This is pretty interesting. I've seen a lot of people on here discuss different American dialects so maybe you guys would be interested in reading this too.

 

 

 

Twenty-five years ago, speakers who used like in she’s like, “Don’t leave the house!” were largely confined to Southern California and strongly associated with a stereotypical Valley Girl way of speaking. Today, the specialized use of like to introduce a quote (what linguists call the “quotative like”) has spread throughout the English-speaking world. The rapid, expansive spread of “quotative like” among speakers under the age of 40 is truly exceptional. It also raises important questions about the nature of language change.

 

More below

http://www.pbs.org/speak/ahead/change/change/

It's funny how he says "news".

His accent is pretty tame compared to some of the Chicago accents I've heard.  A bunch of my relatives are from Detroit and the suburbs around it, and their accent was always so distinct it was sort of a joke for my immediate family in Cincinnati.  They say words like God= Gad, and really short "oh" sounds.

 

I also thought this line was interesting: "Higher-status groups may often suppress natural changes taking place in lower-status groups to maintain their social distinction through language'

 

Many of my friends from New York have distinct accents, but not the kind of accent normally associated with New York.  Prior to meeting many of the people I know from NYC, I assumed the NY accent was like dropping the "r" in New York, and pronouncing "talk" like "to-uck" ( a la Mike Myers in "Coffee Talk").  However most of my friends in NY are very well off and do not have any of these pronunciations at all.  Their accent is on words like saying mary, and married differently.  Mary= Meh-ry, where as married= mah-ried, Erin= eh-rin, and Aaron= Ah-ren. 

lol! thankfully the gad and short oh dont make it to ohio. but speaking of 'talk,' the clevelander/great lakes version, "TAAAwk" is just as distinctive as the ny version. personally i lost a lot of that, but of course it still pops out now and then -- ie., i remember one time i went all strongsville telemarketer and said TOO-PAAAC shakur (instead of too-pauc) and got a perplexed look from some local ny kid.  :laugh:

 

a favorite of mine is not so much dialect as it is choice of words. it's the way many (generally wealthy/caucasian) 20yr olds start every sentence with "so i..." or "actually...." it's no big deal, but that always cracks me up.

 

Add starting every sentence with "I mean..." to that list lol.

a favorite of mine is not so much dialect as it is choice of words. it's the way many (generally wealthy/caucasian) 20yr olds start every sentence with "so i..." or "actually...." it's no big deal, but that always cracks me up.

 

"Actually" and "arguably" are both linguistic peeves of mine - actually is a smarty pants way to correct someone and put them back in their place, basically the equivalent in a debate of starting a sentence with "hey dumbass, you're wrong."  And everything in life is arguably arguable/debatable...

My father mocks my using "actually" by repeating it back to me in a faux english snob accent.

 

I should say my accent isnt northern or southern its "sissy": the lost language of queens.

 

 

 

The following excerpt is from a Wikipedia entry for "General American...an accent of American English": http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_American

 

"Since the 1960s northeastern Ohio and much of the rest of the Inland North have been affected by the Northern Cities Vowel Shift."

 

For the first time I'm glad I'm old (sort of) and was born in the 50's (I feel I am sufficiently Vowel Shift-free).

 

The following excerpt is from a Wikipedia entry for "General American...an accent of American English": http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_American

 

"Since the 1960s northeastern Ohio and much of the rest of the Inland North have been affected by the Northern Cities Vowel Shift."

 

For the first time I'm glad I'm old (sort of) and was born in the 50's (I feel I am sufficiently Vowel Shift-free).

 

 

Don't be too quick to pat yourself on the back.  The shift was only first identified in the 60s, so even if you grew up in the 50s, you still likely exhibit many NCVS traits.  You just don't realize it. :wink:

I had a coworker from Akron who talked like that but her parents were from Michigan. No one liked her and I think it had something to do with her accent. She sounded so obnoxious - the way she turned the 'o' into an 'a'.

 

I hated going to wisconsin and hearing people say "wiscaauunsin". I'm glad I don't talk like that.

I say Wis-con-sin. When people in Wisconsin say it, they put more emphasis on 'con' and shift the o into an a but it's kinda subtle.

 

How do you say Detroit? Do you say it exactly like it's spelled with more emphasis on "troit" (like me). Or do you put more emphases on the "De". Or do you say it more like "De-trite"?

I've heard it all three ways.

