Southern American English

{{Multiple issues|refimprove=November 2007 |citation style = July 2010 |confusing = July 2010}} [[File:SouthernEnglishMap.jpg|thumb|300px|Approximate extent of Southern American English, based upon multiple dialect studies.]] [[Image:Pin-pen.svg|thumb|300px|The merger of ''pin'' and ''pen'' in Southern American English. In the purple areas, the merger is complete for most speakers. Note the exclusion of the New Orleans area, and of Georgia's and South Carolina's "Low Country" area. The purple area in California consists of the [[Bakersfield]] and [[Kern County]] area, where migrants from the [[South Central United States|south-central states]] settled during the [[Dust Bowl]]. Based on {{Harvcoltxt|Labov|Ash|Boberg|2006|p=68}}.]] '''Southern American English''' is a group of [[dialect]]s of the [[English language]] spoken throughout the [[U.S. Southern states|Southern region]] of the [[United States]], from Southern and Eastern [[Maryland]], [[West Virginia]] and [[Kentucky]] to the [[U.S. Gulf Coast|Gulf Coast]], and from the [[Atlantic Ocean|Atlantic]] coast to most of [[Texas]] and [[Oklahoma]]. The Southern dialects make up the largest [[Dialects of North American English|accent group in the United States]]. Southern American English can be divided into several regional sub-dialects. [[African American Vernacular English]] (AAVE) has common points with Southern dialects due to the strong historical ties of [[African American]]s to the region. ==Overview of Southern dialects== The Southern dialects collectively known as Southern American English stretch across the southeastern and south-central United States, but exclude the southernmost areas of Florida and the extreme western and south-western parts of Texas as well as the Rio Grande Valley (Laredo to Brownsville). This linguistic region includes [[Alabama]], [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]], [[Tennessee]], [[Mississippi]], [[North Carolina]], [[South Carolina]], [[Louisiana]], and [[Arkansas]], as well as most of [[Texas]], [[Virginia]], [[Oklahoma]], [[Kentucky]], and [[West Virginia]]. It also includes parts of southern and central [[Missouri]], and parts of [[Florida]] and [[Maryland]]. Southern dialects originated in large part from immigrants from the [[British Isles]] who moved to the South in the 17th and 18th centuries. Settlement also included large numbers of [[Protestantism|Protestants]] from [[Ulster]], [[Ireland]], and from [[Scotland]]. Upheavals such as the [[Great Depression]], the [[Dust Bowl]] and [[World War II]] caused mass migrations of those and other settlers throughout the United States. ===Phonology=== {{IPA notice}} Few generalizations can be made about Southern pronunciation as there is great variation between the regions of the South (see the [[#Dialects|different southern American English dialects]] section below for more information), between older and younger people, and between people of different ethnic backgrounds. ====Older SAE==== The following features are characteristic of older SAE: * Lack of [[English consonant-cluster reductions#Yod dropping|yod dropping]], thus pairs like ''do''/''due'' and ''toon''/''tune'' are distinct. Historically, words like ''due'', ''lute'', and ''new'' contained {{IPA|/juː/}}{{Citation needed|date=March 2010}} (as [[Received Pronunciation|RP]] does), but {{Harvcoltxt|Labov|Ash|Boberg|2006|pp=53–54}} report that the only Southern speakers who make a distinction today use a diphthong {{IPA|/ɪu/}} in such words. They further report that speakers with the distinction are found primarily in [[North Carolina]] and northwest [[South Carolina]], and in a corridor extending from [[Jackson, Mississippi|Jackson]] to [[Tallahassee, Florida|Tallahassee]]. * The [[English-language vowel changes before historic r#Mary–marry–merry merger|distinction between {{IPA|/ær/}}, {{IPA|/ɛr/}}, and {{IPA|/er/}}]] in ''marry'', ''merry'', and ''Mary'' is preserved by some older speakers, but few young people make a distinction. {{Citation needed|date=May 2011}} The ''r''-sound almost becomes a vowel, and may be elided after a long vowel, as it often is in AAVE. ====Newer SAE==== The following phenomena are relatively wide spread in Newer SAE, though the extent of these features varies across regions and between rural and urban areas. The older the speaker, the less likely he or she is to display these features: * The [[phonemic differentiation|merger]] of {{IPA|[ɛ]}} and {{IPA|[ɪ]}} before [[nasal consonant]]s, so that ''pen'' and ''pin'' are pronounced the same, but the [[Phonological history of the high front vowels#Pin–pen merger|pin–pen merger]] is not found in [[New Orleans]], [[Savannah, Georgia|Savannah]], or [[Miami]] (which does not fall within the Southern dialect region). This sound change has spread beyond the South in recent decades and is now found in parts of the [[Midwestern United States|Midwest]] and [[Western United States|West]] as well. * Lax and tense vowels often [[English-language vowel changes before historic l|neutralize before {{IPA|/l/}}]], making pairs like ''feel''/''fill'' and ''fail''/''fell'' [[homophone]]s for speakers in some areas of the South. Some speakers may distinguish between the two sets of words by reversing the normal vowel sound, e.g., ''feel'' in SAE may sound like ''fill'', and vice versa. ====Shared features==== [[File:Southern American English phonology.png|500px|right|thumb|Mean formant values for the ANAE subjects ({{Harvcoltxt|Labov|Ash|Boberg|2006|p=?}}) from the Southern U.S. (excluding Florida and Charleston, SC). The red symbol marks the position of monophthongized {{IPA|/aɪ/}} before voiced consonants. The distinction between {{IPA|/ɑ/}} and {{IPA|/ɔ/}} is preserved mainly because {{IPA|/ɔ/}} has an upglide. {{IPA|/eɪ/}} is backer and lower than {{IPA|/ɛ/}}.]] The following features are also associated with SAE: * The [[diphthong]] {{IPA|/aɪ/}} becomes [[monophthong]]ized to {{IPA|[aː]}}: ** Most speakers exhibit this feature at the ends of words and before voiced consonants but not before voiceless consonants; some in fact exhibit [[Canadian raising|Canadian-style raising]] before voiceless consonants, so that ''ride'' is {{IPA|[raːd]}} and ''wide'' is {{IPA|[waːd]}}, but ''right'' is {{IPA|[rəɪt]}} and ''white'' is {{IPA|[ʍəɪt]}}. Many speakers throughout the South exhibit backing to {{IPA|[ɑːe]}} in environments where monophthongization does not take place. ** Others monophthongize {{IPA|/aɪ/}} in all contexts, as in the stereotyped pronunciation "nahs whaht rahs" for ''nice white rice''; these speakers are mostly found in an Appalachian area that includes eastern Tennessee, western North Carolina and Northern Alabama (the "Inland South"), as well as in Central Texas. Elsewhere in the South, this pronunciation is stigmatized as a working class feature.{{Citation needed|date=September 2010}} * The "Southern [[Drawl]]", breaking of the short front vowels in the words "pat", "pet", and "pit": these develop a glide up from their original starting position to IPA| [j] , and then in some cases back down to schwa: {{IPA|/æ/ → [æjə]}}; {{IPA|/ɛ/ → [ɛjə]}}; {{IPA|/ɪ/ → [ɪjə]}}. * The "Southern Shift", a [[chain shift]] following on as a result of the Southern Drawl: the nuclei of {{IPA|/ɛ/}} and {{IPA|/ɪ/}} move to become higher and fronter, so that, for example, instead of {{IPA|[ɛjə]}}, {{IPA|/ɛ/}} becomes a tenser {{IPA|/ejə/}}. This process is most common in heavily stressed syllables. At the same time, the nuclei of the traditional front upgliding diphthongs are relaxed: {{IPA|/i/}} moves towards {{IPA|[ɪi]}} and {{IPA|/eɪ/}} moves towards {{IPA|[ɛi]}} or even lower and/or more retracted. * The back vowels {{IPA|/u/}} in ''boon'' and {{IPA|/oʊ/}} in ''code'' shift considerably forward. * The distinction between the vowels sounds of words like [[Phonological history of the low back vowels#Cot–caught merger|''caught'' and ''cot'']] or ''stalk'' and ''stock'' is mainly preserved. In much of the South, the vowel found in words like ''stalk'' and ''caught'' has developed into a diphthong {{IPA|[ɑɒ]}}. * The nucleus of {{IPA|/ɑr/}} ''card'' is often rounded to {{IPA|[ɒr]}}. becomes {{IPA|[d]}} before {{IPA|/n/}}, for example {{IPA|[wʌdn̩t]}} ''wasn't'', {{IPA|[bɪdnɪs]}} ''business'', but ''hasn't'' is sometimes still pronounced {{IPA|[hæzənt]}} because there already exists a word ''hadn't'' pronounced {{IPA|[hædənt]}}. * Many nouns are stressed on the first syllable that would be stressed on the second syllable in other accents. These include ''police'', ''cement'', ''Detroit'', ''Thanksgiving'', ''insurance'', ''behind'', ''display'', ''recycle'', ''TV'', ''guitar'', and ''umbrella''. * The [[English-language vowel changes before historic r#Hurry–furry merger|distinction between {{IPA|/ɜr/}} and {{IPA|/ʌr/}}]] in ''furry'' and ''hurry'' is preserved. * In some regions of the south, there is a [[English-language vowel changes before historic r#Card–cord merger|merger of {{IPA|[ɔr]}} and {{IPA|[ɑr]}}]], making ''cord'' and ''card'', ''for'' and ''far'', ''form'' and ''farm'' etc. homonyms. * The [[English-language vowel changes before historic r#Mirror–nearer merger|distinction between {{IPA|/ɪr/}} and {{IPA|/ɪər/}}]] in ''mirror'' and ''nearer'', ''Sirius'' and ''serious'' etc. is not preserved. * The [[English-language vowel changes before historic r#Pour–poor merger|distinction between {{IPA|/ʊər/}} and {{IPA|/ɔr/}}]] in ''poor'' and ''pour'', ''moor'' and ''more'' is not preserved. * The l's in the words ''walk'' and ''talk'' are occasionally pronounced, causing the words ''talk'' and ''walk'' to be pronounced {{IPA|/wɑlk/}} and {{IPA|/tɑlk/}} by some Southerners. A sample of that pronunciation can be found at http://www.utexas.edu/courses/linguistics/resources/socioling/talkmap/talk-nc.html. * Some older speakers have a phenomenon that resembles the trap–bath split. Where General American accents prescribe /æ/ and considerably liberal accents have /ɑ:/, Southern American English may have a new vowel diphthong /æɪ/, as in ''aunt'' /æɪnt/ and ''gas'' /gæɪs/.{{Citation needed|date=October 2008}} ====Older SAE==== * Zero copula in third person plural and second person. This is historically a consequence of [[rhotic and non-rhotic accents|R dropping]], with e.g. ''you're'' merging with ''you''. ::You [Ø] taller than Sheila. ::They [Ø] gonna leave today (Cukor-Avila, 2003). * Use of the circumfix ''a- . . . -in'.'' ::He was a-hootin' and a-hollerin'. ::The wind was a-howlin'. * The use of ''like to'' to mean ''nearly''; ''lacked to'' merging into ''like to'' ::I like to had a heart attack. (I likened to have had a heart attack) ::I like (lack) one more having a dozen. * The use of the simple past infinitive vs [[present perfect]] infinitive. :: I like to had. ''vs'' I lacked to have had. :: We were supposed to went. ''vs'' We were supposed to have gone. * Use of "yonder" as a locative. ::They done gathered a mess of raspberries in the woods o' ''yonder''. ====Newer SAE==== [[File:You all and Y'all.jpg|thumb|300px|Frequency of either "Y'all" or "You all" to address multiple people, according to an Internet survey of American dialect variation.]] [[File:Y'allMap.jpg|thumb|300px|Frequency of just "Y'all" to address multiple people, according to an Internet survey of American dialect variation.]] * Use of the [[Contraction (grammar)|contraction]] ''[[y'all]]'' as the second person plural pronoun. Its uncombined form{{ndash}} ''you all''{{ndash}} is used less frequently. * When speaking about a group, ''y'all'' is general (I know y'all) and is used to address groups of people one knows and whose members one knows as a group, whereas ''all y'all'' is much more specific and means that one knows each and every person in the group, individually ("I know all y'all.") ''Y'all'' can also be used with the standard "-s" possessive. ::"''I've got y'all's assignments here.''" {{IPA-en|ˈjɔːlz|pron}} * ''Y'all'' is distinctly separate from the singular ''you.'' The statement "''I gave y'all my payment last week,''" is more precise than "''I gave you my payment last week.''" ''You'' (if interpreted as singular) could imply the payment was given directly to the person being spoken to{{ndash}} when that may not be the case. * Some people misinterpret the phrase "all y'all" as meaning that Southerners use the "y'all" as singular and "all y'all" as plural. However, "all y'all" is used to specify that all members of the second person plural (''i.e.'', all persons currently being addressed and/or all members of a group represented by an addressee) are included; that is, it operates in contradistinction to "some of y'all," thereby functioning similarly to "all of you" in standard English. * In rural Southern Appalachia an "n" is added to pronouns indicating "one" "his'n" "his one" "her'n" "her one" "Yor'n" "your one" i.e. "his, hers and yours". Another example is ''yernses''. It may be substituted for the 2nd person plural possessive ''yours.'' ::"''That book is yernses.''" {{IPA-en|ˈjɜrnzɨz|pron}} * Use of ''dove'' as past tense for ''dive'', ''drug'' as past tense for ''drag'', and ''drunk'' as past tense for ''drink''.