Homegoing

[Joel S. Berson]

I'm hypothesizing a syncretic adoption of an African slave belief
from the 17th and 18th centuries into African-American Christianity.

Joel

At 3/9/2008 12:41 PM, Cohen, Gerald Leonard wrote:
>Probably not.  Cf. the lyrics of the song from the Civil Rights era:
>"...And before I'll be a slave/I'll be buried in my grave/And go
>home to my Lord and be free."
>
>Gerald Cohen
>
>________________________________
>
>From: American Dialect Society on behalf of Joel S. Berson
>Sent: Sun 3/9/2008 11:25 AM
>
>
>Does "homegoing" come from an earlier belief among slaves that the
>dead went back to Africa?
>
>Joel
>
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The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org