I’m not sure how entirely appropriate this question is for this forum, but there seems to be a lot of people with a really great grasp on American English dialects and variations who might be able to shed some light on this particular subject.
I’ve been researching (as clichéd as this will sound) for a writing project to be set during the Great Migration (where African Americans had a mass exodus from the southern states to the rest of the U.S. from about 1915 to the 1920s) and have been curious as to exactly what sort of speech patterns these people would have.
I’d assume that most African Americans at this time and location would speak a sort of hybrid between today’s African-American English and Southern American English, but would that be right? I know that the two have split very much in the last century, but (aside from the African and various pidgin influences) didn’t AAE stem largely from Southern American dialects spoken by Caucasian southerners?
I’ve been reading everything from Mark Twain to the Invisible Man for good examples of dialogue for Southern African Americans in the first half of the twentieth century. As far as I can tell, this seems to just about be the case, structurally, though there are specific vocabulary thrown in as well. Just wanted to see what other people thought about the subject.
Also, just to throw it out there, does anyone happen to know what typical terms an African American from this time period would use to refer to his or her mother, father, grandmother, grandfather and any other type of family member? Mama seems to be a relatively universally accepted term for all English speakers, but would a father be called Papa, Daddy, or something else entirely?
I’ve read places where “Madea” or “Madear” is supposed to be a “traditional term for grandmother,” but is this a fairly recent slang term? I know traditionally, white southern family patricarchs and matriarchs (grandparents) are commonly called Big Mama and Big Daddy. Was this used by African American families too? Also, if I’m not mistake, the word “Auntie” in subtext can be a term of familiarity used with women regardless of actual relation. Is there a differentiation between an Auntie and an actual aunt?
Anyhow, like I said, I just thought I’d give this a try on this forum as everyone seems so resourceful and to know they’re stuff about American dialects. Any input would be great.
I’ve been researching (as clichéd as this will sound) for a writing project to be set during the Great Migration (where African Americans had a mass exodus from the southern states to the rest of the U.S. from about 1915 to the 1920s) and have been curious as to exactly what sort of speech patterns these people would have.
I’d assume that most African Americans at this time and location would speak a sort of hybrid between today’s African-American English and Southern American English, but would that be right? I know that the two have split very much in the last century, but (aside from the African and various pidgin influences) didn’t AAE stem largely from Southern American dialects spoken by Caucasian southerners?
I’ve been reading everything from Mark Twain to the Invisible Man for good examples of dialogue for Southern African Americans in the first half of the twentieth century. As far as I can tell, this seems to just about be the case, structurally, though there are specific vocabulary thrown in as well. Just wanted to see what other people thought about the subject.
Also, just to throw it out there, does anyone happen to know what typical terms an African American from this time period would use to refer to his or her mother, father, grandmother, grandfather and any other type of family member? Mama seems to be a relatively universally accepted term for all English speakers, but would a father be called Papa, Daddy, or something else entirely?
I’ve read places where “Madea” or “Madear” is supposed to be a “traditional term for grandmother,” but is this a fairly recent slang term? I know traditionally, white southern family patricarchs and matriarchs (grandparents) are commonly called Big Mama and Big Daddy. Was this used by African American families too? Also, if I’m not mistake, the word “Auntie” in subtext can be a term of familiarity used with women regardless of actual relation. Is there a differentiation between an Auntie and an actual aunt?
Anyhow, like I said, I just thought I’d give this a try on this forum as everyone seems so resourceful and to know they’re stuff about American dialects. Any input would be great.