Identity
What Do We Mean When We Call Somewhere Northern?
What do we mean by northern? Separate geography, regional identity and point of view before a debate starts, so people…
The archive
All essays
Essays and explainers on the language, memory, institutions and changing ideas that shape northern public life.
Language
Accent, Dialect and the Stories People Attach to a Voice
Accent, dialect and the stories people attach to a voice are not the same thing; learn what each term describes and…
Memory
The Local History Plaque: What It Can and Cannot Tell You
Learn how to read a local history plaque, check its claims against other sources and notice the choices shaping what a…
Institutions
Why a Committee Has More Than One Kind of Work
Committee roles can be easy to misread. Learn how to tell whether a body advises, decides or delivers, and identify…
Change
When a Familiar Custom Changes Without Disappearing
Learn how to describe a familiar custom as it changes: trace its purpose, participants and setting without mistaking…
Our point of view
A northern view, open to question
The North is not one story, and no single voice can stand for it. We look closely at the language, memories and institutions that shape its many public lives.