Gongoozler
Encyclopedia
Canal
Canals are man-made channels for water. There are two types of canal:#Waterways: navigable transportation canals used for carrying ships and boats shipping goods and conveying people, further subdivided into two kinds:...
s in the United Kingdom. The term is also often used in a more general way to describe those who have an interest in canals and the canal life, but do not actively participate.
Etymology
"Gongoozler" may have been canal workers' slangSlang
Slang is the use of informal words and expressions that are not considered standard in the speaker's language or dialect but are considered more acceptable when used socially. Slang is often to be found in areas of the lexicon that refer to things considered taboo...
for an observer standing apparently idle on the towpath
Towpath
A towpath is a road or trail on the bank of a river, canal, or other inland waterway. The purpose of a towpath is to allow a land vehicle, beasts of burden, or a team of human pullers to tow a boat, often a barge...
. Though it was used derisively in the past, today the term is regularly used, perhaps with a little irony
Irony
Irony is a rhetorical device, literary technique, or situation in which there is a sharp incongruity or discordance that goes beyond the simple and evident intention of words or actions...
, by gongoozlers to describe themselves and their hobby.
The word may have arisen from words in Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
dialect
Dialect
The term dialect is used in two distinct ways, even by linguists. One usage refers to a variety of a language that is a characteristic of a particular group of the language's speakers. The term is applied most often to regional speech patterns, but a dialect may also be defined by other factors,...
: gawn and gooze, both meaning to stare or gape. It might be presumed that such an expression would date from the nineteenth century, when canals were at their peak, but the word is only recorded from the end of that century or the early twentieth. It was given wider use by the late L. T. C. Rolt
L. T. C. Rolt
Lionel Thomas Caswall Rolt was a prolific English writer and the biographer of major civil engineering figures including Isambard Kingdom Brunel and Thomas Telford...
, who used it in his book about canal life, Narrow Boat, in 1944.
"Gongoozler" as a term may also be used in any circumstance in which people are spectating without contributing to either the content or interest of an event.
Aspects of gongoozling
Gongoozling, much like trainspotting, is a hobbyHobby
A hobby is a regular activity or interest that is undertaken for pleasure, typically done during one's leisure time.- Etymology :A hobby horse is a wooden or wickerwork toy made to be ridden just like a real horse...
that can extend to all aspects of canals.
Canal artwork
The collection or creation of canal related artwork is a common pastime amongst gongoozlers. This includes paintings, postcardPostcard
A postcard or post card is a rectangular piece of thick paper or thin cardboard intended for writing and mailing without an envelope....
s and photographs.
Canal locks
Canal locksLock (water transport)
A lock is a device for raising and lowering boats between stretches of water of different levels on river and canal waterways. The distinguishing feature of a lock is a fixed chamber in which the water level can be varied; whereas in a caisson lock, a boat lift, or on a canal inclined plane, it is...
often attract spectators, including gongoozlers, because the operation of manual canal locks is a complex affair, with a number of opportunities for mistakes to be made. Some observers have been known to heckle or harass the boat crews, whilst others carry "lock keys" and actively wish to help boat crews with their passage.
Canal history and technology
Whilst trainspotting is commonly associated with identifying engine makes, it is rare for Gongoozlers to do likewise. However an interest can occur for the history of a section of canal, or the operation of locks and alternative devices such as inclined planeCanal inclined plane
An inclined plane is a system used on some canals for raising boats between different water levels. Boats may be conveyed afloat, in caissons, or may be carried in cradles or slings. It can be considered as a specialised type of cable railway....
s, water slope
Water slope
A water slope is a type of canal inclined plane built to carry boats from a canal or river at one elevation up to or down to a canal or river at another elevation.-Operation:...
s, and boat lift
Boat lift
A boat lift, ship lift, or lift lock is a machine for transporting boats between water at two different elevations, and is an alternative to the canal lock and the canal inclined plane....
s with types like the Anderton boat lift
Anderton Boat Lift
The Anderton Boat Lift near the village of Anderton, Cheshire, in north-west England provides a vertical link between two navigable waterways: the River Weaver and the Trent and Mersey Canal....
