4. People From Other Places Think Saying "Duck" Is Weird
Stokies are not impressed by Angelina Jolie trying to say "Duck". They've been saying it since Saxon times. Originally, the Saxon word "ducas" was a term of respect; it's related to the word that became "Duke". Over time, "duck" came to be used as a respectful, friendly greeting, not unlike calling someone "sir", "guv" or "squire". The greeting isn't restricted to Stoke, of course, and is also used widely in the Black Country, Derbyshire, etc. But it is in Stoke-on-Trent that the greeting finds its most poetic form, most especially in the common phrase "Up 'Anley, duck." As in, "I'm going up bank to Hanley now, shug." And, yes, "shug" is used too. Stokies like variety in their confusing vernacular.