/wh/ - /w/

[Dennis R. Preston]

>Rural-urban is indeed an important distinction
>and now (finally) being paid attention to. I'm
>bemused by the /ant/ (as opposed to /ænt/)
>pronouncers in Oregon. Tell us more.


dInis

>




>  ---------------------- Information from the
>mail header -----------------------
>   Sender:       American Dialect Society
><ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU<mailto:ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>>
>   Poster:       "Dennis R. Preston" <preston at MSU.EDU<mailto:preston at MSU.EDU>>
>   Subject:      Re: /wh/ - /w/
>
>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>   >The poshness of /hw/-/w/ is odd to me too (since I had it nateral as
>   >a kid), but I came to learn later that many thought of it as a swell
>   >form (and have been teased mercilessly by my Milwaukee wife, who
>   >also mocks my /a/nvelope, /ku/pon, and pa/ja/mas).
>
>
>
>Dennis, I grew up in Southern California but of
>solid Appalachian and Missouri country stock.
>My "accent" is like yours, and believe me, I'm
>not a member of anything remotely elite or posh.
>I spoke quite like a mountain child until
>beginning school in 1953 - the Los Angeles
>school system trained me out of it quickly.  It
>comes back just as quickly, though, if I'm with
>someone from the deep south.  I do not, however,
>say "aunt" as [ahnt] as southern
>African-Americans do, but rather [ant].
>
>I now live in rural Oregon and find many people
>here sound a lot like my old relatives but
>without the hard twang, but many of them say
>[ahnt].  No idea why.
>
>I sometimes wonder if it's rurality more than
>regionality that influences how we sound.  I'm
>just now beginning to study all of this and am
>fascinated.
>
>Marsha Alley marshaalley at msn.com<mailto:marshaalley at msn.com>
>/a little red-faced over the sux conversation, but I'll get over it, LOL


--
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