Continued transcribed tidbits of Newfoundland and Labrador's history and folklore. ENJOY! Newfoundland Words and Their Meanings Here is a small selection of Newfoundland words and their meanings. It is not always certain where a word originated or its spelling. You won't hear the townies (people from St. John's) saying these as much as the baymen (people from the outports). Even the "baymen" don't use most of these anymore! angishore= a weak, miserable person arn = any ballyrag= to abuse bannikin = a small tin cup barrisway= a lagoon at a rivermouth bedlamer = a one year old seal chucklehead= a stupid person chinch = to stow tightly clout = to hit an opponent hard clobber = an untidy state of things come-from-away= a tourist doter = an old seal douse = to give a quick blow drung = a narrow, rocky lane drook = a valley with steep wooded slopes duff = pudding of flour, fat pork and molasses dulse = a kind a seaweed dudeen = a pipe faddle = a bundle of firewood, fardel flipper= a seal's forepaw floaters = men who fished from the schooners using cod traps rather than jiggers. frape = a rope with blocks to moor a boat funk = smoke or vapor of evil odour gandy = a pancake gulvin = the stomach of a codfish gowdy = awkward heft = to weigh in the hand huffed = vexed hummock = a small hill jinker = one who brings bad luck lashins = plenty lolly = soft ice beginning to form in harbour longers = rails for a fence lops = small breaking seas mauzy = misty mush = porridge narn = none nish = tender, easily injured planchen = the floor prise = a lever prog = food puddock = stomach rawny/scrawney= very thin, bony scrawb = to tear with the nails scut = a dirty, mean person scruff = the back of the neck sish = ice broken into particles by surf slob = ice newly frozen shule = to move away backwards smidge = a stain sloo/slew= to get out of the way slieveen = a deceitful person squabby = soft as jelly squish = sound of waters exuding from boots spile = a peg for a hole in the cask swatch = to shoot seals in pools amid icefloes swig = to drink from a bottle switchel = cold tea teeveen = a patch on a boat titivate = to adorn exceedingly fine tole = to entice with bait traipse = to walk around unnecessarily truck = payment for fish by merchandise tuckamore = a low clump of trees twig = to catch a meaning wattle = a small slim fir yarry = rising early, alert yaffle = an armful of dried fish yer = here yap = to retort angrily Provincial Symbols Official Bird - Atlantic Puffin Official Game Bird - Ptarmigan (Partridge) Floral Emblem - Pitcher Plant The Climate of Newfoundland A land renowned for its independence and diversity, Newfoundland is home to a fascinating array of climates and weather. Its geography explains many of the unique features of the province's climate. The island covers 5 1/2 degrees of latitude, about the same as the Great Lakes. Its southern extremity lies close to the forty-seventh parallel, approximately the same latitude as Seattle and Paris. It covers an area of 108 860 km2, with elevations ranging from sea level to above 800 m. There are few physical barriers to protect Newfoundland from weather systems sweeping across it. Its situation on the eastern side of North America favours strong seasonal contrasts in the visiting air masses. Climatically, Newfoundland is the most maritime of the Atlantic Provinces, and this is evident in all seasons, but especially in spring and summer, which are quite cool by Canadian standards. To Know Newfoundland is to Know the Sea It is said Newfoundlanders live on, by, and from the sea. No place is more than 100 km from the ocean, and therefore every part of the island is subject to the year-round modifying influences of the encircling cold waters. Surface water temperatures on the Atlantic side range from summer highs of 11 to 13C inshore and 8 to 11C offshore to winter lows of -1 C inshore and +2C offshore. Sea temperatures on the Gulf side are warmer than the Atlantic side by 1 to 3C. The open sea keeps winter air temperatures a little higher and summer temperatures slightly lower on the coast than at places inland. The marine climate means generally more changeable weather, ample precipitation in a variety of forms (sometimes all at once), higher humidity, lower visibility, more cloud, less sunshine, and stronger winds than a continental climate. Storm Fury Ample amounts of low cloud, heavy precipitation, and strong wind over Newfoundland are evidence of the number of storms that pass over and near the island. Indeed, many of the storms that cross North America during the year from west to east, or develop and intensify off the East Coast of the United States, pass near the island while they move out to the North Atlantic. The result is that Newfoundland has a deserved reputation as one of the stormiest parts of the continent. It also has some of the most variable weather anywhere. At all times of the year Newfoundland is near one of the principal storm tracks. The severity and frequency of storms is greatest between November and March, although they may occur at any time of the year. Winter cyclones are fast-moving storms (up to 80 km/h) that bring abundant and varied precipitation. They pose a serious threat to fishermen, commercial shipping, and offshore oil and gas exploration activities. Winds often mount to gale and sometimes hurricane force. Hardly a winter goes by without at least three or four East Coast gales. Occasionally, throughout the year, mature cyclones are prevented from moving out of the region by an upper atmosphere block. The resulting cool, cloudy, and rainy weather associated with the system may persist for a week or more. During the summer and early fall, Newfoundland weather is typically less stormy. However, in the fall, tropical storms spawned near the equator and developed in the Caribbean may bring windy, wet weather while they pass by the island before dying or redeveloping in the North Atlantic. Over the past thirty-five years, an average of one tropical storm per year has passed within 300 km of Newfoundland. One of the most notorious of these was the "Independence Hurricane" that struck eastern Newfoundland on September 9, 1775. About 4000 sailors, mostly from the British Isles, were reported to have been drowned. On September 5, 1978, another violent storm, Hurricane Ella, passed south of Cape Race. Her winds exceeded 220 km/h. At St. John's, 45 mm of rain fell and winds reached 115 km/h. Floes and Wintry Ghosts During the first half of each year the waters off Newfoundland may become choked with ice floes and icebergs. The severity of ice varies considerably, depending on the strength and direction of the wind and the coldness of the air. In a normal year, ice enters the Strait of Belle Isle by the beginning of January. The ice edge usually reaches Notre Dame Bay by the end of the month and Cape Freels by the middle of February. On the west side, Labrador ice moves into the Gulf of St. Lawrence through the Strait of Belle Isle, but the vast majority of the ice is formed within the Gulf itself and the estuary. The ice edge reaches its maximum southern extent in March, filling the innumerable bays and coves and effectively retarding the advent of spring. In April the rate of melting overtakes the southward ice drift and the pack slowly retreats. Normally by mid-month navigation through the Strait of Belle Isle is possible.By mid-June the median ice edge retreats to the mid-Labrador coast. In extreme years ice may linger south of Belle Isle after Canada Day. Each year an average of 250 icebergs drift along in the cold waters of the Labrador Current onto the Grand Banks. These majestic, wintry ghosts worry mariners more than pack ice, chasing drill platforms off site or barricading fishermen in the many bays and harbours. Icebergs have been counted and tracked since the sinking of the Titanic in 1912. Although 250 is an average number, the yearly extremes have ranged from none in 1966 to 2202 in 1984.