When I first started writing the Bubba stories, coming from the north (yes, folks, I was born a yankee) I mistakenly thought the mountain people spoke in true Southern Redneck language. Well, after reading a lot of Foxworthy books I decided that the speech I heard up here in the mountains was definitely NOT redneck speech. So, off I went to my local library where I found books on Mountain Speech. Thus, I felt I should set you on the right path when you read the stories. Herein is what I have taken from the book, "Southern Mountain Speech" written by Cratis D. Williams.

Appalachian speech was determined by the predominance of the Scotch-Irish in the settlement of the mountains prior to and following the American Revolution. The speech overlaps with folk speech of rural colonial British. Examples are: "He skun the 'possum", "Me and him both heared it", and "I growed up about ha-aif way." Mountain people appear to speak with fixed chins and half-closed mouths. They also favor the letter "r". This letter is attached to certain words such as narrow (narrer), widow (widder), and window (winder). However, it is not attached to words like Cuba which is pronounced Cuby or idea which is pronounced idy. The "r" is also inserted into the middle of words like woman (womern), ruin (rurn) and wash (warsh). It is also usually blended with a preceding vowel. Bear is pronounced "bar", fire "far", and wire "war". By the same token fair is pronounced "fire". So if someone says, "I saw the bar at the fire", what they are really saying is "I saw the bear at the fair". How's that for confusion? When it comes to words such as curse, further, horse and first, the "r" is omitted and the words become cuss, futher, hoss and fust. They have also succeeded in crossing the vowel as in funeral (furnal), pretty (purty) and hundred (hunnerd). The "r" is also used as a double letter in words like worm (worrum) and paradise (parrydise). In some cases, the "r" becomes an "l"-frustrated is said "flustrated". For some unknown reason, they cannot say the dipthong "ou". Self-consciousness sets in when asked to say the words containing "ou". House is pronounced ha-h-uhs. There is also no "g" in ing endings. The preposition "a" is retained as a prefix to ing. Examples of this are waiting (a-waitun) and flying (a-flyun). Instead of saying the familiar y'all (which by the way is only used to address more than one person)the mountaineer says "you'uns" (yuns) Ex: "What time you'ns a-closun?" The word suggests a strong need for ownership and preciseness in identification. The presence of "l" in a word takes on an added syllable, especially if the words ends in an m, n, or ng sound. Hence, troubling becomes troubelli, film becomes fillum and costly becomes costily. Due to the rigid chin, words are often broken into two syllables. Sick is sa-ick, pat is pa-it, etc. Double e becomes an i as in creek - crick. Because of the habit of thrusting the chin forward sounds are often dragged out..cup becomes cu-u-up, etc. Other words are chair (chur), rather (rurther) and where (whur). Sometimes uneducated mountain people form plurals by adding "es" to words, pronouncing this "uz" like in fish (fistes). Double plurals are often heard in words like snake (snakeses) and ask (askes). Common usage of ask is ax or axes. Note: My eyes have really opened up since reading this book and I have a new respect for the people who surround me everyday. I've also taken notice of the rigid chin and the thrusting of the chin and have become more aware of the speech patterns. This helps me to understand what is being said so that I'm not always smiling and nodding. What really scares me, though, is I'VE taken on some of the same habits. But, at least now THEY understand ME.

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