[Publib] Southernisms/regionalisms?

[Fred Beisser]

"Up" in Wisconsin where I come from, we would have said "He is coming 
FOR me at 9:00." After me would be either to arrive later than I or to 
be coming to do me harm....

Regarding regionalisims, our good friend H L Mencken preserved 1000s of 
them in his wonderful work "The American Language" (Alfred A Knoft, 
Inc., first published in 1919 and updated in 1936) and its two 
supplemental volumes.

And Mencken enlightens us about the word "guy." He says:

    "A guy, in Engliand, is a rediculous firgure, and the word is thus
    opprobrious; in the Unied States the word is hardly more than an
    amiable synonom for fellow. the English guy owes its origin to the
    effigies of Guy Falwkes, leader of the Gunpowder Plot of 1605, which
    used to be burnt in public on November 5; the American word seems to
    be derived from the guy-rope of a circus tent, and first appeared in
    the complmentary form of head-guy. When  G K Chesterton (FRED: I
    didn't know either, but see
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G._K._Chesterton) made his first visit
    to the United States he was much upset when an admiring reporter
    described him as a regular guy."

Fred Beisser
Trustee
www.elbertcountylibrary.org

Lynne Ingersoll wrote:

>I've befuddled more than a few people (in Chicago) when I've said, referring
>to someone who is giving me a ride home (picking me up?), that "so-&-so is
>coming after me at 9:00".  This makes perfect sense to me and I've used the
>form all my life but many folks here look at me like I have three heads.
>Has anyone else used this phrase?  (I am originally from western Illinois -
>where the Mississippi runs east & west.)
>
>PS: I've heard both "fixin' to" and "maybe could" from my relatives "down
>the country" (meaning down to Galesburg and out in the country).
>
>I love these regionalisms and I fear many will be lost as our populations
>move about and become more homogenized.  Does anyone else know what duckweed
>is?
>
>Happy Friday!
>
>Lynne S. Ingersoll
>Reference Services Manager
>Technical Services Manager
>Blue Island Public Library
>2433 York Street
>Blue Island, IL 60406
>(708) 388-1078 x20
>(708) 388-9301 Fax
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: publib-bounces at webjunction.org [mailto:publib-bounces at webjunction.org]
>On Behalf Of sgick at accs.net
>Sent: Friday, July 13, 2007 9:54 AM
>To: Bill Manson; publib at webjunction.org
>Subject: [Publib] Southernisms
>
>As a native Tarheel, I feel the need to add one of my often used expressions
>that certainly raises eyebrows up here in Indiana:  "fixin' to".  I'll use
>it with Bill's example:  We maybe could choose your system, but we were
>fixin' to go with your competitor.  
>
>Bill said:
>  
>
>>When I was working as a vendor with a national territory, my favorite
>>Southern-ism was "maybe could" as in "We maybe could choose your system
>>    
>>
>over
>  
>
>>the competitor.  But y'all would have to drop your price considerably."
>>
>>    
>>
>
>Sherry Gick
>AV/Reference 
>Frankfort Community Public Library
>208 W. Clinton St.
>Frankfort, IN  46041
>765-654-8746
>
>"We are drowning in information but starved for knowledge."  John Naisbitt
>
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