Once you get used to an accent, it's tough to notice the weird pronunciations. One thing I'm starting to notice is what I used to think was a "southern accent" (Lima, Columbus, etc.) may not be an accent at all. Perhaps anything that doesn't sound nasally/Great Lakes is "southern" to me just because it's heard south of the lakes. I certainly can tell the difference between a Lima accent and a Kentucky accent.

 

People say there's a difference between Columbus and Cincinnati but I really don't see it. There's really no difference between Cincinnati and N. Kentucky either, as long as you're close to the city. I think the difference is between social class more than region unless you get up to northern Ohio - then you obviously hear the northern city vowel shift. Appalachian whites on the south and west side of Columbus sound just like those on the west side of Cincinnati. East Cincinnati is no different from upper crust parts of Columbus. I really don't get why people stereotype Cincinnati as a southern sounding city. I think a lot of what people think is southern is just Appalachian. Probably due to immigration from W. Virginia.

a favorite of mine is not so much dialect as it is choice of words. it's the way many (generally wealthy/caucasian) 20yr olds start every sentence with "so i..." or "actually...." it's no big deal, but that always cracks me up.

 

"Actually" and "arguably" are both linguistic peeves of mine - actually is a smarty pants way to correct someone and put them back in their place, basically the equivalent in a debate of starting a sentence with "hey dumbass, you're wrong."  And everything in life is arguably arguable/debatable...

 

That's so true. I like to say "I'd argue that..". It at least sounds like I'm open to another idea. It's funny how there's certain connotations to what you say; not just how you say it. A lot of people on this forum like to start sentences with "Actually,..." . It's usually followed by "I suggest you read a book by ___ called _____". I don't have time to read your book.

 

 

 

In terms of "Detroit", it's tough to say. :|

 

That's the thing - I think the vowel shifts for a lot of people and they don't even realize it. It can be really subtle. Kind of like...halfway between o and a for example. Or just slightly dropping the o in Detroit. You guys are so sneaky. It's obnoxious. I know I heard that o drop!

 

 

Here's a map of the northern city vowel shift:

 

Once you get used to an accent, it's tough to notice the weird pronunciations. One thing I'm starting to notice is what I used to think was a "southern accent" (Lima, Columbus, etc.) may not be an accent at all. Perhaps anything that doesn't sound nasally/Great Lakes is "southern" to me just because it's heard south of the lakes. I certainly can tell the difference between a Lima accent and a Kentucky accent.

 

People say there's a difference between Columbus and Cincinnati but I really don't see it. There's really no difference between Cincinnati and N. Kentucky either, as long as you're close to the city. I think the difference is between social class more than region unless you get up to northern Ohio - then you obviously hear the northern city vowel shift. Appalachian whites on the south and west side of Columbus sound just like those on the west side of Cincinnati. East Cincinnati is no different from upper crust parts of Columbus. I really don't get why people stereotype Cincinnati as a southern sounding city. I think a lot of what people think is southern is just Appalachian. Probably due to immigration from W. Virginia.

 

I'm now starting to wonder if the more neutral accent in Ohio is the one found among non-Appalachians in Columbus and Cincinnati.

 

I think that's a fair statement.

I'm now starting to wonder if the more neutral accent in Ohio is the one found among non-Appalachians in Columbus and Cincinnati. Certainly there is still a large Appalachian influence in Cincinnati and Columbus (Dayton too), but there are also some people who seem to not have any accent at all. There literally are people in Columbus I've talked to who just don't have an accent of any sort.

 

..also found in Indiana.  Dave Lettereman as an example.  This has become "standard American English.

""Actually" and "arguably" are both linguistic peeves of mine - actually is a smarty pants way to correct someone and put them back in their place, basically the equivalent in a debate of starting a sentence with "hey dumbass, you're wrong.""

 

I begin a lot of posts with "actually" - then again, as an Admin, I'm *always* correcting someone or putting them in their place ;-)

 

Thanks for posting that map - I grew up just outside of the vowel shift zone, but I've picked up a tiny amount over the years since I moved to Cleveland.

Maybe it's just because I'm from the Lima area, but I honestly don't think there is any type of discernable accent associated with the region.  When I was growing up we were always told that we spoke neutral American English in our region and this was backed up every night on the national news. 

 

I recently moved in with my girlfriend who has been here, in Cleveland, for 6 months and she's already starting to pick up the vowel shift.  Must be contagious...

Almost nobody in Youngstown area has the vowel shift, and many people there have a drawl.  It makes Cleveland seem exotic.  Half my extended family has farmed around Columbus for ages and their accent is not neutral, it's rural.  But they aren't Appalacian and they'll let you know it.  My dad's side is Appalacian and they let him know it.

