Buddy dere is on'a inside fer sum fine.... [Newfoundland English]

[Mariro]

Hi there!

Newfoundland:
Provincial moto: Buddy dere is on'a inside fer sum fine tinkin' wit' a tacker fer d'gulley, eh bys?
Buddy dere is askin' for it!

I would really appreciate it if a native speaker could explain to me what this sentence in slang means? In particular, those among you who live or have lived in Newfoundland, CA because this is where this sentence comes from.

Just for the record, the author is making fun of Newfoundlanders which he describes as "grinning outport fishermen wearing rubber boots and with no upper plates".

Thank you in advance!

 

[WyomingSue]

You don't need just a native English-speaker, you need a Newfie! I think it starts: "Buddy there (that person) is on the inside for some fine thinking with a ----- for the ----, hey boys?"
We're still missing a few nouns, along with the sense!

 

[looking-at-the-stars]

I'm not expert on this, but some googling brought up tacker as being slang for a kid and gully (in an adjective form) kinda meaning gangsta or street cred. I couldn't find anything on gulley with an e.
So going off of WyomingSue's answer:
"Buddy there (that person) is on the inside for some fine thinking with a kid for the street cred (as in he did if for respect from the street youth), hey boys?"


Now I'm just waiting for someone who actually knows what it means to come laugh at me.

 

[airportzombie]

This is from the book How to Be a Canadian (Even If You Already Are One) by Will and Ian Ferguson. Since it is supposed to be humorous, it probably may not actually mean anything in Newfoundland English. I've checked the Dictionary of Newfoundland English, and the definitions tacker or gulley just don't seem to make any sense—maybe that's the humour!

On another note, this probably wouldn't be slang either. History and geography played a part in making Newfoundland English quite distinctive from other Englishes, not just in vocabulary but in pronunciation (such as rhyming boys with buys). If Newfoundland hadn't joined Confederation in 1949, Newfoundland English would have probably been classified as its own language rather than a dialect of Canadian English.

 

[panjandrum]

The entry in The Oxford Companion to the English Language relating to Newfoundland English includes:

[Newfoundland English is the English] used in the island and provinces of Newfoundland for almost 500 years, and the oldest variety of English in the Americas. It derives primarily from the speech of early settlers from the English West Country and later Ireland, and is the outcome of long, stable settlement and relative remoteness.
​

 

[Mariro]

Well,well... thank you all for your answers!

I knew it was from "How to be a Canadian" because I'm actually translating this book into French ... which is the reason why not knowing exactly what this sentence means, is a big problem for me..
I might have to use a foot note or something even though it's not the best solution..
The help of a Newfoundlander would be more than welcome!

 

[Mariro]

I checked in the Newfoundland English Dictionary as well and yes, it doesn't make any sense! A tacker seems to be some kind of needle used by shoemaker and a gulley (also gully) a ravin. I'm desperate. What do I do if I actually need to translate it?
I've asked a Canadian friend. She is not from Newfoundland but one of a friend was. He wasn't of much help though. Here is what he understood:
“Hey, there is ...... Inside for some fine thinking with ....... Dont you think?”

 

[Mariro]

her* friends

 

[looking-at-the-stars]

I'd say, take your best guess...you understand the gist of the sentence. Perhaps you could just omit some of the details?
As a last resort, if you really must know exactly what the author meant, you could always try to find a contact address or email for the author and just ask. Check their official website or something?

 

[Loob]

The only clue I have is that it's possible that on'a inside/on the inside means "on the coast/mainland of Labrador".

I think looking-at-the-stars' suggestion of contacting the author is a good one!

 

[panjandrum]

One possibility is to avoid the issue completely.
Leave the sentence in it's original form, in "English", and make no comment.
It's part of a block of text:
Newfoundland: "Land of Liars"
Location: Somewhere out there in the fog. Heck if we can find it.
Formal Name: "Newfoundland"
Pronounced: "Newfoundland" (Or, as it is known in the mainland: "NOO-fan-lin," "Nu-FIN-lun," "Newf-and-LIND," and so on.)
Main Industries: It used to be fish. Now it's, um, well, other stuff. You know.
Cultural History: Yes.
Genuine Affection for Mainlanders: No.
Provincial Motto: "Buddy dere is on'a inside fer sum fine tinkin' wit' a tacker fer d'gulley, eh bys?"

It may not be necessary to offer any translation. Perhaps the purpose of the original was to be obscure and enigmatic.

 

[Pedro y La Torre]

On another note, this probably wouldn't be slang either. History and geography played a part in making Newfoundland English quite distinctive from other Englishes, not just in vocabulary but in pronunciation (such as rhyming boys with buys). If Newfoundland hadn't joined Confederation in 1949, Newfoundland English would have probably been classified as its own language rather than a dialect of Canadian English.

I wouldn't go quite that far. Anyone acquainted with Irish English speech can understand them almost perfectly. The rhyming of "boys" with "buys" is also a common rural Irish trait.

Buddy dere looks as it it has the same meaning as "yer man there" in Irish English, or "that guy (there)" in standard(ish) Canadian English.
Tacker and gulley are, I'd guess, fishing related terms. If a Newfie should happen on by and tell us what they mean, the riddle will be solved, though probably too late for Mariro.