More Southern I think?

justcarol67 justcarol67 at yahoo.com
Wed Jul 21 01:04:18 UTC 2004


Cyndi from South Carolina wrote:
> I grew up in the south, but my parents are from NY and Canada.  I 
> speak more like they do, but there is no way to avoid environmental 
> influences.  I say ya'll all the time, and am not ashamed to admit 
> it!  <big grin>  One thing I am bothered by about "southern speak" 
> seems to come from the Charleston, SC area...saying CarolinER instead 
> of CarolinA.  Some how words that end in "a" are pronounce as if they 
> end with "er".  That is one thing I haved made every effort to avoid!

Carol responds:
Isn't "-er" for final -a originally a Briticism (Britishism)? I'm
trying to think of an example but I can't. I also remember reading
that refined Englishmen and -women in the nineteeth centruy thought
that pronouncing the final "g" in "-ing" was "vulgar." Lord Byron, for
example, rhymed "Pursuing" with "ruin." For that matter, he rhymed
"Juan" in "Don Juan" with "ruin"!

Carol, who wonders whether the British members of the list mind being
referred to as "Brits" 





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