parish pumpn.adj.
/ˌparɪʃ ˈpʌmp/, U.S. /ˌpɛrɪʃ ˈpəmp/ A. n.
The pump supplying water to a parish, esp. regarded as an informal place of meeting and discussion for members of the parish. Hence allusively: matters of limited scope or outlook, esp. in politics.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > [noun] > place of meeting or assembly
meeting-place1553
place (point, port, etc.) of rendezvous1556
meeting1598
emporium1683
rallying place1759
rallying point1759
meeting-ground1840
parish pump1840
point1967
the mind > mental capacity > belief > expressed belief, opinion > bias, prejudice > narrow-mindedness > insularity, provincialism > [noun]
insularity1755
provinciality1769
localism1798
provincialism1819
parish pump1840
parochialism1847
vestrydom1860
vestryism1861
Podsnappery1864
parochialness1866
vestryhood1871
insularism1880
peninsularity1882
parochiality1887
parish pumpery1902
localitis1943
bourgeois-mindedness1955
the mind > mental capacity > belief > expressed belief, opinion > bias, prejudice > narrow-mindedness > insularity, provincialism > [noun] > affairs of
parish pump1840
parochiality1887
1840 E. Stirling Fortunes of Smike i. i. 12 I publicly declare, that a better legitimate drama than the ‘Mortal Struggle, or, The Parish Pump’, never was written.
1874 Hotten's Slang Dict. (rev. ed.) 291 Simpson, water used in the dilution of milk... From this the parish pump has been called Mrs. Simpson.
1915 Truth 21 Apr. 620/1 They are the last word in parochialism; but the table is their parish pump and the croupier is the beadle.
1961 A. Wilson Old Men at Zoo i. 11 The Treasury job..had called for a good measure of toughness; after it, Regent's Park affairs smelt a little of the parish pump.
1992 S. Holloway Courage High! xxxi. 262/2 Their poorest neighbours would have called out the perspiring beadle with the parish pump and a team of beer-swilling pumpers.
2003 Australian (Nexis) 23 Oct. 11 Just as generals always fight the last war, so civic leaders too often tie themselves to parish pumps.
B. adj.
Of local importance or interest only; parochial.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > belief > expressed belief, opinion > bias, prejudice > narrow-mindedness > insularity, provincialism > [adjective]
insulary1642
provincial1755
insular1775
parochialic1848
parochial1856
Podsnappian1866
vestryish1882
parish pump1923
parish-pumpish1968
1923 Daily Mail 12 Mar. 5 Parish pump politicians distort every word they [sc. statesmen] utter.
1963 Times 27 Feb. 8/6 Resistance from parish-pump politics is clearly being encountered.
1978 G. Greene Human Factor i. i. 14 I don't think I've voted since the war. The issues nowadays so often seem—well, a bit parish pump.
2000 Kerryman 8 Sept. 21/4 Its all grist to the mill of friendly parish pump rivalry.
Derivatives
ˈparish-ˈpumpish adj. limited in scope or outlook, parochial.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > belief > expressed belief, opinion > bias, prejudice > narrow-mindedness > insularity, provincialism > [adjective]
insulary1642
provincial1755
insular1775
parochialic1848
parochial1856
Podsnappian1866
vestryish1882
parish pump1923
parish-pumpish1968
1968 Listener 29 Feb. 283/2 It all sounds incredibly parish pumpish, but..the parish pump is extremely important when you live next door to it.
1991 Independent (Nexis) 13 May 28 An element in the City crowd became a little parish-pumpish about finishing above an often inept Manchester United.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2005; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.adj.1840