Charleston, SC, dialect

[Wilson Gray]

I think that your incisive mind may have pierced to the heart of the
matter, Liz. Although the women specifically stated that they were
from Charleston, I got the impression, as the case progressed, that
they were actually "from the country" somewhere in the greater
Charleston area, it probably being somewhat difficult to find a dirt
road in the city. Furthermore, I've long been under the impression
that Charleston has a distinctive accent. Except for their clearly
pronouncing "'night" as "noyt," there was nothing else of interest in
the women's speech. They didn't even sound particularly Southern.

-Wilson

On 11/8/06, Martinez-Gibson, Elizabeth A. <MartinezE at cofc.edu> wrote:
> ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       "Martinez-Gibson, Elizabeth A." <MartinezE at COFC.EDU>
> Subject:      Re: Charleston, SC, dialect
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Hmmm. I have to agree with Wilson. What is common is /a/ or /aI/. I =
> don't recall hearing "noit" or 'noyt" for "night" in my 15 yrs. in =
> Charleston. Perhaps these women are not true Charlestonians? There are =
> alot of outsiders relocating in Charleston these days. I will pay closer =
> attention to the native speakers in the future.
> =20
> Liz Martinez-Gibson
> martineze at cofc.edu <mailto:martineze at cofc.edu>=20
> =20
> =20
>
> ________________________________
>
> From: American Dialect Society on behalf of Jonathan Lighter
> Sent: Wed 11/8/2006 10:49 AM
> To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
> Subject: Re: Charleston, SC, dialect
>
>
>
> I've heard East Tennesseans do something like this. It's usually subtle, =
> though. If you're listening closely, it can sound surprisingly Irish. If =
> you're not, it's barely noticeable.  Certainly it hasn't become a staple =
> of parody or eye-dialect.
>
>   Rather than a direct survival, it may come from a slight fronting of =
> the first element in the usual / aI /, with the second element moving =
> just as slightly toward / i /.  That second element is often reduced to =
> a glide, or to zero. I think that "night," e.g., more often has /  aI /, =
> but the stereotypical / a / is very frequent among older, less well =
> educated country people. I can't assign the "noit" variant so glibly =
> because I haven't heard it nearly as often as the others.
>
>   Pretty obviously I'm no phonetician.
>
>   JL
> Wilson Gray <hwgray at GMAIL.COM> wrote:
>   ---------------------- Information from the mail header =
> -----------------------
> Sender: American Dialect Society
> Poster: Wilson Gray
> Subject: Charleston, SC, dialect
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------=
> ------
>
> Two women from Charleston appeared on a judge show and they both
> pronounced "night" approximately as "noyt." I've never been to
> Charleston, so this may be nothing surprising to those older and
> wiser, but it certainly grabbed my attention!
>
> -Wilson
> --
> Everybody says, "How hard it is that we have to die"---a strange
> complaint to come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
> -----
> Whoever has lived long enough to find out what life is knows how deep
> a debt of gratitude we owe to Adam, the first great benefactor of our
> race. He brought death into the world.
>
> --Sam Clemens
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org =
> <http://www.americandialect.org/>=20
>
>
>
> ---------------------------------
> Sponsored Link
>
> Get a free Motorola Razr! Today Only! Choose Cingular, Sprint, Verizon, =
> Alltel, or T-Mobile.
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org =
> <http://www.americandialect.org/>=20
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>


--
Everybody says, "How hard it is that we have to die"---a strange
complaint to come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
-----
Whoever has lived long enough to find out what life is knows how deep
a debt of gratitude we owe to Adam, the first great benefactor of our
race. He brought death into the world.

--Sam Clemens

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org