A "twitchell" in Nottingham.

[get2BJ]

I found this website a few years ago - International Pedestrian Lexicon, which refers to the snickets and snickleways of the north of England (notably York)

BEFORE you go there, see if any of you can guess what Mutzig Waves, Truncated Domes and Bostals are!

Many other interesting terms for street furniture, worth a quick visit!

Brenda

[astapo]

I was born "up the gennel" Bestwood colliery village Nottm. There it refers to the alleyway between the backs of two parallel rows of houses with walled back yards. It was wide enough for the dustbin lorry to drive down and empty the middens that were accessed either side of the gennel via a wooden door set half way up the wall for each house. I understood that a Twitchel was a wide usually hedged alleyway as was a gitty, but more narrow. Whilst an "Entry"was the narrow passage in the middle of a row of terraced houses leading to the backs of the houses, the rooms on the first floor either side covered it over the top making it like a tunnel.

[Penny Gallo]

Hence someone with bandy legs being, "He couldn't stop a pig up an entry"

There used to be beautiful twitchell in Mansfield called "The Lurchills". It was said to have been created so that tramps and vagrants could be diverted (or possibly avoid, as most Edwardian postcards depict a Police Constable on duty there!) the market place.

[babygirl101]

Hence someone with bandy legs being, "He couldn't stop a pig up an entry"

There used to be beautiful twitchell in Mansfield called "The Lurchills". It was said to have been created so that tramps and vagrants could be diverted (or possibly avoid, as most Edwardian postcards depict a Police Constable on duty there!) the market place.

Now there are some names I haven't heard for a very long time, being from Nottinghamshrie myself. As others have said 'twitchell' is in every day usage, and I remember 'The Lurchills' in Mansfield very well from my school days. Thank you for refreshing my memory. Another terms along similar lines was 'gitty' (not sure how it was actually spelt - the G pronounced as in gin).

BG

[Penny Gallo]

My Mum is Archivist of the Old Mansfield Society, so I can immerse myself in nostalgia of what this once attractive town used to look like. I expect you too, BG, have had a look at the photos stored on "www.picturethepast.com" (sorry, don't know how to highlight a website yet) - it has loads on the town pre-ringroad, pre-shopping centre, pre-1970s Brutalism.
I would also say jitty, interchangeable with jennel. xxx Penny

[BeeE586]

There was a gennel at the back of our house in Blackpool, but I'm not sure if it was a local term or what my Derbyshire grandparents called it. Another term used was 'jitty' - at least that is how I remembered it.

Eileen

Rod and Myth - nice to see you back, both sorely missed.

[SearchingSadler]

A twitchell to me is normally a little 'cut through', a pathway.

A gennel is the same, but I've always thought more of an entry between houses, in other words another pathway between houses

but then thats nottingham for ya lol, ya darnt tork like wot we does rand ere

[Davemiles]

Should you happen to wander the town centre of Long Eaton you will stumble across "The Twitchell" pub. So named as it now stands on what was once a stretch of alley it now describes.

[tony vines]

Eileen

I think that if you examine the dates on this thread you will see that Rod last contributed in 2006!

regards

[Ken McDonald]

Twitchell is also used in parts of Essex and Hertfordshire to mean an alley or footpath, for example where I live in Stansted.

Twitten is used in Sussex to mean the same thing.

In the Netherlands, Tussen, which means 'between' is also used in the same way.

I wonder if there is a common derivation way back.