18 replies to this topic

[joycegb]

Living in St Helens I always thought a moggie was a cat, although 'moggie meat was cheese' so maybe it was a mouse. However my now ex brother-in law from Liverpool insists it is a dog.

What do the locals think!!!

[splus]

A moggie has always been a cat for me.

[brunty]

a moggie in st helens and surrounding areas has always been a mouse, its only since the scouse influx in our once great town that a moggie is a cat.so all you scousers on here a moggie is a mouse.

[eddiedunc]

Spot on Brunty

[mishka]

bruntyed, on Aug 23 2007, 06:23 PM, said:

a moggie in st helens and surrounding areas has always been a mouse, its only since the scouse influx in our once great town that a moggie is a cat.so all you scousers on here a moggie is a mouse.

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! I have printed off the above, blown it up on photo copier and put on office wall. I have been arguing with the other half, a Manc, for years over this. He says cat - I reply how can it be a cat when cheese is called moggie meat, cats don't eat cheese, but mice do. Maybe this will finally shut him up.

[Griffin]

I grew up with the idea of a moggie being a mouse, and can vaguely recall the first time I heard the term refer to a cat. It's probably fair to say that the "mouse" meaning is quite restricted to West Lancashire. The etymology is hard to get to grips with, but it seems that originally, in rural areas, a moggie was a cow or calf. You could imagine that "moggie mouse" was simply a childish, alliterative term for a mouse, much as Walt Disney named his cartoon character Mortimer Mouse, later to become Mickey Mouse. Perhaps a cat was a "moggie-catcher" and the "catcher" part fell into disuse.

[glenda]

I have just completed a quick survey in the office in which I work, and the general consensus is that a moggie ia a mouse. As previously commented upon it is only since the over population of Scousers that the language has changed.

[Griffin]

Hey, Glen, Scousers are a sensitive subject here. Criticise them, and you risk incurring the opprobrium of the resident Militant Tendency. Fear not, though, because the Right has a small but keen membership here as well.

[glenda]

Thanks for the tip off, didn't really mean to offend, but having spent time away from St. Helens for 10 years or so I haven't half noticed a big difference in the 'make-up' of St. Helens people. But to keep on subject I suppose then adulteration of a language, even the meaning of moggie, is so sadly inevitable.

[sweetIsis]

You are all wrong Moggie is my son!! (from my first marriage), his name is David Mogg - known to his friend as Moggie - so there you are!

[splus]

I am not a Scouser and I have always known moggies as cats. Look at the Mog and Meg children's books too. The character Mog is a cat.

[Olliebeak]

I always knew 'moggies' to be mice until I married 'a scouser' (shock! horror!! traitoress!!!). I got most confused when hearing cats referred to as 'moggies' for the first time. Unfortunately, as I settled in Huyton, it was something that I just HAD to live with. Now my son has moved to St.Helens, he is getting used to calling mice 'moggies' - oh how the Wheel of Life turns!

[Vanwall]

I had a school mate at Rivi Rd called Malcolm Morris his nick-name was Moggie.

[Griffin]

Curious that people now refer to the Morris Minor as the "Moggie" Minor, yet the three-wheeler Morgan was called a Moggie some years ago.

[donkey o'tay]

glenda, on Aug 24 2007, 01:26 PM, said:

Thanks for the tip off, didn't really mean to offend, but having spent time away from St. Helens for 10 years or so I haven't half noticed a big difference in the 'make-up' of St. Helens people. But to keep on subject I suppose then adulteration of a language, even the meaning of moggie, is so sadly inevitable.

Many assumptions there.
1) that moggie = cat in standard English
2) That what is spoken in St Helens is the English language
3) That the 'make up' of St Helens people was ever any different than the make up of Liverpool people.

What do you think?