The idiom “bringing coal to Newcastle” means doing something redundant. Newcastle was known for exporting coal, so bringing more there would be useless. The phrase has variations in other languages and cultures. Understanding idioms improves cultural literacy.
The phrase “bringing coal to Newcastle” means spending an inordinate amount of energy on something useless, unsuccessful or redundant. This idiom arose in the 15th century because Newcastle, England was known throughout the country as a major exporter of coal. Therefore, ‘carrying coal to Newcastle’ would have done you no good, as there was more coal there than anywhere else. Variations on the saying include “carrying”, “fetching”, or “moving” the coal.
Newcastle-on-Tyne was founded at a convenient place to cross the River Tyne in 1080 as a port city. During the Middle Ages, the city exported wool by boat along the river. Then, in the 1400s, Newcastle became famous for its abundant coal mines. They exported the fuel all over England, especially to the growing metropolis of London. At the time, “coal” referred to lumps of raw coal, whereas in today’s vocabulary, “coal” is plural.
The surrounding counties of Northumberland and Durham supported a biennial fair in Newcastle where street vendors sold their wares. Perhaps, ‘bringing coal to Newcastle’ originated as advice among hawkers not to try to sell coal at the bazaar. The first recorded instance of the contextualized saying appears in 1538 in England.
Idioms are creative sayings that use examples or turns of phrase specific to a language or culture. However, the spirit and meaning of idioms are often universal. For example, both the Dutch and the Spanish have sayings “how to bring water into the ocean”. In Poland and Sweden one hears the saying “carry wood into the forest”. Some specific regional idioms for redundancy include Russia’s “carry the samovars to Tulu,” a city famous for its stoppered teapots. The Greeks spread the saying “bring owls to Athens”, as the nocturnal predator is a symbol of the ancient city named after the goddess Athena. Sure, in the US we have our own version: It’s often said that bringing a date to a wedding is “like bringing sand to the beach.”
The correct use of idioms improves your cultural literacy. One often encounters “carrying coal to Newcastle” in newspapers and magazines. Ironically, in 2004 Newcastle started importing coal from Russia. Although the sentence no longer contains the literal truth, the well-known idiom will surely live on.
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