Selling, carrying, bringing, or taking coal(s) to Newcastle is an idiom of British origin describing a pointless action.[1] It refers to the fact that, historically, the economy of Newcastle upon Tyne in north-eastern England was heavily dependent on the distribution and sale of coal and therefore any attempt to sell coal to Newcastle would be foolhardy as supply would be greater there than anywhere else in Britain.[1]
The phrase "to carry coals to Newcastle" is first documented in North America in 1679 in William Fitzhugh's letters ("But relating farther to you would be carrying Coals to new Castle")[2] and first appears in a printed title in Labour in Vain: Or Coals to Newcastle: A Sermon to the People of Queen-Hith, 1709. Thus, the expression predates the 1854 great fire of Newcastle and Gateshead by nearly two centuries and is not morbid humor in response to the fire.
In 1661–1662, John Graunt, in his work on the Bills of Mortality for London (published by the Royal Society 1665), uses the phrase in his introductory expression of gratitude to Lord John Roberts, the Lord Privy Seal: "...I should (according to our English Proverb) thereby carry Coals to Newcastle...", and suggests a much earlier provenance.
Timothy Dexter, an American entrepreneur, purportedly succeeded in defying the idiom in the 18th century by shipping coal to Newcastle. Renowned for his eccentricity and regarded as a buffoon, he was persuaded to sail a shipment of coal to Newcastle by rival merchants plotting to ruin him. He wrote that he instead got a large profit after his cargo arrived during a miners' strike which had crippled local production.[3][4]
More prosaically, the American National Coal Association asserted that the United States profitably sold coal to Newcastle in the early 1990s,[5] and 70,000 tonnes of low-sulphur coal was imported by Alcan from Russia in 2004 for their local aluminiumsmelting plant.
Although the coal industry of Newcastle upon Tyne is now practically non-existent, the expression can still be used today with a degree of literal accuracy, since the harbour of Newcastle in Australia (named for Newcastle in the UK after abundant coal deposits were discovered there and exploited by early European settlers[6]) has succeeded its UK namesake by becoming the largest exporter of coal in the modern world.[7]
Contemporary useedit
With the increasing onset of globalisation, parallels in other industries occur, and the idiom is now frequently used by the media when reporting business ventures whose success may initially appear just as unlikely. It has been referred to in coverage of the export to India of saffron from Saudi Arabia and chicken tikka masala from the United Kingdom,[8][9] the sale of Scottish pizzas to Italy,[10] and the production of manga versions of William Shakespeare from Cambridge for Japan.[11]
Even though its original geographic origin may have been displaced, this cliché continues to be used.[12]
Look up carry coals to Newcastle in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
^ ab"Newcastle upon Tyne", Encyclopædia Britannica
^Bartlett Jere Whiting Early American Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases 1977 - Page 76 "To carry Coals to Newcastle 1679 Fitzhugh Letters 67: But relating farther to you would be carrying Coals to new Castle. 1768 Habersham Letters 68: [He] asked, if I wanted to carry Coals"
^Knapp, Samuel L. (1858). . Boston: J.E. Tilton and Company. Archived from the original on 2 December 2007.
^Nash, Jay Robert (1982). Zanies, The World's Greatest Eccentrics. New Century Publishers. ISBN0-8329-0123-7.
^"U.S. Beats The Price Of Coal In Newcastle", William Flannery, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, May 10, 1990
^Minister For Ports And Waterways; Minister For Regulatory Reform; Minister For Small Business (6 August 2008). "New Trade Record for Newcastle Port" (PDF). Media releases. Newcastle Port Corporation. Retrieved 1 November 2008. {{cite web}}: |author3= has generic name (help)
^Quinion, Michael. "Coals to Newcastle". World Wide Words. Retrieved 20 October 2013.
