"donnies"

[quinah]

Where does the nickname "donnies" refering to hands come from? Originally I thought it was a Black Country saying, because thats where I originate from, but now live in Stoke where some of the older people have heard of it, but the younger ones haven't. Is it a regional saying?

[CheekyChops]

I come from Stoke but I have always thought it was 'dannies' for hands, still don't know where it comes from though.

[stewey]

Quinah, this might be stretching it a bit, but consider "donnies", "dannies", or "donnys" to perhaps being derived from "donnybrook": a brawl, fisticuffs, the use of your hands to fight. Maybe.......................?

[drchasuble]

Dannies are hands. It's from Danny Mains.
I can only assume it comes from the French for hands.
It is mainly used in the North.

In cockney rhyming slang, hands are either called German bands or brass bands.

[quinah]

Thanks for all your replies guys, at least you knew what I was on about! Some of my work colleagues thought I was speaking a different language!