I was delighted to read Rosie Irvine’s letter (19 December) describing her father’s use of “lozzerk” in the sense of “lounging together as a family in front of the television”. I hope Rosie will be equally delighted to know that her word is recorded in the magnificent English Dialect Dictionary – an extraordinarily comprehensive six-volume collection of 19th-century British regional vocabulary edited by Joseph Wright and published between 1898 and 1905. Wright lists various spellings, which he combines in a single entry at “lozzuck”, defining it as “to lounge; to loll; to idle; to chatter”. The entry records that “lozzuck” was (probably still is) restricted to Lancashire, Cheshire, Staffordshire and Shropshire, which ties in perfectly with Rosie’s description.
As a dialectologist, it’s always a pleasure to see evidence – of which there is plenty, despite frequent and exaggerated reports to the contrary – of the endurance of local dialect. The Evolving English WordBank, created by visitors to the British Library’s Evolving English exhibition, confirms this continued diversity and, like Wright’s great dictionary, is the result of contributions submitted enthusiastically by members of the public aware of the importance of vernacular speech to our sense of individual and shared identities.
Jonnie Robinson
British Library
• I wonder if there are regional variations of lozzerking? My mother, a Cheshire (Northwich) woman, always used it as a term of censure. (“How can you say you’re tired when you’ve spent the whole day lozzacking on the sofa?” “Stop lozzacking and do something useful for a change.”) My two cousins – daughters of two of my mother’s sisters – were able to confirm this interpretation. And no, we didn’t need lighted candles, nor hand-knitted socks, to lozzack. Though a thick jumper or two was always handy in those pre-central heating days.
Sally Phillips
London
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