Title:
Skenfrith, Monmouthshire
Shelfmark:
C908/61
Description:
Jim talks about changes in farming practice and briefly mentions Skenfrith castle. Abergavenny is a town to the southwest of Skenfrith. Lexis: aye = yes; somewhat = something; this here = this
Phonology:
H-dropping; rhoticity
PRICE [@I]; MOUTH [@u]; START [a`:]; NORTH [O`:]; NURSE [@`:]; FACE [aI]; BATH [a]; lettER [@`] note also year [j@`:], once [w@ns] and one [w@n], here [j@`:], kept [kEp], father [fa:D@`], wagoner [wagIn@`] and Sunday [sVndi]
Grammar: zero plural marker on nouns (thirty-five year ago; twelve mile) third person plural was (farms was cheap then, you know) determiner, those ® them (in them days; I don’t see much fun in doing them old walls up; there was a lot of men kept on them estates) third person plural subject pronoun ® them (them can ride all day; I don’t know who them be; them a-done it up; four foot thick, them be); first person plural subject pronoun ® us (what’ve we been up here now? I daresay thirty years, han us?) third person plural be (I don’t know who them be; four foot thick, them be) preterite a-done (them a-done it up) zero definite article (_ men been there at work a-doing the old walls up) zero auxiliary (men _ been there at work)
Page 1 of 2 there was + plural complement (there was a lot of men kept on them estates) zero for + time phrase (I was there _ fifteen years) first person plural han (what’ve we been up here now? I daresay thirty years, han us)
Page 2 of 2