From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Baltimorese, sometimes phonetically written
Bawlmerese or Ballimerese, is a
dialect of
American English in the
Mid Atlantic United States that originated among the
white
blue-collar residents of working class South and Southeast
Baltimore. Today, it is heard much less throughout the city
and in some areas of central
Maryland, as many people from other parts of the country
have moved to the city. It is considered a Northern Midland
patois. It shares many characteristics of an Eastern
port
city. The films of
John Waters, all of which have been filmed in and around
Baltimore, usually feature actors and actresses with thick
Baltimore accents, particularly in his early films.
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Contents
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1
Pronunciation
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2
Dialectic terms
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3
References
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4
External links
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Pronunciation
Baltimorese resembles
Philadelphia-area English pronunciation in several ways.
These two cities are the only ports on the
Eastern Seaboard to retain
rhotic speech, which was greatly influenced by
Hiberno-English,
Scottish English, and
West Country English. Also, the "l" sound is "dark",
indistinctive or vocalized. Vowels in Baltimorese are flattened
and shifted, however, which is more characteristic of
Southern American English. Some vowels, as well as certain
vernaculars can be traced to
Appalachian influences.
- [f]
is often substituted for
[θ]
- [eɪ]
becomes [i];
bared can rhyme with leered
- [aɪ]
as well as the
diphthongs
[ɔɪ]
and [aʊ]
become [ɔ];
choir and hire rhyme with war, aisle
and boil with ball
- [aɪ]
becomes [a]
before [ɹ];
fire is pronounced as far
- t's become d's, disappear entirely, or blend with other
sounds in a word; 'hunter' becomes 'hunner', 'Baltimore'
becomes 'Baldimore' or 'Ballimer'.
- [oʊ]
shifts to
[eʊ]; one cheers for the Eh-ew's (O's, for the
Baltimore Orioles).
- The [ɪŋ](-ing)
ending of participle forms is pronounced as
[in]
as in "They're go-een to the store."
-
epenthetic
[ɹ]
-
elision is common
Dialectic terms
- aigs - eggs
- Amblance -- ambulance
- Anna Runnel -
Anne Arundel County
- arnjuice - orange juice (an example of the
widespread use of elision)
- Atna Canny - in the suburbs, i.e. "out in the
County." May or may not refer to Baltimore County
- Bawlmer -
Baltimore (pronounced BAWL-mur)
- Beegeenee -
BG&E (Baltimore Gas & Electric)
- Beeno -
B&O Railroad
- Blare -
Bel Air, or Belair Road.
- bolth - both
- Caff lick - Catholic
- cole race beef samwish - cold roast beef sandwich
- colm -
comb
- crown - crayon
- Curroll - Carroll, as in
Carroll County
- downey ayshin (down the ocean) - at the beach (spent
sum'r weekends downey ayshin). 'At' or 'to' is implied,
but not a part of the elision; specifically, it means
Ocean City, Maryland
- Droodle Pork - a reference to Druid Hill Park
- Dundawk - Dundalk, as in
Dundalk, Maryland
- gubmint - government
- hon - a universal name used for greeting (in
extreme instances, pronounced in two syllables, "huh-in")
- How bout dem O's? - a pleasant inquiry on the
state of
Orioles baseball
- iggle - eagle
- jeet - did you eat?
- meer - mirror
- Merlin -
Maryland
- miyan - mine
- Naplis -
Annapolis
- Mundee - Monday
- Toosdee - Tuesday
- Wensdee - Wednesday
- Thursdee - Thursday
- Fridee - Friday
- Satdee or Saddee - Saturday
- Sundee - Sunday
- The days of the week, following this
pronunciation, may be well diffused in the
Mid-Atlantic, and though it may not originate in
Baltimore, it is characteristic of Baltimorean
speech.
- ool - oil
- ornj - orange
- arster - oyster
- pill-uh - pillow
- pleese - multiple police officers
- sharr - shower
- sheen - shortened from "machine", an older
synonym for a car
- tawlit - toilet
- taeta - potato (most commonly used with 'chips')
- warsh - to wash
- Warshngton - As in
Washington D.C., or
Washington County
- warder or wooder - ('wood' rhyming with
'could', and not with 'brood') water
- wind-uh - window
- wooja - Would you?
- yell-uh - yellow
- Yerp - Europe
- youse - plural of you
- zink - sink
References
- "The
Mid-Atlantic Dialects", Evolution Publishing
External links
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