Cockney Rhymes

Has anyone here heard of Cockney rhymes?

They’re a type of south London slang based on rhyming riddles.

For example, take the following conversation.

“Hey, where are you going?”
“apples.”
“oh okay.”

Someone who knows Cockney rhymes will l know that the person is heading for the stairs.

Why?

Well, apples and pears are fruits right? Pears rhymes with stairs. Therefore, you can just say “apples”, and people will link it back to “stairs.” Amazing isn’t it? I’m not making this up.
Here’s another one.

“Hey have a butchers at that crazy Japanese thing!”
“Wow it’s amazing!”

What does the first person mean by “have a butchers?” Well, what’s in a butcher shop? Lots of meat hanging on hooks right? What rhymes with hook? LOOK! So “have a butchers” means, “have a look”.

Don’t believe me? Here’s the mind-blowing kicker. (Here is the Japan related link you have all been waiting for.)

These terms are even listed in the ALC online J-E dictionary!

have a look - have a hook - have a butcher

* have a butcher’s hook at
～をちょっと［ひと目］見る
* have a butchers at
～を見る

apples and pears

* apples and pears
階段｛かいだん｝stairs の押韻俗語

The Cockney Rhyming Slang website has lots of other examples too.

Also, this book Cockney Rabbit: A Dick’N'Arry of Rhyming Slang (by the way, Dick’N'Arry is dictionary!) is filled with other Cockney rhymes.

Here is an explanation and high level Cockney slang example I pulled from aldertons.com.

It is very difficult to describe what Rhyming Slang is without using an example, but I’ll give it a try. Basically, you take a pair of associated words (e.g. fish hook), where the second word rhymes with the word you intend to say, then use the first word of the associated pair to indicate the word you originally intended to say. Usually. And some slang words have more than one meaning (for example, iron can be a bank (Iron Tank) or a homosexual (Iron Hoof - this rhymes with poof which is a particularly English expression for homosexuals), so context is everything! There - clear as mud.

‘Allo me old china - wot say we pop round the Jack. I’ll stand you a pig and you can rabbit on about your teapots. We can ‘ave some loop and tommy and be off before the dickory hits twelve.

or, to translate

Hello my old mate (china plate) - what do you say we pop around to the bar (Jack Tar). I’ll buy you a beer (pig’s ear) and you can talk (rabbit and pork) about your kids (teapot lids). We can have some soup (loop de loop) and supper (Tommy Tucker) and be gone before the clock (hickory dickory dock) strikes twelve.

WOW.

I’m really toeing the “Japan-related line” with this post aren’t I? My geta is on the other side. But it was so interesting I had to share!

- Harvey