HI YA'll its as HOT as a firecracker on the 4th of July-- which is right around the corner...I saw an episode of Star Trek Next Gen. in which the aliens they had encountered didn't speak in logical sentences of the past, present, and future tense, instead they used metaphors based on the history of their culture to communicate. Such as we may say "Washington crossing the Delaware" this would conjure up an image of patriotism of the father of our Democracy leading us to victory.
...so in a way, especially here in the south, we use a lot of metaphors to communicate.
He's slicker than goose s**#, = to describe someone who is not to be trusted..
Who ate the red offen your candy? = "what's up with you?
You are fixin to get your tail under my rocker ="You are starting to piss me off"
Where's the fire? = "what's your hurry"
He flew outta here like Moodys Goose= "he was in a hurry"
How are ya'll doing? (even when addressing one person)= making an inquiry as to how are you and all of your immediate and extended family!
Too many Chiefs and not enuff injuns = no ones is in charge cause everyone wants to be in charge.
Yuanto= "you want to do that"
Yungs =hillbilly for "ya'll"
AND Jeff Foxworthy has published a book on this subject..so you get the point!!
I get sort of bent outta shape (angry), and I know its not just me,...but I can be in a room of people from all over the world each with a dialect built upon special blends of language, history, and word origins, and yet it's the southern American that will be made fun of and have their speech corrected!! THIS BURNS MY *** which is a metaphoric way of saying "I do not like it"...lol
NOW I do understand that sometimes southerners can be considered uneducated, dim wits, but I've done my fair share of travel and rubbed elbows with people from around the world, I have found uneducated dim wits from everywhere!! ITS not just geographical....
I did live in (New Yawk City not once-but twice in my life time amounting to 10 yrs total) the proverbial melting pot--
I worked with people from countries that I hardly knew existed and I was introduced to many cultures and tried quite hard to learn from everyone I spent time with. I always tried to understand what was being said to me and what it meant and was always fascinated with each and all-from Russian to Hassidic Jewish, Uzbekistan, to Istanbul, to India, to Guiana to Spain, Colombian to Mexican, Puerto Rican to Turk, to Romanian to Nigerian, from Israeli to Italian, from Kenya to Australian...the list goes on and on---and that's not counting the various Americans from every state in the Union!!
...and yet it would be me when marching into a crowded Emergency Room in the city that never sleeps , would be approached and asked "where are you from?"...now my accent is not too southern, just enough that you know its there, I try not to use too many metaphors but its not easy---they are sort of hot-wired in. Do you find that every happens to you? Phrases such as I'm fixin to, ive been told it sounds ignorant, but here even the most educated person will use that phrase and its never frowned upon. I have been told "I love your country way of talking"...okay that did not exactly flatter me---but I said nothing and just thought "how ignorant that jerk just sounded" to myself....lol
--my sister who has lived in Colorado for close to 30 yrs was recently corrected by someone from California, and told the correct way to pronounce the word "coupon" is COOPON- not Q-pon the way we pronounce it here in the south---
I beg to differ, if you come here you will not hear anyone calling it a coopon, and I guess when in ROME yada yada yada....
NO ONE IS WRONG and WE ALL ARE RIGHT!! Yes its a COOPON and a Q-PON as long as we all understand and get the message-
I can just imagine me telling a Brit, that schedule is not pronounced "Saidule" that a squirrel (sqrl) is not called a squirall and that is not a lory but a truck, and that's not grit its sand and that's not an ice box! LOL it goes on and on..
Just like one fellow I worked with hours and hours he was from Haiti my dear friend Anthony--who spoke English with a beautiful sexy French accent, his skin was the color of ebony, he had the manners of a perfect gentleman...he was one of my very best friends---his voice and tone were so elegant...but come lunchtime--me the southern fried dixxebell would order the vegetarian plate and he would order OX TAILS!!
I would say "Antnee," (southern for Anthony) "you gotta start eating higher on the hog, or in this case the OX....like up around the shoulder or the hip...dang the TAIL, do you know where that is located"? And he would reply "Sondra, (it just sort of slowly ran off his smooth french tongue) "you are always a lady ture and ture, (Hatian for through and through) "now eat your vegetables, and allow me to enjoy my meal" And I did-but I rolled the window down...he tried on many occasions to get me to "just taste it," but he knew I could never do that--BUT I did try some of the steamed cabbage and veggies as long as he promised the meat never touched it!!
So I guess my point is live and let talk!! WE say Ya'll cause our mama's taught us to say it that way...yours probably taught you the way she was taught and so on- So I told my sister next time her California friend corrects her to remind her that she was born and raised in the South and that is the correct way of pronouncing coupon acording to her-
In the south a buggy is a shopping cart in England a Buggy is a pram, and in New England a buggy is a wheeled cart pulled by horses!
Ya'll come back now, ye hear," is not really an invitation for your return, it's just a common courtesy to say that to everyone, and as soon as the door closes... "I thought they'd never leave!"
I recently visited my friend who is also from SC and has a very southern accent and has deep southern family roots. She and I became quite the spectacle in the stores of Mesa, Arizona...talk about one fish outta water but wait it was TWO, whats the odds of that??? LMBO--
