A review of the nicknames used by English football teams reveals a beguiling insight into English social history over the last 150 years.
All football teams appear to get a nickname, bestowed upon them affectionately by their loyal fans. Although in one very famous case - that of Manchester United - the nickname of The Red Devils was in fact invented by the club itself as a marketing ploy, copyrighted and eventually the Red Devil himself was included in the team's coat of arms.
The origin of the name may seem obvious, or may be lost in the mists of time or even not known today.
In many cases the nickname is derived from the colour of the team?s shirts. Obvious examples of these include:
Chelsea - The Blues Burnley - the Clarets Watford - the Hornets Preston North End - The Lilywhites Liverpool - The Reds Newcastle United - The Magpies Coventry City - The Sky Blues Blackpool United - the Tangerines Weymouth - The Terras Cambridge United - the Yellows Hull City - the Tigers
Other nicknames are far more prosaic in origin, being based upon abbreviations or contractions of the team?s real name. Examples of these instances include :
Middlesbrough - Boro Rochdale - the Dale Gillingham - the Gills Wigan Athletic - the Latics Queens Park Rangers - QPR Blackburn Rovers - The Rovers Aldershot Town - The Shots Shrewsbury Town - The Shrews Tottenham Hotspur - Spurs Swansea City - The Swans Woverhampton Wanderers - Wolves
Location plays an important part in a lot of team nicknames
Sunderland - The Black Cats (named after the Black cat gun battery which was located on the banks of the River Wear) Bournemouth - The Cherries (the stadium was built on the site of a cherry orchard) Carlisle United - The Cumbrians (Carlisle is in the county of Cumbria) Bristol Rovers - The Gas ( their old ground was situated next to the gasworks) Torquay United - The Gulls (Torquay is beside the sea) Tamworth - The Lambs ( the team plays at The Lamb Ground, named after a local pub) Grimsby Town - The Mariners (Grimsby is on the coast) Rotherham United - The Millers ( the pitch is called Millmoor) Sheffield Wednesday - The Owls ( they play in an area of Sheffield known as Owlerton) Kettering Town - The Poppies ( their stadium was built on a poppy field) Blackburn Rovers - The Riversiders (their site is built on the banks of a river) Bolton Wanderers - The Trotters (in the 19th century the ground was situated next to a piggery)
Other nicknames are derived from local occupations or industries:
Sheffield United - The Blades ( local links with cutlery manufacture) Burton Albion - The Brewers ( Burton is a major centre for the brewing industry ) Hereford United - The Bulls (from the local cattle industry) Wycombe Wanderers - The Chairboys ( local furniture industry) Northampton Town - The Cobblers (from the local boot and shoe industry) Yeovil Town - The Glovers (local links to the glove making industry ) Luton Town - The Hatters (Luton was for many years a centre for the production of hats) Crewe Alexander - The Railwaymen ( Crewe was constructed as a railway town
Finally, a short selection of some of the more humorous, bizarre or obtuse derivations:
Charlton Athletic ? The Addicks ( A corruption of the ward ?haddocks? after a neighbourhood fish and chip shop) Norwich City ? The Canaries ( Norwich was a leading centre for the breeding of canaries. The team later adopted the green and yellow of the Norwich Canary as their playing strip) Hartlepool United ? The Monkey Hangers (During the Napoleonic wars the citizens of Hartlepool allegedly hung a monkey believing it to be a French spy) Bury ? The Shakers (The first Chairman of the club, J T Ingham said before a local derby game against Blackburn ?We will shake them, in fact we are the Shakers?) Peterborough United ? The Posh (A previous manager of the team is reputed to have said ?We are looking for posh players for a posh team?)
We hope this trawl though the history behind the nicknames of English football teams has been amusing and enlightening.
All football teams appear to get a nickname, bestowed upon them affectionately by their loyal fans. Although in one very famous case - that of Manchester United - the nickname of The Red Devils was in fact invented by the club itself as a marketing ploy, copyrighted and eventually the Red Devil himself was included in the team's coat of arms.
The origin of the name may seem obvious, or may be lost in the mists of time or even not known today.
In many cases the nickname is derived from the colour of the team?s shirts. Obvious examples of these include:
Chelsea - The Blues Burnley - the Clarets Watford - the Hornets Preston North End - The Lilywhites Liverpool - The Reds Newcastle United - The Magpies Coventry City - The Sky Blues Blackpool United - the Tangerines Weymouth - The Terras Cambridge United - the Yellows Hull City - the Tigers
Other nicknames are far more prosaic in origin, being based upon abbreviations or contractions of the team?s real name. Examples of these instances include :
Middlesbrough - Boro Rochdale - the Dale Gillingham - the Gills Wigan Athletic - the Latics Queens Park Rangers - QPR Blackburn Rovers - The Rovers Aldershot Town - The Shots Shrewsbury Town - The Shrews Tottenham Hotspur - Spurs Swansea City - The Swans Woverhampton Wanderers - Wolves
Location plays an important part in a lot of team nicknames
Sunderland - The Black Cats (named after the Black cat gun battery which was located on the banks of the River Wear) Bournemouth - The Cherries (the stadium was built on the site of a cherry orchard) Carlisle United - The Cumbrians (Carlisle is in the county of Cumbria) Bristol Rovers - The Gas ( their old ground was situated next to the gasworks) Torquay United - The Gulls (Torquay is beside the sea) Tamworth - The Lambs ( the team plays at The Lamb Ground, named after a local pub) Grimsby Town - The Mariners (Grimsby is on the coast) Rotherham United - The Millers ( the pitch is called Millmoor) Sheffield Wednesday - The Owls ( they play in an area of Sheffield known as Owlerton) Kettering Town - The Poppies ( their stadium was built on a poppy field) Blackburn Rovers - The Riversiders (their site is built on the banks of a river) Bolton Wanderers - The Trotters (in the 19th century the ground was situated next to a piggery)
Other nicknames are derived from local occupations or industries:
Sheffield United - The Blades ( local links with cutlery manufacture) Burton Albion - The Brewers ( Burton is a major centre for the brewing industry ) Hereford United - The Bulls (from the local cattle industry) Wycombe Wanderers - The Chairboys ( local furniture industry) Northampton Town - The Cobblers (from the local boot and shoe industry) Yeovil Town - The Glovers (local links to the glove making industry ) Luton Town - The Hatters (Luton was for many years a centre for the production of hats) Crewe Alexander - The Railwaymen ( Crewe was constructed as a railway town
Finally, a short selection of some of the more humorous, bizarre or obtuse derivations:
Charlton Athletic ? The Addicks ( A corruption of the ward ?haddocks? after a neighbourhood fish and chip shop) Norwich City ? The Canaries ( Norwich was a leading centre for the breeding of canaries. The team later adopted the green and yellow of the Norwich Canary as their playing strip) Hartlepool United ? The Monkey Hangers (During the Napoleonic wars the citizens of Hartlepool allegedly hung a monkey believing it to be a French spy) Bury ? The Shakers (The first Chairman of the club, J T Ingham said before a local derby game against Blackburn ?We will shake them, in fact we are the Shakers?) Peterborough United ? The Posh (A previous manager of the team is reputed to have said ?We are looking for posh players for a posh team?)
We hope this trawl though the history behind the nicknames of English football teams has been amusing and enlightening.
About the Author:
Owen Jones, the writer of this piece, writes on several topics, but is currently concerned with London Olympics 2012 venues. Click a link if you are interested in 2012 London Olympics Volunteers.
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