College gets grant to find out the origins of '˜squinny' and '˜dinlo'

Students from Havant and South Downs College will investigate the origins of the accent and try to discover why it has little in common with the ‘country’ Hampshire accent spoken in surrounding areas.

They will work with film production company Millstream Productions to make a documentary film based on their research.

It will form part of an exhibition at the Aspex Gallery next autumn.

As part of the project – run in partnership with the Aspex and Portsmouth History Centre - students will also work with visual artists to create interactive exhibits and a series of podcasts.

Steve Murray, project co-ordinator and teacher at the college, said: ‘

‘The students will also be looking at the origins of popular Pompey sayings such as “dinlo” and “squinny”.

‘The project will give students the opportunity to work in the real world with industry professionals and will be excellent preparation for their future careers.’

Student Abbie Spratt said: ‘I was born in Portsmouth and grew up in Fareham so it will be interesting to research the history of my family’s dialect and see how it came to be.