Saturday 20th July sees a very special public lecture take place at the new Experience Barnsley Museum and Discovery Centre. Organised by The Yorkshire Dialect Society and presented by Yorkshire Dialect Society Council Member and PhD researcher at The University of Sheffield Kate Burland, the lecture will take a look at the distinctive accent of Royston and its links to an influx of miners from the Black Country at the end of the 19th Century.
A representative from Experience Barnsley will also highlight the museum’s Sound Archive and section of local dialect.
The research came from Kate’s study into the Royston accent as part of her PhD thesis. I spoke to Kate about the lecture. She said, ‘the Royston accent is well-known locally for being distinctly different to the rest of the Borough and my research considers if this perception is actually based on discernible differences in the accents.’
I asked her what kind of research she did and who she had been speaking to locally to help with research.
‘I am interested in the links between local identity and accent and so I have been working closely with members of the Royston History group over the last two years in order to be able to study the geographical and demographic aspects which might make Royston unique in terms of history and accent. There was a major influx of workers from the Black Country to Royston at the end or the 19th Century to work at Monckton Colliery and it is the belief of many that this influx left a lasting imprint upon the local accent. As well as interviewing Royston residents, both young and older, I have conducted a more ‘scientific’ study of the accent features of Royston, Barnsley and Wakefield residents in order to consider any differences, as Roston is sandwiched between the two towns.’
Where The Black Country Meets Black Barnsley is one of the first in what will be a continuing series of public lectures taking place at Experience Barnsley.
For more info about this event, contact kate.burland@sheffield.ac.uk 01226 205346
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