{{Citation needed|date=September 2010}} ====Shared features==== These grammatical features are characteristic of both older Southern American English and newer Southern American English. * Use of ''done'' as an [[auxiliary verb]] between the subject and verb in sentences conveying the [[past tense]]. ::I done told you before. * Use of ''done'' (instead of ''did'') as the past simple form of ''do'', and similar uses of the [[past participle]] in place of the [[past simple]], such as ''seen'' replacing ''saw'' as past simple form of ''see.'' ::I only done what you done told me. ::I seen her first. * Use of other non-standard [[preterite]]s, Such as ''drownded'' as the past tense of ''drown'', ''knowed'' as past tense of ''know'', ''choosed'' as the past tense of ''choose'', ''degradated'' as the past tense of ''degrade''. ::I knowed you for a fool soon as I seen you. * Use of ''was'' in place of ''were,'' or other words regularizing the past tense of ''be'' to ''was''.{{Citation needed|date=September 2010}} ::You was sittin' on that chair. * Use of ''been'' instead of ''have been'' in [[perfect (grammar)|perfect]] constructions. ::I been livin' here darn near my whole life. * Use of [[double modal]]s (''might could, might should, might would, used to could,'' etc.--also called "modal stacking") and sometimes even triple modals that involve ''oughta'' (like ''might should oughta'') ::I might could climb to the top. ::I used to could do that. * Preservation of older English ''me,'' ''him,'' etc. as reflexive datives. ::I'm fixin' to paint me a picture. ::He's gonna catch him a big one. * Saying ''this here'' in place of ''this'' or ''this one'', and ''that there'' in place of ''that'' or ''that one''. ::This here's mine and that there is yours. * Use of ''(a-)fixin' to'', or just "fixing to" in more modern SAE, to indicate immediate future action in place of ''intending to'', ''preparing to'', or ''about to''. ::He's fixin' to eat. ::They're fixing to go for a hike. * Existential ''It,'' a feature dating from Middle English which can be explained as substituting ''it'' for ''there'' when ''there'' refers to no physical location, but only to the existence of something. ::It's one lady that lives in town. * Use of ''ever'' in place of ''every''. ::Ever'where's the same these days. ===Vocabulary=== *Use of "over yonder" in place of "over there" or "in or at that indicated place," especially to refer to a particularly different spot, such as in "the house over yonder." Additionally, "yonder" tends to refer to a third, larger degree of distance beyond both "here" and "there," indicating that something is a longer way away, and to a lesser extent, in an open expanse, as in the church hymn "When the Roll Is Called Up Yonder." ==Dialects== What is commonly referred to as a "southern accent" in the United States may be one of the most distinguishable regional accents within the country. However, contrary to popular belief, there is no single "Southern accent". Instead, there are a number of sub-regional dialects found across the [[Southern United States]], collectively known as Southern American English. Yet these dialects often share features of accent and idiom that easily distinguish them from the English spoken in other regions of the United States, features that identify those dialects as "Southern", particularly to other Americans. Although people in the South of the United States speak different "Southern" dialects, they can understand one another, as can, on a broader scale, residents of the United States and the United Kingdom. ===Atlantic=== *'''Virginia Piedmont''' The [[Piedmont, Virginia|Virginia Piedmont]] dialect is possibly the most famous of Southern dialects because of its strong influence on speech patterns of the South. Because the dialect has long been associated with the upper or [[Aristocracy|aristocratic]] [[plantation]] class in the [[Old South]], many of the most important figures in Southern history spoke with a Virginia Piedmont accent. Virginia Piedmont is [[non-rhotic]], meaning speakers pronounce "R" only if it is followed by a vowel. The dialect also features the ''Southern drawl'' (mentioned above). *'''Coastal Southern''' Coastal Southern resembles Virginia Piedmont but has preserved more elements from the colonial era dialect than the dialects of almost all other regions of the United States. Coastal Southern can be found along the coasts of the Chesapeake and the Atlantic in Maryland, Virginia, the Carolinas, and Georgia. It is most prevalent