You know I love any excuse to talk about language — spelling, pronunciation, idioms. If it’s quirky and has a good backstory, I’m in. So you can imagine my delight when I stumbled across a new-to-me term a few weeks ago.
Hurkle durkle (verb): To linger under the covers of a warm bed long after it’s time to get up.
Delightful, no?
It’s cozy, lazy, and a little rebellious. It’s also apparently of Scottish origin. (Which happens to be my lineage on both sides.)
Hygge — the Danish concept of coziness and contentment — has become a household word…but I’d never encountered hurkle durkle before. I think the two make an excellent pair. If hygge is about warmth and comfort, hurkle durkle is about giving yourself full permission to stay horizontal and let the world wait.
Hurkle durkling (do people say this?) feels like a small act of joy. Or defiance. Or both.
What else is out there?
Your turn.
- What’s your favourite obscure word or idiom — the weirder, the better!
- Are you a proud hurkle durkler, or are you up with the birds?
- What’s your ideal lazy morning setup? (Books? Tea? Breakfast in bed?)
Header photo by Taisiia Stupak on Unsplash
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K @ TS
That’s great. The Scottish have some fun words. I was reading about hiking in Scotland and came across this one: stravaig. It means to wander aimlessly or casually. It’s not really my style but I like the sound of the word! I’m more of a get to your destination kind of girl.
Elisabeth
That does NOT sound like Kyria, but what a helpful word. My kids are very good at stravaig. I’m in between. John is also a “let’s get there” type of walker.
mbmom11
I don’t know if it’s obscure, but perambulate is fun to say. Concatenation too.
I rise with the birds. But I’m curled up on the couch in a soft blanket right now ( waiting for time to get up and starting my morning routine) so maybe a modicum of hurkling here? I do like waking up just a little bit before I have to, so I can have quiet time to myself – books and word games. I used to stay up late to do this, but my daily rhythm has shifted.
Elisabeth
Perambulate is a very satisfying word to say! I’ve never heard (or at least I didn’t recognize it) concatenation. I love learning new things like this. Question is, will I remember the definition??
I do not wake up well. Sigh. I wish I was a “fly out of bed with excessive energy.” In general, I’m just low energy at most times. I can function and have a great time, but I am rarely energetic. It takes all kinds in the world, right?
Hana
Do you listen to the Inside out Money podcast? They spent a whole episode talking about hurkle durkling recently! I love to hurkle durkle, and I love that word. A funny word we use a lot is “Schmuddlefink” my grandparents are German and I grew up hearing this word and now use it often in my own household! It means, roughly, “little naughty grub ball”, which is a perfect word to describe kids in my opinion!
Elisabeth
I don’t listen to that podcast, but now I’m curious.
Little naughty grub ball! Ha.
This reminds me a bit of the Portuguese form of endearment: batatinha pintada, which translates to “little painted potato” which makes no sense, but it’s a sweet phrase and I sometimes use it to describe my kiddos.
Catrina
I was born just north of Edinburgh and spent my early childhood there – so yes, “hurkle durkle” is part of my vocabulary! I don’t use it often though.
In our family, “blether” (talking rubbish), “crabbit” (grumpy), and good old “tatties” for potatoes are still in regular use. And the more I think about it, the more words come flooding back. You’ve sent me down a path of nostalgia!
Elisabeth
Ohhhh! Someone who actually grew up using this term. How did it take nearly 40 years for me to hear it for the first time. I like hurkle durlking!
I would say blather in the same way you say blether! I’ve never heard this alternate spelling (and maybe it means slightly different things)?
Crabbit inherently SOUNDS very grumpy!
Jenny
WELL. As soon as I saw the title of this post, I thought “I’ve never heard of hurkle durkle, but whatever it is, I’m in!” And then I read the definition. Who doesn’t like a good hurkle durkle? Unfortunately, I can’t hurkle durkle on weekday mornings- my alarm goes off and I have to get right up. But… I know what I’m doing on Sunday!!!
Elisabeth
Yay! You can now claim your Sunday mornings as prime time to hurkle durkle.
Nicole MacPherson
Hurkle durkle! I have never heard of that and I have a lot of Scottish blood. I am not a hurkle durkle person though, I am generally up and at it.
I love how the Australians nickname everything – from uni to mozzies to sunnies.
Elisabeth
I wish I was up and at it. *Sigh* Is it genetic? Like, are your parents morning people? Is Rob a morning guy? Do you wake him up by rising so early. I AM CURIOUS!
I try so hard, but after a few days (or at most weeks) of early mornings and I feel like death.
Katy @PracticalWalk
Never heard that one, but it’s a good one!
Rebecca (the Farm Wife)
I love this! I’ve also recently discovered “hurkle durkle” and it is such the perfect word. I am a big fan of hurkle durkling and all things cozy 🙂
One of my other favorite words you never knew you needed is the German word “fernweh” (literally “farsickness”), for that feeling of being homesick for somewhere I’ve never been. And in double-checking my spelling, I’ve just discovered there’s a Welsh term that is a perfect “partner” for that: Hiraeth
Elisabeth
Ohhh. Fernweh! That is perfect and so true. I love how other languages often have words that perfectly describe a feeling. (So often it’s German, too!)
