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Understanding "Southern Talk" Without Moving to Dixie

1 - I can do better 2 - Jury's out 3 - Pretty darn good 4 - Splendiferous 5 - Awesometastic (by 4 people)   Your rating: 1 - I can do better 2 - Jury's out 3 - Pretty darn good 4 - Splendiferous 5 - Awesometastic

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Anyone who has watched an episode of "The Beverly Hillbillies" realizes that the Clampetts speak a language of their own. But when I was growing up, it made perfect sense to me, because everyone I knew talked just like Granny and Jed. Now that I am a seasoned, world traveling American who lives in the United Kingdom, it has become painfully obvious that very few people are privileged enough to understand the "Southern" language. Some predict that this regional dialect is on its way to extinction, but I think not. This lens was produced to introduce you to the basic of "Southern Talk."

Photo © Shawn Lea 

Southern Word of the Day 

  • lickacents — English translation: "lick of sense." Definition: lacking in common sense. Usage: "If she had a lickacents, she'd think twice 'bout moving to New York."

How did ya'll like it? 

I'd appreciate some id's on how to improve this site.

stillar

That is some pretty funny stuff. Thanks for posting. Check out my online encyclopedia resource at http://www.squidoo.com/talksouthern

Posted March 31, 2008

lens4Him

I'm fixing to learn to talk like y'all do :)

Posted March 28, 2008

GrillGirl

You'uns gotta funny page. Cute as a speckled pup. Not sure what that means - but they say it round here. It means "great."

Posted June 04, 2007

Scottyj_13

Another book you may like is Redneck Words of Wisdom...

www.redneckwordsofwisdom.com

It's Hi-Larious stuff

Posted October 11, 2006

Books on Southern Talk 

Southern Talk: A Disappearing Language

Amazon Price: $9.35 (as of 07/26/2008)

The Dixie Dictionary

Amazon Price: $9.95 (as of 07/26/2008)

How to Speak Southern

Amazon Price: $6.99 (as of 07/26/2008)

Suddenly Southern: A Yankee's Guide to Living in Dixie

Amazon Price: $9.95 (as of 07/26/2008)

Some of My Favorite Southern Expressions 

  1. If things get any better, I may have to hire someone to help me enjoy it.
  2. This gravy's so good, if you get it on your forehead your tongue's gonna slap your brains out!
  3. Stop it right now or I'm gonna whip you so hard you won't be able to sit down for a week.
  4. He's ugly as a mud fence!
  5. There were so many people in that place, you couldn't stir 'em with a stick.
  6. Them dumplin's are so good, they'll make you want to slap your granny!
  7. He's drunk as Cooter Brown.
  8. He was grinnin' like a possum eatin' briars.
  9. He doesn't know his ass from a hole in the ground.
  10. It came a frog-strangler yesterday! (meaning "it rained really hard)
  11. If you don't stop your cryin', I'm gonna give you something to cry about! (meaning a spanking)
  12. If you do that again, I'm gonna pretend like your ass is grass, and I'm a power lawn mower.
  13. That's like putting a side saddle on a boar hog! (means you're wasting your time)
  14. Beauty's only skin deep, but ugly goes all the way to the bone.
  15. He's busier than a one-legged man in a butt-kickin' contest.
  16. She's got more nerve than Carter's got liver pills. (evidently there was a product called "Carter's Liver Pills" in the old days)
  17. He didn't know me from Adam's housecat.
  18. He's as country as a bowl of grits.
  19. That's enough to gag a maggot! (it's disgusting)
  20. If my dog was ugly as you, I'd shave his butt and make him walk backwards."
  21. With them buck teeth, she could eat an ear of corn through a picket fence.

