I remember taking a man from England to George Ashe’s general store in Guinea to introduce him to some of my friends. As we went in the store, some of the Guineamen were talking to each other about their catch of seafood that day and what the weather tomorrow would be like. The men were sitting on boxes around the only heat in the store, and that was a coal stove almost cherry-red from the fire. As I introduced the men from Guinea to the Englishman, he acted surprised about something. I asked him what was wrong and he said, “These men are speaking [Cockney English].” Wikipedia defines Cockney as “an accent and dialect of English, mainly spoken in London and its environs, particularly by working-class and lower middle-class Londoners. The term ‘Cockney’ has traditionally been used to describe a person from the East End or born within earshot of Bow Bells, although it most commonly refers to speakers of the accent/dialect from across London.” The Englishman felt right at home. The only d...