Bermudian English

Introduction

With an estimated 65,000 speakers, Bermudian English is the smallest national variety yet to be represented in the OED. It’s also one of the oldest; settled in 1612, Bermuda was one of the very first places—after Jamestown, Virginia—where English was spoken outside the British Isles. This long history, along with diverse linguistic influences, has resulted in an unusual English variety that is often said to sound American or West Indian to a British ear, and quaintly British to American listeners. While it’s true that Bermudian English shares a range of words and sounds with British, American, and Caribbean Englishes, it also has many unique features, meaning it’s probably most accurate to say that it’s a dialect in a category of its own.

Excerpt taken from the OED blog post, ‘From chingas to chopsing: introducing Bermudian English’ by Dr Rosemary Hall, which explores the history and current status and linguistic features of English in Bermuda

Bermudian English words recently recorded in the OED

• aceboy, n.
• acegirl, n.
• Bermudian English, adj. and n.
• chingas, int.
• chopse, v.
• chopsing, n.
• go long, phrase in ‘long, adv.2′
• Gombey, n.
• greeze, n.
• gribble, adj.
• mice, v.
• mug, adj.2
• Onion, n.
• well, adj. and n.3
• wrinch, v.2

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Additional resources