When I hear the word cockney, Mary Poppins always comes to mind..Do you remember the chimney sweep Dick Van Dyke, who was Mary Poppins friend? Well, he spoke cockney in the movie. Now the Brits say that American actor, Dick Van Dykes cockney accent goes down in history as the worst immitation of a cockney accent...well, it's good enuff for me..I know that they don't pronounce their h's..like, "here's home", would be, 'eres 'ome..They also have lots and lots of slang words..I read that they do double negatives just like my fellow angelenos like, "I didn't see nothing"...lol...also the cockneys say 'me' in stead of 'my'...as in, " 'ats me book you 'ave 'ere"...lol..which I've noticed most Londoners say here...okay enuff of that!

But which Londoner becomes a cockney and which doesn't?...ahhh..let me enlighten you..There is a church called St. Mary-le-Bow. This church was rebuilt after the 1666 Great Fire of London by the great English architect of his time Christopher Wren, who also rebuilt the St. Pauls Catheral and 50 plus other stuff..just a fyi tidbit.cuz ever since I've been sightseeing, this Great Fire of 1666 which started on Pudding Lane keeps popping up..

....now this church of St. Mary-le-Bow is in the London district of Cheapside, the east end side.. And if you were born within hearing shot of the church bells then you were a true cockney...I went to visit the church but I didn't hear the bow bells toll..really I didn't...lol..Nor did I speak cockney..I dont want to go down in history as 'aving the 2nd worst cockney accent..
I tried to look up where the word cockney comes from but there are too many stories...it seems no one really knows..but i liked this one the best:

A citizen of London, being in the country, and hearing a horse neigh, exclaimed, Lord! how that horse laughs! A by-stander telling him that noise was called Neighing, the next morning, when the cock crowed, the citizen to shew he had not forgot what was told him, cried out, Do you hear how the Cock Neighs?
St. Mary-le-Bow Church