The wifey is always chastising me for saying "you know" too much.

The wifey is always chastising me for saying "you know" too much.

 

Consider yourself fortunate she doesn't smack you. I would!  :wink: My mom nagged that one out of me when I was a teenager.

 

That's a speech mannerism, not a feature of an accent. I don't take exception to occasional use, but when I hear people who are writers or especially, broadcast journalists, insert it three times per sentence, I want to reach through the radio and slap them.

 

Even on public radio I hear guests and sometimes hosts who fill more air time with "y'know," "uummm-ahh," and "and-and-and" than they do with communication. Another gripe is the ubiquitous "is-is."

 

My biggest pet peeve is, is people who, y'know, ummm-ahh, waste my time by, ummm, filling their, ahhh, speech, y'know, with, ummm-ahh, meaningless noises, and-and-and I-I just want totell them, y'know, "Untilyoufigureoutwhatyou'retryingtosay, STFU!"  :whip:

i am a clevelander of 100% eastern european ancestry (half polish, half slovenian), living in toledo.  i was unaware of any accent i had until i started at cwru and my friends alerted me to my strong cleveland accent (and that my bf's (chicagoan) at the time was the same as mine).  one way to explain it is that the names Ian and Ann start to sound the same. 

 

upon moving to toledo, i started noticing a lot of people making the distinction between voiced and unvoiced /w/.  so that 'ware' is different from 'where' (hwere).  my friend from bellevue does this, and so do several UT medicine faculty members.  i decided this must be a rural thing.  interesting that there seems to be an eastern european substrate to the northern cities vowel shift.  is the accent less pronounced in sylvania or ottawa hills because these areas are more waspy, arab, jewish, or places that out-of-towners might end up?  or is it blue collar/white collar?

 

regarding Wisconsin, i'm not sure if it is supposed to be wis-con-sin, or wi-scon-sin.  this is the only word where i can actually perceive a difference between the aspirated (in the former) and unaspirated (in the latter) /k/ sound.  try it.  other languages make a distinction between these, though i'm not sure which ones. 

a favorite of mine is not so much dialect as it is choice of words. it's the way many (generally wealthy/caucasian) 20yr olds start every sentence with "so i..." or "actually...." it's no big deal, but that always cracks me up.

 

"Actually" and "arguably" are both linguistic peeves of mine - actually is a smarty pants way to correct someone and put them back in their place, basically the equivalent in a debate of starting a sentence with "hey dumbass, you're wrong."  And everything in life is arguably arguable/debatable...

 

That's so true. I like to say "I'd argue that..". It at least sounds like I'm open to another idea. It's funny how there's certain connotations to what you say; not just how you say it. A lot of people on this forum like to start sentences with "Actually,..." . It's usually followed by "I suggest you read a book by ___ called _____". I don't have time to read your book.

 

 

 

In terms of "Detroit", it's tough to say. :|

 

That's the thing - I think the vowel shifts for a lot of people and they don't even realize it. It can be really subtle. Kind of like...halfway between o and a for example. Or just slightly dropping the o in Detroit. You guys are so sneaky. It's obnoxious. I know I heard that o drop!

 

 

Here's a map of the northern city vowel shift:

 

 

re the map: why are certain areas set apart by red or blue borders?--specifically the narrow band of land along the Lake Erie shore in NE Ohio--not that it means anything to me! lol

I'm from around the Ytown area and I can very clearly hear the cleveland/great lakes accent when I'm around people who have it. In fact, when I spent a summer in Sandusky, I acquired the accent... then went down to Cincinnati and have completely lost any accent I've had.

The wifey is always chastising me for saying "you know" too much.

hey, don't feel bad. To reprise an earlier post, apparently this happens even among the most elite members of society :roll:...ha ha:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAgI4AS1NVg&hl=en&fs=1

 

While attending high school in the Mahoning Valley, my classmates and I noticed the nasal tone of the speech of our teachers who were "from Cleveland".  We used to say they sounded like Joe Tate, the radio announcer for the Cleveland Cavaliers.  I moved to Cleveland two decades ago, and I have adopted some of the speech patterns.  I find myself moving between two patterns of pronunciation. 

 

When I was here for two years, I had some business partners from Vancouver who noted that I did not sound like other Clevelanders.  One of them said I sounded like I was from Kentucky. 