More "Southern Talk" Resources 

1001 Things Everyone Should Know/South

Amazon Price: $10.85 (as of 07/26/2008)

The Complete How to Speak Southern

Amazon Price: $8.00 (as of 07/26/2008)

Jeff Foxworthy's Redneck Dictionary: Words You Thought You Knew the Meaning Of

Amazon Price: $11.53 (as of 07/26/2008)

Jeff Foxworthy's Redneck Dictionary II: More Words You Thought You Knew the Meaning Of

Amazon Price: $12.71 (as of 07/26/2008)

Southern Tongue

Amazon Price: (as of 07/26/2008)

Southern Language & Culture Links 

Y'all Magazine | The Magazine of Southern People
An interesting look into some of the South's famous personalities and culture.
Y'all (definition)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
The pronoun y'all :: Language
A 'southernism' we all know There are of course other words and expressions that are part of a southern way of talking, but this is the one we're all familiar with. When we hear someone say "How y'all doin'?" we conclude without giving it much further thought that they come from south of the Mason-Dixon Line.
Southern American English
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Southern States English
Background, geography, features, and sound samples.
Hillbonics: Learn to Speak Southern West Virginian
This web site is designed to preserve the speech pattern of southern West Virginia. We are not attempting to ridicule or poke fun at anyone's language use; its purpose is to share the dialectal elements of southern West Virginia. These elements are slowly disappearing from use because of the homogenization of America.
Lagniappe: Right Common Southern Phrases
By Toni L.P. Kelner. "Since I started writing mysteries set in North Carolina, I've found that many intelligent, well-educated people (as all of my readers are) are unfamiliar with even the most common Southern phrases. So in the spirit of hospitality for which the South is known, I've put together this list of some of the expressions I use in my books to at least give an introduction to proper speech. At least, it's proper where I come from."
Redneck Slang
Extensive collection of clean humor, funny pictures, movies and flash animation.

Southern Fried Bloggers 

Y'Allbonics
Southern slang, or Y'allbonics, is a unique Southern language. To give you an idea, here are some excerpts from the ...

Southern Culture Resources 

Southern Living Magazine

Southern Living Magazine

Price: $59.88

Southern Living Magazine,Southern Living draws from its own southern roots and provides you with a guidebook for traveling, cooking, gardening, hospit... more »

My Mother's Southern Kitchen

My Mother's Southern Kitchen

Price: $9.98

With over 150 mouthwatering recipes Jim and Martha Pearl show you exactly why Southerners know how to eat. From the Southern classics (buttermilk bisc... more »

Southern Ladies and Gentlemen

Southern Ladies and Gentlemen

Price: $13.95

A humorous, sharp, scathing, and affectionate guide to the ways and means of the Southern culture, including story types such as the Southern Woman, t... more »

The Signet Classic Book of Southern Short Stories

The Signet Classic Book of Southern Short Stories

Price: $7.95

Presents thirty-three stories by Southern writers--half by women and one third by blacks--that capture the richness and complexities of Southern life... more »

Jeff Foxworthy - Greatest Bits

Jeff Foxworthy - Greatest Bits

Price: $18.98

Track Listing: It`s OK That I`m This Way Security Deposit, The Morning After, The She Has A Boyfriend I Need Some Space Party All Night - (with... more »

Art of Southern Cooking

Art of Southern Cooking

Price: $9.99

Southern cuisine has a tradition and a charm all its own, with specialties as varied as the South itself. This collection of over 450 new, traditional... more »

Confessions of a Failed Southern Lady

Confessions of a Failed Southern Lady

Price: $13.95

Florence King`s hilarious memoir of being reared in an eccentric Southern family by a grande dame grandmother who tried to hammer her into the shape o... more »

New Southern Basics

New Southern Basics

Price: $7.98

Southern cooking used to be an expression of art and love, according to Martha Stamps, but sometime in the middle of the twentieth century an abominat... more »

Puttin' on the Grits

Puttin' on the Grits

Price: $16.76

Family and friends are the center of life in the South, and kitchens the center of Southern homes, so there is no better way to celebrate Southern tra... more »

My Mother's Southern

My Mother's Southern

Price: $20.80

Entertaining is a true art in the South and in this book, author Jim Villas and his mother, Martha Pearl Villas, offer over 150 recipes for parties an... more »

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Areopagus

About Areopagus

Thanks for stopping by! My wife and I moved to the UK (from Florida) about four years ago. Our friends here think we're crazy for doing that, but we love the people and the culture of Britain. My wife manages a small bookshop and I divide my time between writing, photography, web design, coaching, and working as a leader in our local church.

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