October 28, 2023
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Selling carrying bringing or taking coal s to Newcastle is an idiom of British origin describing a pointless action 1 It refers to the fact that historically the economy of Newcastle upon Tyne in north eastern England was heavily dependent on the distribution and sale of coal and therefore any attempt to sell coal to Newcastle would be foolhardy as supply would be greater there than anywhere else in Britain 1 Contents 1 History 2 Contemporary use 3 See also 4 ReferencesHistory editThe phrase to carry coals to Newcastle is first documented in North America in 1679 in William Fitzhugh s letters But relating farther to you would be carrying Coals to new Castle 2 and first appears in a printed title in Labour in Vain Or Coals to Newcastle A Sermon to the People of Queen Hith 1709 Thus the expression predates the 1854 great fire of Newcastle and Gateshead by nearly two centuries and is not morbid humor in response to the fire In 1661 1662 John Graunt in his work on the Bills of Mortality for London published by the Royal Society 1665 uses the phrase in his introductory expression of gratitude to Lord John Roberts the Lord Privy Seal I should according to our English Proverb thereby carry Coals to Newcastle and suggests a much earlier provenance Timothy Dexter an American entrepreneur purportedly succeeded in defying the idiom in the 18th century by shipping coal to Newcastle Renowned for his eccentricity and regarded as a buffoon he was persuaded to sail a shipment of coal to Newcastle by rival merchants plotting to ruin him He wrote that he instead got a large profit after his cargo arrived during a miners strike which had crippled local production 3 4 More prosaically the American National Coal Association asserted that the United States profitably sold coal to Newcastle in the early 1990s 5 and 70 000 tonnes of low sulphur coal was imported by Alcan from Russia in 2004 for their local aluminium smelting plant Although the coal industry of Newcastle upon Tyne is now practically non existent the expression can still be used today with a degree of literal accuracy since the harbour of Newcastle in Australia named for Newcastle in the UK after abundant coal deposits were discovered there and exploited by early European settlers 6 has succeeded its UK namesake by becoming the largest exporter of coal in the modern world 7 Contemporary use editWith the increasing onset of globalisation parallels in other industries occur and the idiom is now frequently used by the media when reporting business ventures whose success may initially appear just as unlikely It has been referred to in coverage of the export to India of saffron from Saudi Arabia and chicken tikka masala from the United Kingdom 8 9 the sale of Scottish pizzas to Italy 10 and the production of manga versions of William Shakespeare from Cambridge for Japan 11 Even though its original geographic origin may have been displaced this cliche continues to be used 12 See also editSell ice to Eskimos Owls to Athens Bring owls to Athens Pizza effectReferences edit nbsp Look up carry coals to Newcastle in Wiktionary the free dictionary a b Newcastle upon Tyne Encyclopaedia Britannica Bartlett Jere Whiting Early American Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases 1977 Page 76 To carry Coals to Newcastle 1679 Fitzhugh Letters 67 But relating farther to you would be carrying Coals to new Castle 1768 Habersham Letters 68 He asked if I wanted to carry Coals Knapp Samuel L 1858 Life of Lord Timothy Dexter Embracing sketches of the eccentric characters that composed his associates including Dexter s Pickle for the knowing ones Boston J E Tilton and Company Archived from the original on 2 December 2007 Nash Jay Robert 1982 Zanies The World s Greatest Eccentrics New Century Publishers ISBN 0 8329 0123 7 U S Beats The Price Of Coal In Newcastle William Flannery St Louis Post Dispatch May 10 1990 Newcastle The Sydney Morning Herald 8 February 2004 Retrieved 24 September 2008 Minister For Ports And Waterways Minister For Regulatory Reform Minister For Small Business 6 August 2008 New Trade Record for Newcastle Port PDF Media releases Newcastle Port Corporation Retrieved 1 November 2008 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a author3 has generic name help The Next Asian Journey Shadows of Old Araby Time vol 158 no 7 8 August 20 2001 Chicken tikka masala Spice and easy does it BBC News April 20 2001 Selling coals to Newcastle How about pizzas to Italy Cosmo Pasta Co to sell gluten free pizzas in Italy Nation s Restaurant News July 7 2003 Putting the art in the wherefore art Cambridge Evening News May 2 2007 Quinion Michael Coals to Newcastle World Wide Words Retrieved 20 October 2013 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Coals to Newcastle amp oldid 1142223526, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
