>There may be such a thing as Black English but there may also be such
>a thing as Southern or maybe Country English. I've heard white
>people using "passed away" or "passed on" since I was a kid. They
>also say y'all. Bitch had an Ellie Mae question yesterday. The
>tagline for the Beverly Hillbillies was "y'all come back now, 'hear."
ayup. (after you say it, you have to cluck a hollow cluck) and there's a way it's not confined to the south. I knew the history once, but I've forgotten it, but the connection, in part, derives from Scottish and Welsh settlers who settled along the Appalachians. I've read blacks talk about moving back and forth between black english and white english, which described quite nicely how I can sometimes revert to speaking (or thinking in the speech patterns) like my great grandma and great grandpa spoke. When I was little there seemed (to me) a sharp distinction between the way our hill billy (Appalachian hill billy) relatives spoke, as well as some of the folks who hung out at the rod 'n' gun club and the way my mom, aunts, and more immediate family spoke. Anyway, you remember Dave from the old Bad Subject list, right? It was funny to learn that I knew Welsh derived words and expressions -- like "tetched in the head" -- which also turns out to be an expression people say is "southern". I didn't grow up anywhere near the south, though.
Bitch | Lab http://blog.pulpculture.org (NSFW)