The argot spoken by the Guild Master and his contemporaries is rooted primarily in Bearla Lagair but is much more cosmopolitan due to the fact that it was developed around London. It is not an argot used by rural rough masons but rather by Free or Court Masons. Although the argot name is not used and it is instead always referred to as the 'bine' (masons' talk or mason language),  for this exercise we will call it Bearlish.

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The tradition has it that the Bearlish should not be written down, for the time being, we will keep a lexicon on this page, once we have learned this it will be removed. We will them move back to teaching the jibberish in the manner of what we call a Bard or in Occitan a Troubadour.

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Argot Roots:

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French Regional

Alsatian, Basque (Navarro-Lapurdian dialect, Souletin dialect), Breton, Catalan (Northern Catalan dialect), Corsican, Dutch (French Flemish dialect), Franco-Provençal, Gallo, Lorraine Franconian, Occitan, Picard

Brittonic
Breton, Cornish, Welsh

Goidelic
Irish, Manx, Scottish Gaelic

Mixed
Shelta, Bungee

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West
Old Saxon, Middle Low German, Old High German, Middle High German, Frankish, Old Dutch, Middle Dutch, Old Frisian, Middle Frisian, Old English, Middle English, Early Scots, Middle Scots, Lombardic, Forth and Bargy, Fingallian

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North

Proto-Norse, Old Norse, Old Swedish, Old Gutnish Norn, Greenlandic Norse, Old Norwegian, Middle Norwegian

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Anglo French

Jèrriais, Dgèrnésiais, Sercquiais' Auregnais

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Eastern

Thug, Aramaic, Hebrew,Vlach, Arvanitika, Romka (Gypsies), the Aleifiatika, the Sopika, the Moutzourika, Greek, Turkish

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African

Zulu, Xhosa, Chewa, Shona, Tigrinya, Berber

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A quick guide to counting in Bearlish (numbers 0-10)

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Basic Lexicon 

 

A

Ach - Eight

Âd - Two

Aitean (A chown) - Cunt from Irish

An - Sword

Âr - Great

Atr got - Thief -- from Arabic/Armenian?

Attercoppe - Spider from Old English/Anglo Saxon

Aught - Any from Forth and Bargy

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B

Baso - Sun from Armenian

Bîle - Mouth

Bini - Talk

Binouze - Beer (going for a)

Bôs - Fist

Branter - Steep

Brāt - Coat

Bringe - Brush

Buá - Woman from Bearla

C

Cadiera - Chair

Chàté (sharteh) - Castle

Chîmân - Stick

Chivvy - drive along - Romani

Ciav - Key

Cnapaire - Strong/proud

Costiveness - constipation from London slang poss. 16th C

Cotchel - small amount, hand full from london slang

Coûtair (Koot eye) - Cost

Cul Tona - Dickhead from Irish

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D

Dagemete - breakfast from Anglo Saxon

Dáré - Say

Dārk - Knife

Dāv - Bull

Dēd - Tooth

Dêshê -  Yes

Dig - Drink empty

Dôlê - Bread Trough

Drin - Back

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E

Ealu - Beer

Earsling - Backwards from Anglo Saxon

Envelopa - Cover

Eôlôr - Mortar

Ergarder - Watch

Ēsht - Listen

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F

Fē - Meat

Ferrat - Bucket from occitan

Fōshg - Sheep

Foruch - Foreman

Freon - Friend from Frisian

Frumbyrdling - Young man growing first beard from Anglo Saxon

Fullgearwian - Finish, Complete

Furmai - Cheese from Normand

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G

Gáhir - Father

Gâl - White (bright)

Gâp - Kiss

Gelt - Money from Yiddish

Gēûg - Arm

Gravi - Gravel

Grē - Rise

Gréûg - Hurry up

Gulba - Gold

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H

Hache - Axe

Haler - Pull

Hernais - Cart

Hle - Good

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J

Jen - One

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K

Kam - Son

Kanjani - How

Kārûb - Cart

Kattumaram - Tied wood from Tamil

Kaudas = Master from Mastorika

Kesin - accurate from Ottoman

Khūakh - Cup

Kirkja - church

Knu - Finger nail

Kôb - Lip (mouth)

Kôrâ - Priest

Kotar from khotar -  policeman - from Thug

Kru - Skin

Krub - Foot

Krwee - Cross

Kude - Far

Kūr - Rubbish

Kûrn - Glass

Kúênig - Eat

Kvetch - to complain from Yiddish

Kyârlan - Music

Kys t'ou? - How are you?