Alexandra
My mother was a Scot and, you know what, I’ve never heard this saying before, ever! Is it from a particular area of Scotland? Dang, now I have to go jump down a rabbit hole and find out for myself.
I have to say the Scots and the Irish do have some great sayings. As for hurkle durkling myself? I have to be up before 8am to take pills every morning, so no, I don’t really get a lay in as such. And no breakfast in bed for me.
I’ve always found German words to be funny, and love the word for rabbit: Kaninchen (a long story).
Elisabeth
Let me know what you find down your rabbit hole. I just spotted it in a magazine (not sure which) and it struck my fancy.
Michelle G.
I love words, and hurkle durkle is a good one! I’d never heard it before now. I don’t hurkle durkle very often. As soon as I’m awake, I want all the morning breath and eye crusties gone, so I get up right away. Every once in a while, I’ll sneak back into bed after taking care of those things, but more often, once I’m up, I’m up.
I wish I had a good word along these lines!
Elisabeth
I wish I didn’t enjoy hurkle durkling so much, Michelle. I am not a morning person (in fact, I generally just wish I was in bed reading a book at most points in the day). So I think your early morning routines are admirable.
M. Jean Pike
How fun!
Ernie
I’ve not heard of hurkle durkler. I do enjoy staying cozy in my bed after I wake up. It rarely happens. I usually pop up and get ready to workout before babies get dropped off for my daycare. Once a few months ago, I woke up on a weekend and had no place to be and a book that I loved, and I read in book for a while. I’m sorry I have no fun words to add, but in my daycare we sing a little song I made up when Lad was a baby. ‘Nigh-Nigh, the baby’. It’s caught on. With the older kids, if someone yawns or acts cranky, then that person can expect an impromptu singing of Nigh-Nigh the baby.
Elisabeth
I love when families have inside jokes, sayings, or songs (we have MULTIPLE “family” songs). It really adds to feeling at home and makes for a unique connection.
Elinoora
I set my alarm early so I can hurkle durkle every morning, hah. I need that hurkle durkle time to wake up and to motivate myself to get out of bed!
Elisabeth
I guess if I want to hurkle durkle on week days I need to set an alarm. I just hate waking up SO MUCH.
Lisa’s Yarns
I had not heard of this word/phrase! I am not a hurdle durkler! Phil is, though. He tends to sleep later than me so if I wake up, I go elsewhere so I don’t disturb him. But my kids prevent any sort of slow start to the day, esp Will who yells loudly for us when he is up for the day. Will would like to be a hurkle durkler on week day mornings, though!!
Elisabeth
I remember the years of early wakeups. They were awful. For someone like me that is not a morning person, having a very loud, child who wanted up and needed things IMMEDIATELY upon getting up was such a slog. I am in awe of anyone who has survived that stage more than twice.
And, like Will, IF my kids were going to sleep in it was only ever going to be on a day I needed them to get up in a timely manner. Now, my kids sleep in. It’s glorious. Except school mornings are getting harder…
central calif. artist jana
Great word. Words are so fun. I love to use “prolly”, “liberry”, “remorial”, “tryna”, and “horriblize”.
(Interpretations: probably, library, memorial, trying to, catastrophize.)
Elisabeth
One of my kids always used to call is “liberry” and dessert was “Baa-zert”. Those were the days.
I really like horriblize! I find catastrophize such a hard word to pronounce.
Sarah
This is my Saturday morning tradition! I have a cpuple cups of coffee and read in bed while everyone else gets up.
Elisabeth
Love it!
Kate
I have never heard this term but it is one of my absolute favourite things to do, and most mornings that I don’t need to work (aka Tue/Thur/Sat/Sun) I absolutely do it for as long as possible! We got a new set of microfiber sheets last year and they are just the right texture (soft but feel cool and smooth) and I love to just snuggle down and read my book before officially starting the day. Love that there’s a word for it, and what a fun word to boot!
One of my favourite words is “pulchritude” or “pulchritudinous”, which refers to beauty, but the word itself sounds like the opposite. I also love the word “glaucous”, which refers to the powdery coating on the outside of a grape. And somnambulant, which maybe isn’t obscure, but is just such a fun word to say.
A few Italian words have made it into our family lexicon: “basta!” (enough), “andiamo” (let’s go), and “pipistrello” (which means bat, as in the flying mammal — we see them in the evenings in our back yard and it’s especially fun to say with an exaggerated Italian accent!) I always love your linguistic posts — keep them coming!
Elisabeth
Okay, you take the cake for cool words! I’ve seen the word glaucous, but had no idea what it meant!
Saying words in other languages can be such a hoot, especially when an accent it involved!
Suz
I’ve heard the term, but I don’t know that I’ve ever used it.
I love this ‘in action’ though and I refer to it as Linger Longer. I love to linger in bed if there isn’t anything calling me….especially if my husband brings me a hot cup of coffee, that along with two sleeping pups? Why do I need to get up and ruin all of those delightful senses?
Elisabeth
I don’t have dogs, but the image of relaxing in bed with a cup of coffee (I DID NOT PREPARE) with two sleeping pups sounds like the absolute best thing in the world.
Linger Longer. Love it.
Tobia | craftaliciousme
What a fun discovery. I had not any idea there is a word for that but apparently the Scottish knew it first. So fun. Thanks for sharing.