 

When I moved to Indiana as a teenager, I noticed that they were extremely nasal and that they moved the accents to the first syllable.  Classmates from Southern Indiana would speak in their "lazy tongue" southern accent for demonstrative purposes.  It was entertaining.

 

I think the best sportscasters have the nasal voices like Jim Donovan and Al Michaels.

 

 

... When I moved to Indiana as a teenager, I noticed that they were extremely nasal and that they moved the accents to the first syllable ...

 

Just east of Fort Wayne is a smaller incorporated municipality called New Haven. Despite being an area native I have failed to assimilate much of the local dialect, and I persist in calling it "New HAven," as two distinct words with the emphasis on the first syllable of Haven.

 

The local heritage pronunciation, even among many younger people, is "NOOhaven" pronounced as one word with the emphasis on the flattened-out first syllable.

I have a friend who grew up on Lakewood, (I'm originally from Canton, BTW) and she has the Cleveland accent.  I don't have a great ear for such things, but I notice it most when she says my name: John. (or any word with a short "o" sound, like "job")  Her pronunciation is halfway between "J-ah-n" and "Jan."

The area where I grew up in Indiana is sort of on a line between the parts of the state settled by people who came from West Virginia via the Ohio River and migrated northward from Kentucky and Southeastern Ohio, mainly Scots-Irish, and those of mostly Swiss descent, who came from Pennsylvania through northern or central Ohio. The two groups overlap, but are still distinct from one another after more than 150 years of settlement.

 

If there's any geographic marker that could be considered a dividing line, probably it's Indiana 218 that runs east-west from Berne, near the Ohio Line, through Warren. The distinctions are mostly among farmers and rural families; in the towns and cities the dialect is fairly neutral.

 

South of that line the dialect has Appalachian characteristics and those even show up in the English spoken by the Amish in the area. The dialect usually involves a sort of twang similar to that of rural Kentucky, and for that matter, much of rural Southern Indiana.

 

wire = war or wahr

box = balks

fence = fince

pen = pin, etc.

 

North of 218 the dialect is mostly neutral, although there are special terms that carry over among some of the older people, and I can remember some of those from when I was a kid, from people who are gone now.

 

a car/automobile was a machine.

a bicycle was a wheel

a sack or bag was a poke

an umbrella used for protection against rain was a bumbershoot

 

One pronunciation that I think was shared by both groups, both north and south of State Road 218, was "warsh" for wash. I've heard that in Pennsylvania, too. Some said "wrench" for rinse.

 

You warsh and wrench your clothes, and then hang 'em on a war to dry.

 

Our fourth-grade teacher pronounced the "oo" in "food" like the "oo" in "wood." She was adamant that hers was the correct pronunciation, but I don't think it caught on among any of her students.

That vowel shift thing extends down to central Illinois.  Which is interesting as I had a boss who was from Springfield Illinois, a native of Springfield, and he sounded a lot like a Chicagoan.  I even asked him if he was from Springfield, or if he was really from Chicago, and he said "no, Springfield".  So yeah, maybe some truth to that shift...the "Chicago accent"...extending downstate.

 

Yet St Louis...as a kid we'd visit relatvies downt there and we always thought they talked funny, not quite like us in Chicago.  So maybe St Louis has its own accent, or the vowel shift is not as pronounced.

pen = pin, etc.

 

In Louisville, at least the kids I went to school with, they made the distinction:  "ink pin" vs

""pin"...They would never ask for a pen, but an ink pin. 

 

Then there was that "-st" southernism.  acrosst, clift, and so forth.  And the double accent on place names. 'No-'Lin  'Dee-'Troyt. 

 

 

Yet St Louis...as a kid we'd visit relatvies downt there and we always thought they talked funny, not quite like us in Chicago. So maybe St Louis has its own accent, or the vowel shift is not as pronounced.

 

There is a traditional St. Louis accent that is giving way to Northern speech among the younger generations.  As an illustration of the traditional St. Louis pronunciation, the word "forty-four" sounded similar to "farty-far."  That's the feature that I find most noticeable, along with rhyming "on" with "awn" (although the latter is typical of most midland and southern accents.)

i just thought of an interesting one that i experienced since i went to college at both bg, oh and bg, ky.

 

in bg, ky it peaks immediately and they pronounce it "BOWling green."

 

in bg, oh it steadily rises and they say "bowling GREEN"

 

oh yeah, and in nyc nobody ever mentions bowling green because nobody ever uses that subway stop but tourists. so i have no idea out here. heh.

 

in bg, ky it peaks immediately and they pronounce it "BOWling green."