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L

Lāība -Hit

Lâmârê - Bag

Lāpīn - Shoe

L'entre panné - Mullion

Lêôkh - Fighter

Liethe - Read

Lima - Milk

Lôkh - Man

Lúndra - Bright sun

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M

Machunnii - Masonry from Normand

Maiethon - House from Normand

Mailloche - Mallet From Normand

Man nom est - My Name is from Normand

Mânârûn - Room

Mārk - Man

Mârkôkh - Rider

Martè - Hammer from Normand

Matant - Scaffold

Meler - to mix

Mìar - Devil, destroyer, bad luck from Bearla, Irish

Mîn - Small

Mînkur - low people, small fry, not us. Translates to small rubbish

Míshê - I, Myself

Mo - Soft

Moghrey mie - Good morning

Montell - Hill (small mountain)

Mortchi - Mortar

Mûrûkhō - Black (Dark)

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N

Nâkht - Night

Netti - Clean

Ni - Small

Nidêsh -  No

Nishē - No

Nispit from Nispet -  Ratio --from Old Turkic

Nive - spirit level

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O

Ō - Song/poem

Oglokh - Young man

Ôkh - Horse

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P

Pandal - Temporary shelter from Tamil

Paragioi = apprentice masters from Mastorika

Pêd - leg

Pegar - Glue

Pelle - Shovel from Normand

Pierre - Stone from Normand

Pierre de caux - Limestone from Normand

Pierre de gres - Sandstone from Normand

Pierre a feu - Flint from Normand

Plianchi - To lay a floor

Pliomb - Plumbline from Normand

Plionmet - Spirit level from Normand

Poli - Polish from Normand

Ponsi - Dust from Normand

Potè - Putty from Normand

Punt - Bridge from Occitan Lombard

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R

Rē - Moon

Rēhāīlâkh - Home (stopping place)

Resson - Echo from Normand

Rester - Stay

Riht - To erect a plumb line

Rîstan - Prison

Rithe - Laugh

Rū - Red

Rûsk - Eye

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S

St. Cliément - St. Clement

Saba - Saturday from Piedmontese

Sa sanach - Englishman (Saxon person)

S'assiethe - Sit down from Normand

Seomra - Room

Septante - Seventy from Normand

S'tchi - To dry

Sablion - Sand from Normand

Sale (sahl) - Dirty

Scie d'long - frigbob

Sha - New

Shavers - Children from Romani

Shurka - Brother from Bearla

Skrûgal - Throat

Soowen - Seven

Sock - Six

Soul - Drunk

Spaleux - Scutch from Normand

Sūbli - Journeyman, walker, itinerant mason, person moving as a boy

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T

Tâchi - Try

Tain - Ten

Tau - Two

Tchitter - leave

Tchui - Leather

Tchuyan - Hose

Tee La - Thankyou

Tēs - Bread

Theezil - Yourself from Forth and Bargy

Thóber - Road

Tile - Adze

Tirāth karnā -  to get drunk - Literaly meaning make pilgrimage - from Thug

Tise - Alcohol

Tithot - Hand Drill from Normand

Tree - Three

Tron - Blunt

Truelle - Trowel from Normand

Trus  (Troos) - Trousers

Tūki - Girl

Tûlûp - Belly

Twallow - Twelve

Tweeks - five

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V

Vàlê - Town

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W

Wênê - Green

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Y

Yindilinga - Circular from Zulu