Tidewater accent
Encyclopedia
Tidewater accent, also known as Tidewater English or the Tidewater Dialect is a specific dialect
of Southern American English
. While the dialect is said to have roots up and down the eastern seaboard, it is primarily concentrated in the southeastern part of Virginia
otherwise known as the Tidewater Region
. This region consists of the Hampton Roads
, parts of the Outer Banks
of North Carolina
, and parts of the eastern shore of Virginia and Maryland
.
. (This is not to be confused with the form of English spoken today known as Modern English
or Present-Day English or with that English of Chaucer
which was that of Middle English
.) Even within Early Modern English, there was immense variation among its speakers .. This variation could have been due to several factors such as geographic location, social class, age, race, etc. within England itself. (Think of comparing an urban speaker from the Bronx and a rural speaker from Alabama. Both are clearly from very different geographic locations with very different linguistic influences and thus will have very different linguistic properties in their speech.)
in the Chesapeake Bay
is significantly unique in that it seems relatively untouched by linguistic evolution. It has been hypothesized that this dialect is the closest resemblance there is to the dialect of the original colonists. Twelve miles from mainland Virginia, this tiny island was discovered in 1608 by Captain John Smith, the island has always had a very low population. In 1800, the island had 79 inhabitants. It ballooned to 411 by 1860. The population peaked in 1930 at 1190, but has since dwindled back down to 604 in the 2000 census Given the island's geographic isolation and the fact that the island's population never really grew to a large number, the community was able to retain a significant amount of its native dialect.
Another traditional feature of the area is the use of [əʊ] for aʊ. For example, words such as "house" and "about" may be heard as "hoose" and "abote" respectively in the Tidewater area. Given that there are over 2.8 million people in the area, it is difficult to account for all variants. Also, the area is home to several large military bases such as Naval Station Norfolk
, Little Creek Amphibious Base, Oceana Naval Station, and Dam Neck Naval Base. Since a significant portion of the area's inhabitants are actually natives of other areas, there is constant linguistic exposure to other dialects. This exposure could be a reason why the younger generations do not exhibit as many of the traditional variants. These variants can, however, still be found in the youth of the more rural areas of Tidewater as well as many of the adults throughout the Tidewater region.
Notably, the word "jank" is a commonly used term amongst natives of the Tidewater area (Most often the African American community). "Jank" serves the language as a noun, an adjective, and a verb. For example: "You see that jank" or "That wave is jank", or even "That jank is childish." The word "trifflin'" is also often used as an adverb or adjective, such as "That's trifflin'."
Assistant Professor Dr. Bridget Anderson entitled Tidewater Voices: Conversations in Southeastern Virginia has recently been initiated in the area. In collecting oral histories from natives of the area, this study offers insight to not only specific history of the region, but also to linguistic phonetic variants native to the area as well. This linguistic survey is the first of its kind in nearly forty years. The two variants being analyzed the most closely in this study are the /aʊ/ diphthong as in house or brown and post-vocalic r-lessness as in /ˈfɑːðə/ for /ˈfɑːðər/.
Dialect
The term dialect is used in two distinct ways, even by linguists. One usage refers to a variety of a language that is a characteristic of a particular group of the language's speakers. The term is applied most often to regional speech patterns, but a dialect may also be defined by other factors,...
of Southern American English
Southern American English
Southern American English is a group of dialects of the English language spoken throughout the Southern region of the United States, from Southern and Eastern Maryland, West Virginia and Kentucky to the Gulf Coast, and from the Atlantic coast to most of Texas and Oklahoma.The Southern dialects make...
. While the dialect is said to have roots up and down the eastern seaboard, it is primarily concentrated in the southeastern part of Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
otherwise known as the Tidewater Region
Tidewater region of Virginia
The Tidewater region of Virginia is the eastern portion of the Commonwealth of Virginia formally known as Hampton Roads. The term tidewater may be correctly applied to all portions of any area, including Virginia, where the water level is affected by the tides...
. This region consists of the Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads is the name for both a body of water and the Norfolk–Virginia Beach metropolitan area which surrounds it in southeastern Virginia, United States...
, parts of the Outer Banks
Outer Banks
The Outer Banks is a 200-mile long string of narrow barrier islands off the coast of North Carolina, beginning in the southeastern corner of Virginia Beach on the east coast of the United States....
of North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, and parts of the eastern shore of Virginia and Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
.
History
This dialect of American English has evolved over a period of four hundred years from the English that was spoken by those who initially settled the area. Given that language is an entity that is constantly changing, it is accurate to say that the English of the colonists was much different than any variety of English being spoken today. The colonists who initially settled the Tidewater area spoke a variety of English known as Early Modern EnglishEarly Modern English
Early Modern English is the stage of the English language used from about the end of the Middle English period to 1650. Thus, the first edition of the King James Bible and the works of William Shakespeare both belong to the late phase of Early Modern English...