 

..which sometimes sounds like "Bone Grin"

 

I noticed people on the west side of Cincinnati say "home" like "hoam". My friend does it all the time and doesn't realize it. Is this a northern city influence or what? It sounds more primitive - I've heard English and Australian people say it like that (actors, anyway).

Yet St Louis...as a kid we'd visit relatvies downt there and we always thought they talked funny, not quite like us in Chicago. So maybe St Louis has its own accent, or the vowel shift is not as pronounced.

 

There is a traditional St. Louis accent that is giving way to Northern speech among the younger generations. As an illustration of the traditional St. Louis pronunciation, the word "forty-four" sounded similar to "farty-far." That's the feature that I find most noticeable, along with rhyming "on" with "awn" (although the latter is typical of most midland and southern accents.)

 

Farty-Far!!!!  It's especially noticible in older people of StL, but not so much my generation.  Word-wise, in StL, the word hoosier means white trash as opposed to someone from Indiana.

i was trying to think of something for columbus and all i came up with was that the locals say "NAY-shun-ul" for national.

 

... Word-wise, in StL, the word hoosier means white trash as opposed to someone from Indiana.

 

Except for a few of us, it's not terribly far off the mark. My home town with popluation < 10,000 used to be a quiet, pleasant place mostly populated by hard-working, genteel folks, if a bit gossippy. Over the past 20 years, trailer parks have proliferated. Along with that, fights and domestic disturbances involving alcohol have escalated sharply, both in and around a couple of bars, and later on after the drunks get home.

 

In the summary of police reports in the local paper, at least half the incidents occur in a trailer park or involve someone who lives in one. The arrival of a Super Wal*Mart seems to be both a consequence of the low-class invasion, and a contributor to the bad conduct; a lot of fights and hit-and-runs occur in the parking lot there.

 

 

... Word-wise, in StL, the word hoosier means white trash as opposed to someone from Indiana.

 

Except for a few of us, it's not terribly far off the mark. My home town with popluation < 10,000 used to be a quiet, pleasant place mostly populated by hard-working, genteel folks, if a bit gossippy. Over the past 20 years, trailer parks have proliferated. Along with that, fights and domestic disturbances involving alcohol have escalated sharply, both in and around a couple of bars, and later on after the drunks get home.

 

In the summary of police reports in the local paper, at least half the incidents occur in a trailer park or involve someone who lives in one. The arrival of a Super Wal*Mart seems to be both a consequence of the low-class invasion, and a contributor to the bad conduct; a lot of fights and hit-and-runs occur in the parking lot there.

 

 

 

 

Hahaha, my family actually calls a particular Wal-Mart in St. Louis "HoosierMart".  Sooooo not PC.

oh my, this thread is interesting.

 

As a person who has family members with different accents it totally throws "dialects" out the window.

 

Nothing worse than a kid, who has one Black/Japanese parent and one Puerto Rican/Panamanian parent, who both have accents, say the word "couch". 

 

Hey MTS you also forget to add the fact that you split your time between NYC and Cleveland, too.

 

 

I am not sure which accent I have. I grew up outside of Youngstown in a small town heavily populated by West Virginia transplants that worked at the GM plant. I was raised by 2nd and 3rd gen immigrant Italian  parents from Youngstown. Youngstown may not have a nasal accent but it sure has a dialect lots of saying that raise eyebrows elsewhere. Then I went to school in Athens at OU and now have lived on the westside of Cleveland for 7 years. Also in that time I have worked 3 years for a company where 50% of the people were UK ex-pats and then moved on to work in Akron for the last 3 years.

 

I am a mess linguistically. Definitely something more than the Standard English Accent but nothing that can be pinned down.

 

 

 

 

Hey MTS you also forget to add the fact that you split your time between NYC and Cleveland, too.

 

 

I am not sure which accent I have. I grew up outside of Youngstown in a small town heavily populated by West Virginia transplants that worked at the GM plant. I was raised by 2nd and 3rd gen immigrant Italian  parents from Youngstown. Youngstown may not have a nasal accent but it sure has a dialect lots of saying that raise eyebrows elsewhere. Then I went to school in Athens at OU and now have lived on the westside of Cleveland for 7 years. Also in that time I have worked 3 years for a company where 50% of the people were UK ex-pats and then moved on to work in Akron for the last 3 years.

 

I am a mess linguistically. Definitely something more than the Standard English Accent but nothing that can be pinned down.

