Sound-change in BE

[Paul Johnston]

Just a query:  Is this "aow" developing in parallel with fronted /o/ in
coat, as in the rest of the Southern Shift.  Here in Michigan, I hear young
black female speakers with both, and beginning to adopt dissimilation of the
vowel in day, too--all part of the Southern Vowel Shift.  Though I haven't
examined any recordings, with young male speakers, they may front /Au/, but
don't seem to have the other changes except sporadically.  From what I can
hear, "ee" remains unchanged here.  Of course, no facets of the Northern
Cities Vowel Shift for these speakers.

Yours,
Paul Johnston
----- Original Message -----
From: "Wilson Gray" <hwgray at GMAIL.COM>
To: <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
Sent: Sunday, January 29, 2006 2:07 PM
Subject: Sound-change in BE


> ---------------------- Information from the mail
header -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Wilson Gray <hwgray at GMAIL.COM>
> Subject:      Sound-change in BE
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----
>
> When I was a child, I never heard the sound commonly represented in
> eye-dialect as "aow" used by any black speaker. When I was a young
> man, I noticed that my female contemporaries had begun to use "aow."
> Now, I hear "aow" used by black men. Cf., e.g. Dave Chappelle, as one
> egregious example.
>
> -Wilson
>
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