cockney

Từ điển Oxford Advanced Learner 8th

cock·ney [cockney cockneys] BrE [ˈkɒkni] NAmE [ˈkɑːkni] noun
1. countable a person from the East End of London
2. uncountable the way of speaking that is typical of cockneys
•a cockney accent

Word Origin:
late Middle English (denoting a pampered child): origin uncertain; it is apparently not the same word as Middle English cokeney ‘cock's egg’, denoting a small misshapen egg (probably from ↑cock + obsolete ey ‘egg’). A later sense was ‘a town-dweller regarded as affected or puny’, from which the current sense arose in the early 17th cent.

Culture:
Traditionally, a true cockney was somebody born within the sound of ↑Bow Bells, but the word is often used of any Londoner who speaks with a local accent. Cockneys are thought of as quick, cheerful people with a good sense of humour.