I'm not
from Pittsburgh. I was born a few hours above the city, in the northwestern corner of Pennsylvania. But from a very early age, I was raised to love everything about the Burgh--the bridges, the food (
Primanti Bros., anyone?), the sports teams (I hated sports, but I at least knew to cheer for the Steelers). Since I didn't actually grow up in the city, I am not as familiar as many with the dialect known as Pittsburghese, although I did hear bits and pieces of it. Pittsburghese, or Pittsburgh English, or whatever you want to call it, isn't limited to Pittsburgh, of course. Many words and phrases that have come to be associated with the city are used elsewhere. Even a few hours north of the city, "yinz"--perhaps the quintessential Pittsburghese word, used in the same way "y'all" is in the South--was used frequently enough and by enough people that I was very familiar with it despite not using it myself.
It's funny, there are are other words I grew up using that I didn't know until I did some basic research for this diary were associated with Pittsburghese. I still call the shoulder of the road the "berm," for example (this is an example of a "Pittsburghese" word being used elsewhere, as it is also widely used in Ohio and West Virginia, and probably other places). Apparently, "chipped ham" is also a very western Pennsylvania thing to say, originating with the Isaly's product. That's news to me, and I wonder if I've sounded weird saying it. So what I've found in writing this diary is that I'm more "Pittsburghese" than I thought.
Anyway, follow me below the fold for more on the weird way people talk in western Pennsylvania...
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As far as serious research concerning Pittsburghese is concerned, Professor of Rhetoric and Linguistics at Carnegie Mellon University Barbara Johnstone seems to be leading the way. She has done extensive research on the origins and characteristics of the dialect, and together with University of Pittsburgh Associate Professor of Linguistics Scott F. Kiesling has spearheaded the Pittsburgh Speech and Society Collection, which has a wonderful website. Here is some of the historical context of Pittsburgh English, based on Johnstone's and Kiesling's research:
The earliest English-speaking immigrants to North America brought their dialects of English with them. The people who settled in New England and in the South came mainly from southern England, and they brought elements of southern dialects of English. But the people who settled in the middle part of what became the U.S. came from northern England and from Northern Ireland, and they brought different pronunciations, words, and grammatical structures with them. As a result, there are still three major dialect areas in the United States. Pittsburgh, like most of the rest of Pennsylvania, is in the middle, or "midland" area. This is the dialect area, by the way, that has had the greatest influence on the English of the midwestern and western states.
[...]
The Scots-Irish were the first Europeans to settle in Southwestern Pennsylvania in large numbers. These were people who had migrated to northern Ireland (Ulster) at the beginning of the 17th century. Many of them the emigrated to North America at the end of the 17th century and during the 18th century. When they arrived in Pennsylvania, typically via the Delaware River, the Scots-Irish found that Germans, Quakers, and other English settlers had already settled much of eastern and central Pennsylvania.
Though some Scots-Irish did settle in southeastern Pennsylvania, the majority headed west, bypassing these settlements. Arthur Lee, who visited Pittsburgh in 1784, noted that the settlement was "inhabited almost entirely by Scots and [Scots] Irish, who live in paltry log houses" (Wayland F. Dunaway, The Scotch-Irish of Colonial Pennsylvania University of North Carolina Press, 1944, p.83). These settlers spoke a Scottish variety of English, which was influenced, in Ulster, by Irish English. Among the many words and structures used in this area that are Scots-Irish are "redd up," "nebby," "slippy," and "diamond" for a town square. "Yinz," which is found throughout the Appalachians in various forms (such as "you'uns"), is Scots-Irish as well.
As noted above, many elements of the Pittsburgh dialect aren't limited to Pittsburgh or western Pennsylvania or even the Appalachians. But, as Johnstone and Kiesling explain on their website:
...while there is no completely unique Pittsburgh dialect, many Pittsburghers do speak in a way that is different from how people speak in other large U.S. cities. To dialectologists (linguists who study dialects) this is a variety of "North Midland U.S. English." What makes Pittsburgh speech different from other varieties is the particular combination of words, sounds, and grammatical patterns that can be heard in southwestern Pennsylvania. Also, this is the only area in the U.S. in which people regularly pronounce words like downtown, house, and out as "dahntahn," "hahs," and "aht."
And no, not everybody from Pittsburgh speaks in the Pittsburghese dialect. Based on the research that has been done, it seems that (mostly white, and more male than female) older residents of older, working-class neighborhoods are more likely to speak it. Others, including newcomers to Pittsburgh, might pick up words like "yinz," but the dialect itself can be found especially in certain pockets of the city.
Here are a few examples of words and phrases that have been associated with Pittsburgh and/or southwestern Pennsylvania:
Jag (as in jag off or jagging around)
Definition: Various forms involving 'jag' have to do with annoying, irritating, teasing, or playing tricks on.
To jag someone or jag someone off means to irritate or tease. To jag around means to fool around,
goof off. A jagoff is a person who is irritating because of being inept or stupid.
Text example: "I don't know why she keeps jagging me all the time"
-Dictionary of American Regional English, 1968.
Origin: The exact origin of this word is unknown, but the source language is probably Scots-Irish English. 'To jag' means to turn sharply.
Jumbo
Definition: Bologna sausage.
Text example: "How do you recognize a Pittsburgher? Where else but here does one serve 'jumbo' (bologna) for lunch?" -New Haven Register, Connecticut, 1978.
Origin: A derivative of 'jumbo bologna,' which was likely originally a trade name.
Nebby
Definition: Nosy, snoopy, inquisitive. Used as an adjective or noun.
Another noun form is 'nebnose.'
Origin: In British English, the 'neb' is the nose or snout of an animal.
Redd up
Definition: To clean up or tidy.
Origin: In Scots-Irish English, 'to redd' is to clear an area or make it tidy.
Yinz (also spelled Yunz, Younz, etc.)
Definition: You, plural; you guys.
Origin: Scots-Irish English. Other forms that are also from Scots-Irish are 'you'uns'
(another version of yinz) and 'y'all' (in widespread use in the southern US).
For fun, there is also
Pittsburghese.com, which has an extensive glossary of Pittsburghese words and phrases. Since they are user-submitted, there may be some entries that aren't entirely accurate, though. Here are a few:
Cadillac converter catalytic converter. "Yinz guyz need to git the cadillac converter fixed if yinz'r gonna pass the emishuns test!"
Clicker Remote control. Hun, I can't turn on the Stiller game 'cause the clicker got lost under the pillas in the caach!
Jine Iggle Giant Eagle supermarket. Git me some jumbo dahn at Jine Iggle!!
N'at And so forth. Used for emphasis. "We went shopping n'at."
Says Said. So I says to him, yinz wanna go dahn Primanti's n'at?
Anyway, that's a quick introduction to Pittsburghese. Now,
there's a quiz. Notebooks closed and pencils out. Or, follow me to the tops...
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