[Ads-l] Dialect clash

[Clai Rice]

To offer Wilson some support from a regional variety of English, I've noticed that I can predict that a student (or any other person) is from Baton Rouge because they say [rudZ], while non-natives of all kinds call it [ruZ]. I first noticed this while listening to the BR public radio station, and have tested it hundreds of times since then. The times I have been tricked is by non-Baton Rougian AfAm students who use [dZ]. I've been taking notes on place name pronunciations here in Lafayette and the region--excluding New Orleans because it's been done too much. Most non-locals try to Franglais the names, but AFAMs will not go to [Z], they stick to [dZ]. I've been wondering if Z has much presence in BE at all, or at least southern BE.

Clai

----- Original Message -----
> From: "Wilson Gray" <hwgray at GMAIL.COM>
> Sent: Saturday, July 9, 2016 10:11:04 AM
> Subject: Dialect clash
> 
> In an ad, comedian Kevin Hart hypercorrects the term, _boojie_ "member of
> or stereotypical of the so-called 'black bourgeoisie'" from
> 
> "boo[dZ]I"
> 
> to
> 
> "boo[Z]I."
> 
> "The pronunciation of _Bei[dZ]ing_ as "Bei[Z]ing" was already a problem for
> me.
> 
> Will J j come to represent [Z] in the future of English?
> 
> Slightly apropos, I have no documentation, but, at one time, there was no
> [Z] in BE, only [dZ]. As Matthew McConaughey might say, "Now, you can't
> prove that." However, according to my experience, it's still true today,
> among those who feel no pressure to use a "more-elegant" register in their
> speech,
> people who say "my r-eyes" and "me[dZ]urin' cup."
> 
> --
> -Wilson
> -----
> All say, "How hard it is that we have to die!"---a strange complaint to
> come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
> -Mark Twain
> 
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> 

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