Sociolinguistics

AAVEEbonics

Adapted from Aj Jacob’s lecture and Do You Speak American

What is Ebonics?

• ‘Black English Vernacular’ (BEV), • ‘African American Vernacular English’ (AAVE)

in academic community.• Also,

– NONSTANDARD BLACK DIALECT– BLACK ENGLISH– AFRICAN AMERICAN ENGLISH [AAE]– EBONICS [USEB]– BLACK COMMUNICATIONS [BC]– BLACK POVERTY LANGUAGE– CASUAL REGISTER ENGLISH– RAP

Non-prestige dialects of English

• A common preconception about non-prestige dialects or colloquial forms of English is that:

– They are unsystematic and ‘lazy’ forms of language

– They are either reflect or even encourage illogical thought.

However we must remember that: • These varieties are just as systematic as

prestige varieties of English.

• There is no basis for claiming that their phonology, morphology or syntax reflects 'illogical' or lazy thinking.

What Are Some Characteristics of AAVE?

• Vocabulary• Grammar• Sounds• Culture• History

VocabularyWhat does it mean?

• Cat“a friend, a fellow, etc.”

• Cool“calm, controlled”

• Dig“to understand, appreciate, pay attention”

• Bad“really good”

• Phat“very positive”

VOCABULARY: [BE] LEXICON WITH [SE] MEANINGS [BE] [SE]

THE TRUTH THE REAL DEAL, BEST THING GOINGDUMB EXCELLENT; VERY SATISFYINGSHORTIE A GOOD LOOKING GIRLWIFEY MAIN GIRLFRIENDDADDY MAIN BOYFRIENDGRUB FOODGEAR CLOTHESKICKS, BUNNIES SNEAKERSAIR FORCE ONES, G-NIKES GANGSTER NIKE SNEAKERSAIR JORDAN 18 SNEAKERS WORN BY MICHAEL JORDANSOLDIERS REBOK CLASSICS IN SNEAKERSCRIB HOMETHE HOOD THE (HOUSING) PROJECTCOP BUY or GET WEAK A SUCKER5-0; PO-PO COPS, POLICE, AUTHORITYBLITZED ALL PARTIED OUT, STONEDSCRED SCAREDBAGGED ARRESTEDBOB; GAT; HEAT GUNBODIED KILLEDCELLY CELL PHONEO.G. ORIGINAL GANGSTER [LEADER]

THE CAN JAILSMOKE WEED (MARIJUANA)BLUNT GETTING HIGHJACK PHONECHILL OUT TO STOP ACTION OR HANG OUTHOMES; HOME A PERSON FROM THE SAME TOWNDOG; GOD FRIENDHOMEBOY, HOMIE A GOOD FRIENDHOMESLICE BEST FRIENDSPORTIN’ TO WEAR A NEW STYLE; SHOW OFFFRONT or FRONTIN’ TURNING ON A FRIEND; BACKSTABBINGBOOK; SCRILLA; CAKE MONEYBOUNCE LEAVE [“LET’S BOUNCE”]WE OUT-TEE WE ARE LEAVINGJETTIN’; DIPPIN’ LEAVING QUICKLYSCRUB A BUM; NOT GOOD IN SPORTS OR ANYTHINGSTEP OFF BACK OFF; BEAT IT; LAY OFF; CROKEYO A CALL TO SOMEBODYFRESH NEWA’IGHT or I-GHT OK, ALL RIGHTSICK GOOD LOOKING SNEAKERSTYPE VERY [“I’M TYPE HUNGRY!”]

VOCABULARY: [BE] LEXICON WITH [SE] MEANINGS [BE] [SE]

Grammar• For example:

• AAVE: “He be trippin’”• SE: “He is trippin’”

– or• AAVE: “I been done my homework”• SE: “I have had my homework done for a long time”

– Where “to be” is omitted altogether: • AAVE: “He going to work today.” • SE: “He is going to work today.”

– or• AAVE: “You the one who put your hand on the

stove.”• SE: “You are the one who put your hand on the

stove.”

Omission of auxiliary verbs

'Standard English' EbonicsHe is happy He happyHe is late He lateThey're mine They mine

I'm gonna do it I gonna do it

How Did AAVE Develop?Creole vs. Dialect Hypotheses

The Debate

Creole Hypothesis

Creole Hypothesis

• The language that they developed in an English-speaking setting could be considered a pidgin since it was only used in a purely functional context. The pidgin was passed down through generations as a primary language, at which point it became a creole.

Problems with Creole Hypothesis

• Demographic conditions in the US and the Caribbean did not meet the conditions necessary for the emergence of a full-fledged creole.

• Distinctive features of AAVE today actually have a precedent in various varieties of English spoken in Great Britain and the Southern United States.

Dialect Hypothesis

• No formal education in standard English

• Hardly any contact wit their masters

• Pick up little bits

• A fragmented dialect

Relevant questions and evidence in relation to AAVE. From the point of view of the creolist/dialectologist debate, the fundamental question is whether a significant number of the Africans who came to the United States between the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries went through processes of pidginization, creolization and (maybe) decreolization in acquiring English (the creolists' position), or whether they learned the English of British and other immigrants fairly rapidly and directly, without an intervening pidgin or creole stage (the dialectologists' position).

Source: http://www.stanford.edu/~rickford/papers/CreoleOriginsOfAAVE.html

Discussion

Some linguists maintain that the distinctive language variety used by African Americans was formed primarily in the 20th century and that it may still be becoming more dissimilar frommainstream American English.

What do you think might have caused a divergence of AAE from other varieties of English? Why would a group develop and maintain a distinct variety of English?

Does language divide people in America?

Must the multiple varieties of English spoken here divide people – is it an inevitable consequence?

Or, are there ways you see people choosing various modes of expression that originate in different speech communities?”

Or can you think of examples in which people who speak different dialects of English cooperate in many endeavors?

Are you familiar with the language situation in another country that offers a different perspective on this issue of separation by language?

What do you assume about people when you hear them speak (e.g sex, age, attitudes, personality)?

What assumptions do you think people make about you based on the way you speak?

Are some of these assumptions wrong?

Are such assumptions similar to or different from those made about people based on visuallyobservable attributes?

Discuss the usefulness and the dangers of suchassumptions.

Discussion

Do you think it’s right to correct students who speak AAVE?

Who’s responsibility is it to do this?

We hear about the benefits of correcting and speaking standard English but what about the negatives?