NYC/NO similarities

[D. Ezra Johnson]

David Bergdahl writes:

>it's in AMERICAN TALK: WHERE OUR WORDS CAME FROM that [JL Dillard]
>attributes the resemblance to maritime pidgin influence on
>both.  See the chapter on "New Orleans and Louisiana" esp. pp. 46ff.

The above book is from 1976, I think. But in a later collection, edited by
J.L. Dillard, called "Perspectives on American English" (1980), there is an
article by someone (not Dillard) which goes into more detail on that
particular [@I] vowel and the commercial contacts between NYC and NO.
Unfortunately, I never actually read this article (some faculty member had
the book checked out -- 12 month loan).

DEj

P.S. Regarding the theory that NYC was rhotic originally and became
non-rhotic under New England influence: so Wolfram/Schilling-Estes got it
from Downes, but does anyone know where Downes got it from?

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