Different dialects, same error

[Dennis R. Preston]

There are sporadic existential 'it' occurrences among non-southern
and non-AAVE speakers, but they are surely not systematic or common.

dInIs

>On Sep 4, 2004, at 4:43 PM, Dennis R. Preston wrote:
>
>>---------------------- Information from the mail header
>>-----------------------
>>Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>>Poster:       "Dennis R. Preston" <preston at MSU.EDU>
>>Subject:      Re: Different dialects, same error
>>-----------------------------------------------------------------------
>>--------
>>
>>>Existenetial 'it' is actually pretty widespread in white southern
>>>speech, although more often noted by linguists for AAVE. Yes, I come
>>>by it native(ly), as I clearly do not come by -ly.
>>
>>There are, however, restrictions in the dialects which I have never
>>quite got the handle on. Some AAVE existential it's are out of bounds
>>for me, but I haven't analyzed them.
>>
>>For example, "It ain't nobody named Windy" sounds really good to me
>>but "It's a man in the other room" (on the existential reading, of
>>course) don't.
>
>dInIs, here's a verse from a '60's blues song for your reading
>enjoyment.
>
>Raise your window, baby.
>I ain't going out that door.
>_It's a man downstairs_.
>He could be your man.
>I don't know.
>
>FWIW, the late, great Ken Hale used existential it. So, I don't think
>that it's necessarily a BE or a Southern phenomenon.
>
>-Wilson Gray
>
>>
>>On the other hand, it's only on this ADS list where I actually not
>>only tolerate but even perform breakage of Preston's Laws of
>>Sociolinguistics #1 and #2.
>>
>>dInIs
>>
>>
>>>Is existential 'it' native to your speech, DInIs, or is this an AAVE
>>>borrowing for you?
>>>
>>>-----Original Message-----
>>>From: American Dialect Society on behalf of Dennis R. Preston
>>>Sent: Sat 9/4/2004 3:13 PM
>>>To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
>>>Subject:      Re: Different dialects, same error
>>>
>>>Of course since it ain't nobody (leastways nobody I ever knowed)
>>>named "Windy," I never took it to be nothing but "Wendy," even in the
>>>face of the pragmatic evidence of "stormy eyes."
>>
>>
>>--
>>Dennis R. Preston
>>University Distinguished Professor of Linguistics
>>Department of Linguistics and Germanic, Slavic, Asian, and African
>>Languages
>>A-740 Wells Hall
>>Michigan State University
>>East Lansing, MI 48824
>>Phone: (517) 432-3099
>>Fax: (517) 432-2736
>>preston at msu.edu


--
Dennis R. Preston
University Distinguished Professor of Linguistics
Department of Linguistics and Germanic, Slavic, Asian, and African Languages
A-740 Wells Hall
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI 48824
Phone: (517) 432-3099
Fax: (517) 432-2736
preston at msu.edu