside #2 by Robert Lamb, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
