The term ‘crinkle crankle' is, in origin, a Suffolk dialect term to describe substantial brick walls which are serpentine, or sinuously curving, in form. Sometimes they are known as ‘ribbon walls'. In their most traditional form they were built as a single line of bricks, with the sinuous design removing the need for buttressing, because the serpentine shape provided its own stability.
In the popular mind crinkle crankle walls are especially associated with Suffolk