in the Charleston, South Carolina, and Savannah, Georgia, areas. Like Virginia Piedmont, Coastal Southern is non-rhotic. ===Midland and Highland=== *'''South Midland or Highland Southern''' This dialect arose in the inland areas of the South. The area was settled largely by Scots-Irish, [[Scottish Highlands|Scottish Highlanders]], Northern and Western English, Welsh, and Germans. This dialect's northern boundary follows the [[Ohio River]] in a generally southwesterly direction, moves from Kentucky, across far southern Missouri and Oklahoma, and tapers out in western Texas. This dialect is used by some people in Southern Illinois, Southern Ohio and Southern Indiana. It has assimilated some coastal Southern forms, most noticeably the loss of the diphthong /aj/, which becomes {{IPA|/aː/}}, and the second person plural pronoun "you-all" or "y'all". Unlike Coastal Southern, however, South Midland is a rhotic dialect, pronouncing {{IPA|/r/}} wherever it has historically occurred. The dialect of [[Oklahoma]], for example, is a mixture of [[Midland American English]] and South Midland Southern American English. [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]] in [[Indian Territory]] used Southern dialect forms, while white settlers who arrived in [[Oklahoma Territory]] from the Midwest in the late 19th century brought more Midland forms. *'''Southern Appalachian''' {{Main|Appalachian English}} Due to the former isolation of some regions of the Appalachian South, the Appalachian accent may be difficult for some outsiders to understand. This dialect is also rhotic, meaning speakers pronounce "R"s wherever they appear in words, and sometimes when they do not (for example "worsh" for "wash.") Because of the extensive length of the mountain chain, noticeable variation also exists within this subdialect. The Southern Appalachian dialect can be heard, as its name implies, in [[North Georgia]], [[North Alabama]], [[East Tennessee]], [[Middle Tennessee]], Western [[North Carolina]], Eastern [[Kentucky]], [[Southwest Virginia|Southwestern Virginia]], [[Western Maryland]], and [[West Virginia]]. Southern Appalachian speech patterns, however, are not entirely confined to the mountain regions previously listed. Almost always, the common thread in the areas of the [[Southern United States|South]] where a rhotic version of the dialect is heard is a traceable line of descent from [[Scots language|Scots]] or [[Scotch-Irish American|Scots-Irish]] ancestors amongst its speakers. The dialect is also not devoid of early influence from Welsh settlers, the dialect retaining the [[Welsh English]] tendency to pronounce words beginning with the letter "h" as though the "h" were silent; for instance "humble" often is rendered "umble". Researchers have noted that the dialect retains a lot of vocabulary with roots in Scottish "[[Early Modern English|Elizabethan English]]" owing to the make-up of the early European settlers to the area. *'''Florida Cracker''' This dialect is found throughout several regions of [[Florida]] and in south [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]]. Several variations of the dialect are found in Florida. From Pensacola to Tallahassee, the dialect is non-rhotic and shares many characteristics with the speech patterns of southern [[Alabama]]. Another form of the dialect is spoken in northeast Florida, Central Florida, the Nature Coast and even in rural parts of South Florida. This dialect was made famous by [[Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings]]' book ''[[The Yearling]]''. ===Gulf of Mexico=== *'''Gulf Southern and Mississippi Delta''' This area of the South was settled by English speakers moving west from Virginia, Georgia, and the Carolinas, along with French settlers from Louisiana (see the section below). This accent is common in Mississippi, northern Louisiana, Arkansas, western Tennessee, and East Texas. Familiar speakers include [[Johnny Cash]] and [[Elvis Presley]]. Dialects found in Georgia and Alabama that are not Southern Appalachian have characteristics of both the Gulf Southern dialect and the Virginia Piedmont/Coastal Southern dialect. ===Louisiana=== The accents of southern and central Louisiana, while considered Southern, are diverse. Many dialects are unique to the region. *'''Cajun''' {{Main|Cajun French}} Southern [[Louisiana]], southeast [[Texas]] ([[Houston]] to [[Beaumont, Texas|Beaumont]]), and coastal [[Mississippi]], feature a number of dialects. There is [[Cajun French]], which combines elements of [[Acadian French]] with other French and Spanish words. This dialect is spoken by many of the older members of the [[Cajun]] ethnic group and is said to be dying out. Many younger Cajuns speak Cajun English, which retains Acadian French influences and words, such as "cher" (dear) or "nonc" (uncle). The [[French language]] can also still be heard in some parts of southern Louisiana. *'''Creole''' {{Main|Louisiana Creole French}} [[Louisiana Creole French]] (''Kreyol Lwiziyen'') is a [[French language|French]]-based [[creole language]] spoken in [[Louisiana]]. It has many resemblances to other French creoles in the [[Caribbean]]. While [[Cajun French]] and Louisiana Creole have had a significant influence on each other, they are unrelated. While Cajun is basically a French dialect with a grammar similar to that of standard French, Louisiana Creole applies a French lexicon to a system of grammar and [[syntax]] that differs considerably from French grammar. *'''Yat''' {{Main|Yat (New Orleans)}} This dialect is spoken in and around the greater New Orleans area. It is referred to as [[Yat (New Orleans)|Yat]], from phrases such as "Where y'at?" (for "Where are you?") Additionally, many unique terms such as "neutral ground" for the median of a divided street (Louisiana/Southern Mississippi) or "banquette" for a sidewalk (Southern Louisiana/Eastern Texas) are found here. ====Gullah==== {{Main|Gullah language}} Sometimes called Geechee, this [[creole language]] originated with [[African American]] [[slaves]] on the coastal areas and coastal islands of Georgia and South Carolina. The dialect was used to communicate with both Europeans and members of African tribes other than their own. Gullah was strongly influenced by [[West Africa]]n languages such as [[Vai language|Vai]], [[Mende language|Mende]], [[Twi language|Twi]], [[Ewe language|Ewe]], [[Hausa language|Hausa]], [[Yoruba language|Yoruba]], [[Igbo language|Igbo]], and [[Kikongo language|Kikongo]]. The name and chorus of the [[Christian]] [[hymn]] "[[Kumbaya]]" is said to be Gullah for ''come by here''. Other English words attributed to Gullah are ''juke'' ([[jukebox]]), ''goober'' (Southern term for [[peanut]]) and ''[[Louisiana Voodoo|voodoo]]''. In a 1930s study by [[Lorenzo Dow Turner]], over 4,000 words from many different [[Africa]]n languages were discovered in Gullah. Other words, such as ''yez'' for ''ears'', are just phonetic spellings of English words as pronounced by the Gullahs, on the basis of influence from Southern and Western English dialects. ====African American Vernacular English==== {{Main|African American Vernacular English}} This type of Southern American English originated in the Southern States where Africans were at that time held as slaves. These slaves originally spoke indigenous African languages but eventually picked up English to communicate with their masters and one another. Since the slave masters spoke Southern American English, that is the dialect of English the slaves learned. Over time, the form of SAE spoken by these slaves developed into what is now [[African American Vernacular English]], which retains many SAE features. While the African slaves and their descendants lost most of their language and culture, some vocabulary and grammatical features from indigenous West African languages remain in AAVE. While AAVE may also be spoken by members of other ethnic groups, it is largely spoken by and associated with blacks in many parts of the U.S. AAVE is considered by a number of English speakers to be a substandard dialect. As a result, AAVE speakers who seek social mobility typically learn to [[Code-switching|code-switch]] between AAVE and a more standardized English dialect. [[Liberian English]] is said to be at least partially based on AAVE, since that dialect of English was modeled after [[American English]] and not [[British English]]. ==See also== * [[Drawl]] * [[Southern literature]] * [[Regional vocabularies of American English]] * [[Old Virginia accent]] ==External links== *[http://www.uta.fi/FAST/US1/REF/dial-map.html U.S. dialect map] *[http://www.alphadictionary.com/articles/southernese.html Glossary of Southernisms by Dr. Robert Beard] *[http://www.asiteaboutnothing.net/w_southern.html Southern Accent Tutorial, with Voices of Native Speakers] {{English dialects by continent}}