Well, not really. When someones sulking I say they have the monk on, my colleague who is a Scouser says 'cob on'. Anyway what I really want to know is where the 'eck did the term 'monk on' come from?
mardy / maungy can't find anything at all on my linguistic sites about "get the monk on" - in fact Google only had one site with the quote listed at all! However, I did find out the origins of the word "mardy" for you instead! During the General Strike, miners from the areas surrounding the Welsh town of Maerdy (near Merthyr Tydfil) were sent to Staffordshire and thereabouts to take the place of belligerent locals. Neither these imported miners nor those they replaced were all too thrilled. Locals would mutter darkly when they saw them - 'They're Maerdy.' Since 'mardy' is slightly easier to say, the pronunciation shifted and evolved from: The state of hostility directed towards the newcomers Their own fairly miserable mood And the apparent stubbornness of just about everyone involved... ...to the term we know and love. Alternatively, 'mardy' may be derived from the word 'marred' as applied to spoilt, nasty kiddies. However it is not easy to date the term or to know whether it was in use before the early 20th Century. It's thought that "maungy" is a later derivative fom "mardy". I wonder if any Swansea fans were feeling a bit maerdy last week......
