second-person pronouns redux

[Anna M Fellegy]

In southern Minnesota, the meaning of "X and them" varies, and is,
perhaps, a "cover" for the speaker. The question "What are Ruth and them
doing tonight" assumes that Ruth will probably be with daughter
Jill. In addition, it leaves open the possibility that Ruth AND Jill will
be doing something with  others, probably relatives. It also leaves open
a third (though remote) possibility-- that Ruth might be doing
something with friends and not family. To some degree, the meaning of the
phrase may be tied to the speaker's knowledge of the social network.

Anna Fellegy

 On Wed, 1 Mar 2000, Beth Lee Simon wrote:

> Former Texas Governor Richards would begin her speeches at large public
> gatherings by addressing the entire audience with, "How're you? How's your mom
> 'n 'em?"
>
> "A. Maberry" wrote:
>
> > On Wed, 1 Mar 2000, Peter Richardson wrote:
> >
> > > We could extend this to third-person pronouns as well. I know many people
> > > around Monkey Run, Arkansas (also known as Pilgrim's Rest--near Cotter and
> > > Flippin, if you've got your maps out) who will refer to two people,
> > > usually a married couple, as "X and them": "When are Joyce and them [Joyce
> > > and her husband Francis] coming over?"
> >
> > I know of, and in fact am descended from people who used the same locution
> > the same way in Oregon. I don't recall it being restricted to two people
> > however--it could equally apply to the entire family, Joyce, husband and
> > their kids.
> >
> > Allen
> > maberry at u.washington.edu
>