It’s a proper cowd one out there this Sunday, so what better day to dive into a new post?
Today, it’s a little disclaimer about the language that features in my stories…
Author’s Note: The Tongue of the Land
While the Black Country dialect does not belong to the Roman period. It is used within these stories to represent the voice of the common people. The humble folk who stood beside Taranis, shaped by soil, storm, and memory.
The dialect itself descends from Old English. First spoken between 1100–1300 CE, and remains alive in parts of the West Midlands today.
The earlier language spoken in Roman-era Mercia has long been lost, leaving no written record.
By using this dialect, I seek not historical precision but continuity.. To let the living voice of the land speak through its past.
To those who do not understand the dialect…
“Ow bist, bab?”
means “How are you, love?”
“It’s a proper cowd one out there”
translates to “It’s really cold outside.”
So all together:
“How are you, love? It’s a really cold one out there this Sunday, so what better day to dive into a new post?”
The Black Country dialect has a warmth and rhythm all of its own . It’s how my grandparents and neighbours spoke, and how the land itself still seems to talk on quiet days.
It’s the same voice I hear when I write of the Stormborne. Ordinary folk shaped by wind, stone, and rain, who carry the old sounds onward through time.
StormborneLore 