Where’re Y’all From?: A Brief History of the Southern United States Dialect
Southern American English, more commonly known as the Southern drawl or the Southern accent, is one of the most immediately recognizable of the United States’ many dialects. The dialect can bring many different connotations to mind depending on the preconceptions of the hearer. Those with positive ideas of the South may conjure up images of hard-working, hospitable, family oriented people, whereas others may prejudge anyone who uses the common Southern term fixin’ to as being lazy, slow, uneducated, or a “redneck” or “hick.” However, a little bit of study into the history and cultures that produced the modern-day Southern accent quickly shows that colloquialisms such …show more content…
African slaves were first brought to America in 1619, and the slave trade continued until 1807 (Algeo 11). Because the South’s economy depended heavily on agriculture, the large plantations that the South was known for became one of the main hubs of slavery in American. The result was a fairly large African population. According to Algeo, “some 400,000 Africans had been forcibly settled in America” in the almost 200 years that it took for the slave trade to be abolished (11). The dialect of the African slaves is still evidenced in various dialects still spoken today, including Gullah Creole and what is sometimes referred to as “Black English” or African American English. Many of the words common in the main Southern dialect can also be traced to African American influence. For instance, the words “banjo” and “okra” both have African origins. A commonly-used phrase, “to bad-mouth” somebody (meaning to gossip about or disparage them), is also linked to African American influence. Although the cruel kidnapping and enslavement of Africans was a terrible part of the South’s history that should never have happened, the impact that it had upon the dialect is still apparent and
Southern American English, more commonly known as the Southern drawl or the Southern accent, is one of the most immediately recognizable of the United States’ many dialects. The dialect can bring many different connotations to mind depending on the preconceptions of the hearer. Those with positive ideas of the South may conjure up images of hard-working, hospitable, family oriented people, whereas others may prejudge anyone who uses the common Southern term fixin’ to as being lazy, slow, uneducated, or a “redneck” or “hick.” However, a little bit of study into the history and cultures that produced the modern-day Southern accent quickly shows that colloquialisms such …show more content…
African slaves were first brought to America in 1619, and the slave trade continued until 1807 (Algeo 11). Because the South’s economy depended heavily on agriculture, the large plantations that the South was known for became one of the main hubs of slavery in American. The result was a fairly large African population. According to Algeo, “some 400,000 Africans had been forcibly settled in America” in the almost 200 years that it took for the slave trade to be abolished (11). The dialect of the African slaves is still evidenced in various dialects still spoken today, including Gullah Creole and what is sometimes referred to as “Black English” or African American English. Many of the words common in the main Southern dialect can also be traced to African American influence. For instance, the words “banjo” and “okra” both have African origins. A commonly-used phrase, “to bad-mouth” somebody (meaning to gossip about or disparage them), is also linked to African American influence. Although the cruel kidnapping and enslavement of Africans was a terrible part of the South’s history that should never have happened, the impact that it had upon the dialect is still apparent and