, the Falkirk Wheel
Falkirk Wheel
The Falkirk Wheel is a rotating boat lift located in Scotland, UK,connecting the Forth and Clyde Canal with the Union Canal, opened in 2002. It is named after the nearby town of Falkirk which is in central Scotland...
and the Strépy-Thieu boat lift
Strépy-Thieu boat lift
The Strépy-Thieu boat lift lies on a branch of the Canal du Centre in the municipality of Le Rœulx, Hainaut, Belgium. With a height difference of between the upstream and downstream reaches, it is the tallest boat lift in the world, and will remain so until the Three Gorges dam boat lift in...
.
Notable locations
Fradley JunctionFradley Junction
Fradley Junction is a canal junction between Fradley and Alrewas near Lichfield, Staffordshire, England and the point at which the Coventry Canal joins the Trent and Mersey Canal....
is a popular place to observe canal traffic, as are many other junctions, due to the occasional need for three boats to pass.
Staircase locks, which can hold many boats at once, are very popular amongst gongoozlers, making Foxton Locks
Foxton Locks
Foxton Locks are ten canal locks consisting of two "staircases" each of five locks, located on the Leicester line of the Grand Union Canal about 5 km west of the Leicestershire town of Market Harborough and are named after the nearby village of Foxton....
an ideal location for gongoozling.
Some locations have become known for their gongoozlers thanks to local events that encourage an increased number of observers. Princess Street lock on the Rochdale Canal
Rochdale Canal
The Rochdale Canal is a navigable "broad" canal in northern England, part of the connected system of the canals of Great Britain. The "Rochdale" in its name refers to the town of Rochdale, Greater Manchester, through which the canal passes....
in Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
city centre is normally quite quiet, but it becomes a popular attraction during the Manchester Mardi Gras
Mardi Gras
The terms "Mardi Gras" , "Mardi Gras season", and "Carnival season", in English, refer to events of the Carnival celebrations, beginning on or after Epiphany and culminating on the day before Ash Wednesday...
(actually held in late August).
The Falkirk Wheel
Falkirk Wheel
The Falkirk Wheel is a rotating boat lift located in Scotland, UK,connecting the Forth and Clyde Canal with the Union Canal, opened in 2002. It is named after the nearby town of Falkirk which is in central Scotland...
is a huge and spectacular feat of engineering, which attracts very large numbers of gongoozlers.
The eight locks of Fonserannes
Fonserannes Locks
Fonserannes Lock is a staircase lock on the Canal du Midi near Béziers.It consists of eight ovoid lock chambers and nine gates, which allow boats to be raised a height of 21.5 m, in a distance of 300 m....
on the Canal du Midi
Canal du Midi
The is a long canal in Southern France . The canal connects the Garonne River to the on the Mediterranean and along with the Canal de Garonne forms the Canal des Deux Mers joining the Atlantic to the Mediterranean. The canal runs from the city of Toulouse down to the Étang de Thau...
attract so many gongoozlers that they have become the third most popular tourist attraction in Languedoc
Languedoc
Languedoc is a former province of France, now continued in the modern-day régions of Languedoc-Roussillon and Midi-Pyrénées in the south of France, and whose capital city was Toulouse, now in Midi-Pyrénées. It had an area of approximately 42,700 km² .-Geographical Extent:The traditional...
.
See also
- BirdwatchingBirdwatchingBirdwatching or birding is the observation of birds as a recreational activity. It can be done with the naked eye, through a visual enhancement device like binoculars and telescopes, or by listening for bird sounds. Birding often involves a significant auditory component, as many bird species are...
- Bus spottingBus spottingBus spotting is a pastime in which one seeks to see all buses in a particular fleet or those produced by a particular manufacturer. A person who engages in these activities is known as a bus spotter, bus fan , bus nut or bus enthusiast...
- KibitzingKibitzerA kibitzer is a non-participant who hangs around a game, offering advice or commentary. This Yiddish term is used in Contract bridge, Chess, Go, and many other games....
- TrainspottingRailfanA railfan or rail buff , railway enthusiast or railway buff , or trainspotter , is a person interested in a recreational capacity in rail transport...