The American Language

[macwilkin]

Also pointed out that he spoken English of Shakespeare's day had many similarities to what we consider Southern USA dialect in terms of pronunciation and inflection.

Noted Ozark folklorist Vance Randolph also raises this Ozark speech patterns and dialect in his book: Down in the Holler: A gallery of Ozarks folk speech. It's still fairly easy to find and well worth the read. I'll have find my copy and see what he has to say specifically.

Ironically, today my storytelling compadre and I will be talking about Randolph and Ozarks folklore to an English class at the University! :mrgreen:

Cheers,

Todd

[Schultz]

Also pointed out that he spoken English of Shakespeare's day had many similarities to what we consider Southern USA dialect in terms of pronunciation and inflection.

The inhabitants of Smith Island, Maryland, the only inhabited island in the Chesapeake Bay, still speak in a decidedly Elizabethan manner, due to their longstanding historical isolation from the rest of the state. The interesting thing about the language on Smith Island, though, is that it is apparently getting more distinctive, even though communication and improved methods of transportation have brought the speakers closer to the surrounding areas and language dialect. Unfortunately, the island itself is eroding into the Bay and the natives are leaving for the mainland in increased numbers.

My wife and I keep talking about going there, as it's supposedly an exceptionally quiet and relaxing place, which she likes more than anything, and I'm a language buff, so we both win

[beerbecue]

I just got done .......

Yup, this is American english......

[JackK]

Then there are the dialects of "American" which are most likely to have developed from accents of the many nationalities in the US.

Jack

[Mike1]

Yup, this is American english......

As in pies are 'done', whereas people are 'finished'?

[Schultz]

GIT R DONE!


(sorry could not resist!)

[Nick]

Personally, I am of the position that we all speak variants of the English language. Which of those variants should be considered the base tongue is a matter open to discussion. British English would seem to hold a claim as the ancestral home of our mother tongue. But if you base it on simple numbers of speakers, it would actually be the variant of English favored in India!

After the change from Old to Middle English, the region of England that has had the most sway linguistically has been (no suprise) London/Oxford/Cambridge. The linguistic forms of that area are what were adopted when the notion of a "Standard" developed.

[davedove]

Dialects are formed as groups of people speaking the same language are separated and local practices are reinforced among the different populations. If this goes on long enough, it eventually becomes a different language. In this way all the various languages of the Indo-European family evolved from a common root language.

American English and British English were indeed on their way to becoming separate languages, until the modern era. With mass communications and ease of travel, English is slowly becoming more standardized.

[MacSimoin]

...ai canne uptak hauf o' whit ya 'mericans arr bletherin maist the time...

That's a rather amusing statement, especially since it's coming from an American. :rolleyes:

[Rob Wright]

ai dinnae ken whit yur a' oan aboot...

ai canne uptak hauf o' whit ya 'mericans arr bletherin maist the time...

Try speaking teenager O_O !


Rob