. (This is not to be confused with the form of English spoken today known as Modern English
Modern English
Modern English is the form of the English language spoken since the Great Vowel Shift in England, completed in roughly 1550.Despite some differences in vocabulary, texts from the early 17th century, such as the works of William Shakespeare and the King James Bible, are considered to be in Modern...
or Present-Day English or with that English of Chaucer
Geoffrey Chaucer
Geoffrey Chaucer , known as the Father of English literature, is widely considered the greatest English poet of the Middle Ages and was the first poet to have been buried in Poet's Corner of Westminster Abbey...
which was that of Middle English
Middle English
Middle English is the stage in the history of the English language during the High and Late Middle Ages, or roughly during the four centuries between the late 11th and the late 15th century....
.) Even within Early Modern English, there was immense variation among its speakers .. This variation could have been due to several factors such as geographic location, social class, age, race, etc. within England itself. (Think of comparing an urban speaker from the Bronx and a rural speaker from Alabama. Both are clearly from very different geographic locations with very different linguistic influences and thus will have very different linguistic properties in their speech.)
Tangier
While the dialect of the region has evolved and changed over time, it is worth noting a distinct other in the group. The dialect of the small isolated island of TangierTangier, Virginia
Tangier is a town in Accomack County, Virginia, United States, on Tangier Island in the Chesapeake Bay. The population was 727 at the 2010 census. The tiny island community has attracted the attention of linguists because its people speak a unique English Restoration era dialect of American English...
in the Chesapeake Bay
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...
is significantly unique in that it seems relatively untouched by linguistic evolution. It has been hypothesized that this dialect is the closest resemblance there is to the dialect of the original colonists. Twelve miles from mainland Virginia, this tiny island was discovered in 1608 by Captain John Smith, the island has always had a very low population. In 1800, the island had 79 inhabitants. It ballooned to 411 by 1860. The population peaked in 1930 at 1190, but has since dwindled back down to 604 in the 2000 census Given the island's geographic isolation and the fact that the island's population never really grew to a large number, the community was able to retain a significant amount of its native dialect.
Features of Tidewater English
One of the traditional features of Tidewater English is that is non-rhotic. This may be heard in such words as Norfolk pronounced by many natives as ˈnɔːfɪk. Many visitors to the area may pronounce the city's name as /ˈnɜrfoʊk/ or even /ˈnɜrfɪk/, the "l" being silent. The latter of these two is even appearing in younger generations native to the Tidewater area.Another traditional feature of the area is the use of [əʊ] for aʊ. For example, words such as "house" and "about" may be heard as "hoose" and "abote" respectively in the Tidewater area. Given that there are over 2.8 million people in the area, it is difficult to account for all variants. Also, the area is home to several large military bases such as Naval Station Norfolk
Naval Station Norfolk
Naval Station Norfolk, in Norfolk, Virginia, is a base of the United States Navy, supporting naval forces in the United States Fleet Forces Command, those operating in the Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, and Indian Ocean...
, Little Creek Amphibious Base, Oceana Naval Station, and Dam Neck Naval Base. Since a significant portion of the area's inhabitants are actually natives of other areas, there is constant linguistic exposure to other dialects. This exposure could be a reason why the younger generations do not exhibit as many of the traditional variants. These variants can, however, still be found in the youth of the more rural areas of Tidewater as well as many of the adults throughout the Tidewater region.
Notably, the word "jank" is a commonly used term amongst natives of the Tidewater area (Most often the African American community). "Jank" serves the language as a noun, an adjective, and a verb. For example: "You see that jank" or "That wave is jank", or even "That jank is childish." The word "trifflin'" is also often used as an adverb or adjective, such as "That's trifflin'."
Current Projects
There is currently a linguistic survey and study occurring in the Tidewater region. A project devised by Old Dominion UniversityOld Dominion University
Old Dominion University is a state university located in Norfolk, Virginia, United States, and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools...
Assistant Professor Dr. Bridget Anderson entitled Tidewater Voices: Conversations in Southeastern Virginia has recently been initiated in the area. In collecting oral histories from natives of the area, this study offers insight to not only specific history of the region, but also to linguistic phonetic variants native to the area as well. This linguistic survey is the first of its kind in nearly forty years. The two variants being analyzed the most closely in this study are the /aʊ/ diphthong as in house or brown and post-vocalic r-lessness as in /ˈfɑːðə/ for /ˈfɑːðər/.
External links
- http://www.tangierisland-va.com/island/
- http://hamptonroads.com/2009/01/odu-team-records-areas-accent-english-deep-roots