quote:

Originally posted by mbrookes

I really have to take exception to some of this. I have lived in Mississippi("The Most Southern Place on Earth") for over half a century and some of what you are attributing to southern is actually redneck and under-educated. Many of our word usagees are a bit strange (fixin’ to, over yonder, Coke, sweet milk, to name a very few) but the mispronounciations (Terbaccy, maters, taters ) are generally Yankee inventions. I don’t know anyone who talks like that.

This may be true to some degree I suppose. I hung out with the old timers when I was young(they knew everything I wanted to know) whenever I could. I picked up a lot of my "southernisms" through them I think. Much to the dismay of my catholic orphange raised mama. I can’t count how many times I ran away "home"! At least in my parts of Tenn. and Ky. diggin’ taters, and pickin maters are most certainly the lexicon of parts of the south. I myself have cut and hung much ‘backy" or ‘backer(not "ter"backy, thats a cowboy movie thing I think)). Uneducated, maybe…I’m certainly not(educated that is). These folk may not have gone to prep school but they sure can be persuasively understood. I know more than a few that may struggle beyond signing their name but they know more stuff than all the CEO’s on the Fortune 500. The cousin who taught me the best way to skin a catfish and to be a head hunter (arrow’s that is) is way more impressive to me than the dude that can quote Byron. I prefer news I can use. I guess it’s in the eye of the beholder. I love it when someone underestimates a southerner because of an accent and a curious use of vocabulary. Southern speak is rich in history and certainly has flavor. It economises the language. Which is ironic in that we sure do like to vocalise and expound upon any subject. Though there are the quite ones[|)] and we all know to watch out for them crazy hillbilly’s[;)].
Here’s one that drives mama nuts… "If’nyaonto" as in "We can go fishin’ later if’nya onto." I apologize for any translatory spelling error’s[:I].