Hackney Diamonds
colloquial phrase

- broken glass in the street, usually from broken car windows as a result of theft (Dalston is an area of Hackney, East London)

The Londoner

—
PHRASE ORIGIN

The placename 'Hackney', is derived from Middle English hakeney (formerly a town; now a borough of London) which was used for grazing horses before sale, from Old English Hacan īeġ “Haca's Island”, literally “Hook's Island”.

The term 'hackney', as used in hackney coaches and cabs comes from the Norman French word “hacquenée”, meaning a horse for hire. Hackney coaches first appeared in London in Tudor times, when wealthy people who owned coaches hired them out to recoup some of the high cost of keeping them.

—
GLASS SHARDS AND ROCK STARS
The Dual Meaning of “Hackney Diamonds”

Hackney Diamonds is an old east London slang phrase for broken glass. Specifically, it refers to shards of glass left over from broken car windows and shop windows as a result of robbery. East Londoners also use the phrase “Dalston Diamonds”, which references a specific area of Hackney.

Hackney Diamonds is also the name of The Rolling Stones’ recently launched 24th British studio album — featuring Lady Gaga, Stevie Wonder, and other well-known artists.

—
SMUGGLE OWAD into an English conversation, say something like:

"There’s an interesting article about ‘HACKNEY DIAMONDS’ and the Rolling Stones in yesterday’s Evening Standard.”

—
THANKS to Chris for suggesting today’s OWAD.

—
HERZLICHEN DANK to all readers helping me keep OWAD alive with single or monthly donations.

Every month, I spend evening and weekend hours with my family researching and writing your daily OWAD. It remains FREE, AD-free, and ALIVE thanks to voluntary donations from appreciative readers.

If you aren’t already, please also consider supporting us - even the equivalent of a single cup of coffee a month will help us cover mailing, site hosting, and maintenance costs. Just head over to DonorBox:

https://donorbox.org/please-become-a-friend-of-owad-5-3

or bank transfer to Paul Smith
IBAN: DE75 7316 0000 0002 5477 40
Please use your email-address as ‘Verwendungszweck’

Thank you,
Paul