If you’ve known me more than two seconds, you are well aware that I’m from Kentucky.
And I love him–my husband. But there’s one, well, issue–and it doesn’t even really count as an issue as issues go. It’s just. And I knew this going in.
He’s a yankee.
This means that he gets confused when I say things like, “Has the mail run yet?” or “What are you looking for? Well, if it were a snake it’d already have bitten ya’!” or “We might could do that.”
No one back in my raisins would be confused by any of those highly sophisticated sayings. Clearly, he is missing valuable linguistic skills which fall in the relaxed conversation category. Clearly.
This also means, and this is probably not the case for all yankees, that he has little to no appreciation for southern humor. I got my fix tonight, as I relentlessly listened to Chonda Pierce on youtube for hours while working on church-related projects.
Go Big Blue,
Ha, this is awesome!
I never even realized the differences in our speech vs. the speech north of Verona and Walton growing up. Now, I find myself translating sayings or words all the time! I’m always using words like “untellin” and using contractions in odd places n such. I actually wrote a final paper on Southern Mountain Dialect once because I appreciate our way of talkin’ and think that most of the ridicule is a result of misconceptions. I also find it interesting how easily a person not from ’round here can get lost in a conversation. :)
I would imagine your husband will not only get used to your sayings, but also start using them before long.. :)
It’s true. The Appalachian dialect is the most preserved dialect in the country. The England settlers who settled in Appalachia were secluded from outside influences on their language. If only others would appreciate this as much as we do! :)
And I doubt he’ll start using my “southern sayings” any time soon. Wouldn’t be prudent…