 

Yeah but all of my family is in Cleveland.  These Nuu Yawka's are painful to listen too.  But then again are Eastside Cleveland WASPs  Can a persons jaw lock any tighter?

 

I'm just glad I didn't end up with an accent.  My brother has a "whisper" of an accent.  When my cousins were in High School at Heights, people would always ask where they were from and people found it odd that they were born and raised in Cleveland, but had accents. 

 

Not one on my mothers siblings can pronounce "Jersey", "you", "just" or "jelly", with exception of my mothers youngest brother - which just tickles me!

 

 

I noticed people on the west side of Cincinnati say "home" like "hoam". My friend does it all the time and doesn't realize it. Is this a northern city influence or what? It sounds more primitive - I've heard English and Australian people say it like that (actors, anyway).

 

There is definitely a West Side accent (though I have noticed it on some far east siders like Anderson and Mt. Washington too).  Home, phone, etc. are all pronounced with a combo of an "eh" and an "oh" sound.  Also, the West Sider accent says words like bad and mad as something like "beyad" or "bayad".  Definitely very distinct, and I've heard it compared to a Philly accent.

Yet St Louis...as a kid we'd visit relatvies downt there and we always thought they talked funny, not quite like us in Chicago. So maybe St Louis has its own accent, or the vowel shift is not as pronounced.

 

There is a traditional St. Louis accent that is giving way to Northern speech among the younger generations. As an illustration of the traditional St. Louis pronunciation, the word "forty-four" sounded similar to "farty-far." That's the feature that I find most noticeable, along with rhyming "on" with "awn" (although the latter is typical of most midland and southern accents.)

 

Word-wise, in StL, the word hoosier means white trash as opposed to someone from Indiana.

 

That's what we use the word Hoosier for as well.

Yet St Louis...as a kid we'd visit relatvies downt there and we always thought they talked funny, not quite like us in Chicago. So maybe St Louis has its own accent, or the vowel shift is not as pronounced.

 

There is a traditional St. Louis accent that is giving way to Northern speech among the younger generations. As an illustration of the traditional St. Louis pronunciation, the word "forty-four" sounded similar to "farty-far." That's the feature that I find most noticeable, along with rhyming "on" with "awn" (although the latter is typical of most midland and southern accents.)

 

Word-wise, in StL, the word hoosier means white trash as opposed to someone from Indiana.

 

That's what we use the word Hoosier for as well.

 

Really???  Did not know that.  I had some friends from Cincy in undergrad, but I don't think any of them used the word Hoosier.

Word-wise, in StL, the word hoosier means white trash as opposed to someone from Indiana.

 

When I was working in Alliance and Carrollton, OH, the word for white trash was "HOOPIE" - never heard that in years of living in Cleveland or Akron, so it must be a really local term.

Yet St Louis...as a kid we'd visit relatvies downt there and we always thought they talked funny, not quite like us in Chicago. So maybe St Louis has its own accent, or the vowel shift is not as pronounced.

 

There is a traditional St. Louis accent that is giving way to Northern speech among the younger generations. As an illustration of the traditional St. Louis pronunciation, the word "forty-four" sounded similar to "farty-far." That's the feature that I find most noticeable, along with rhyming "on" with "awn" (although the latter is typical of most midland and southern accents.)

 

Word-wise, in StL, the word hoosier means white trash as opposed to someone from Indiana.

 

That's what we use the word Hoosier for as well.

 

Really??? Did not know that. I had some friends from Cincy in undergrad, but I don't think any of them used the word Hoosier.

 

Yeah, obviously if you're not talking about the university though.

Word-wise, in StL, the word hoosier means white trash as opposed to someone from Indiana.

 

When I was working in Alliance and Carrollton, OH, the word for white trash was "HOOPIE" - never heard that in years of living in Cleveland or Akron, so it must be a really local term.

 

Hoopie?  In all my years, I've never heard that.

 

I just looked up the term in urban dictionary.  Read at risk.

 

Nothing worse than a kid, who has one Black/Japanese parent

 

Seriously? You have Japanese family members too? Konichiiwaaa!!

 

Nothing worse than a kid, who has one Black/Japanese parent

 

Seriously? You have Japanese family members too? Konichiiwaaa!!

 

Yes.  My cousin's husband.  His mother is Japanese and his father is black.  He's originally from suburban Portland.

 

They speak English, Spanish and Japanese.

 

"Tree lawn."

 

I never thought of this phrase a regional specialty until I got a room full of blank stares recently.  And lo and behold, per wiki:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tree_lawn.