Owhamya? Is the Black Country Dialect disappearing?

Historically the Black Country, an area which was once engulfed by a 30ft coal seam, is made up of West Bromwich, Oldbury, Blackheath, Cradley Heath, Old Hill, Bilston, Dudley, Tipton, Wednesfield and parts of Halesowen.

Today, however, the four local authorities in the area – Dudley, Walsall, Sandwell and Wolverhampton – are typically known as the Black Country councils even though some will argue that’s not quite correct.

As with any language, we are reliant on the previous generation to pass on their language traits to the next, Dr Asprey said.

“It is kept alive by a great number of people who use and speak it every day, it’s in a really good position as they use the dialect without even thinking about it – it’s their first language.”