How to spot a Janner

First we need to establish exactly what a Janner is? Ask any Plymothian and you're likely to get a different answer.

The generally accepted definition is fairly straightforward: someone who hails from Plymouth. But that's where the simplicity ends.

Does it matter where you were born? Where you grew up? Where your parents came from? How long you've lived here?

Or perhaps it's something you simply know when you hear it - an accent, a phrase or a particular way of looking at the world.

There’s even a wonderfully Plymouth way of defining it: ‘You have to be born within the sound of the Dockyard siren.’

We're not claiming that as historical fact. But we quite like it.

So where does “Janner” come from?

The origins of the word aren't completely settled, but one of the most widely cited explanations takes us back to the Royal Navy and an old Devon form of the name John.

‘Jan’, or ‘Cousin Jan’, was a Westcountry form of the name John, and the term was used by naval personnel when referring to local people. Over time, Janner became particularly associated with people from the Plymouth area.

There are also recollections of Royal Navy personnel using ‘Jan’ and ‘Jan-Boy’ for local people, with Dockyard workers sometimes known as ‘Jan Dockies’.

Exactly how those terms evolved into the word we use today isn't entirely clear.

Which is probably appropriate. Janners have never been particularly keen on unnecessary precision.

How Janner Are You?

Forget complicated scientific measurements.

We've devised a much simpler system.

Give yourself one point for every statement that applies to you.

☐ You fill the car with “petro”

☐ You gets yer groceries “up Azders” or “down Tescos”

☐ You give directions from Saint Boodo to Swilly using pub names — most of which are no longer there!

☐ You'll be ready “dreckly” - and not a minute sooner

☐ Saturday afternoons are for enjoying an “Ivor Doodnies” pasty and shouting “C'mon you Greens!”

☐ On Monday morning, you set your clocks at the sound of the Dockyard siren

☐ You ask your friends and family, “Where you goin' to?”

☐ Everyone is either “me luvver” or “bey”

1–2: Janner Apprentice
You've got a bit of work to do, me luvver

3–4: Just Playing At It
You're showing promise

5–6: 'Ansome
You'm doing not bad. You might just get away with calling yourself a Janner.

7–8: Proper Job
No doubt about it. Geddon!

Were you living here when the Palace Theatre was a bustling part of Plymouth life rather than the sadly deteriorating building it is today?

The theatre opened in 1898 and welcomed generations of performers. Laurel and Hardy appeared there in 1954, during what would prove to be their final European tour.

Maybe you, your parents, or your grandparents remember that visit - or have their own memories of the grand old building that dominates Union Street.

And then there was Union Street itself.

For generations it was one of the loudest, liveliest and most notorious parts of Plymouth, packed with pubs, theatres, cinemas, clubs and entertainment.

It became particularly famous for its nightlife and, in the streets around Stonehouse, a rather more colourful trade.

Let's just say that Union Street wasn't always somewhere you went for a quiet evening out.

For that reason, for many people outside Plymouth, it was probably the only bit of the city they'd heard about.

Britain's Ocean City was once the Spirit Of Disco — **The Spirit of Disco**

Then there are the things that still make Janners sigh.
Plymouth Airport was once part of the fabric of the city, providing a convenient link to the rest of the country and beyond. It closed to commercial flights in 2011, and its loss is still lamented by many of the locals.
Perhaps you remember something even more recent.
Before Plymouth became Britain's Ocean City, the welcome sign on the A38 proudly announced: “Welcome To Plymouth - Spirit of Discovery”.
Until somebody decided to improve upon it.
Mysteriously, and possibly under cover of darkness, the letters V, E, R and Y repeatedly disappeared.

Suddenly Plymouth became: The Spirit Of Disco!

It was, in its own way, a remarkably appropriate bit of Plymouth rebranding.

We don't know who did it. We suspect they were a Janner!

Over to you

There are thousands of Plymouth people with their own words, expressions, memories, local names and fiercely held opinions about what makes someone a proper Janner.

Some expressions are genuinely old Plymouth or Devon dialect. Others have come from the Dockyard and Royal Navy. Some are shared across the Westcountry.

And some may simply be something your family has always said.

We're not going to pretend we know all the answers.

Instead, we want to hear from you! Tell us what we’ve forgotten? What, in your opinion, actually makes someone a proper Janner?

Pop over to the contact page to send us a message.

We'll add the best contributions to this page - whether they're words, phrases, memories, local names, stories or wonderfully obscure bits of Plymouth folklore.

Because this isn't intended to be a definitive answer. It's a conversation. And we're only just getting started.

See ‘ee dreckly!

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