Sarah Knapp

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Bawlmerese

• Sarah Knapp
• Katie Fanning

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Linguistic Map of the Continental United States
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What is a dialect?

• Etymology- The English word dialect comes from
  the Middle French dialecte, from the Latin
  dialectus, from the Greek dialektos
  conversation.
• A dialect is a regional variety of language
  distinguished by features of vocabulary, grammar
  and pronunciation from other regional varieties
  and constituting together a single language

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The Dialect

• Baltimorese (also Bawlmerese, Ballimerese) is a
  dialect of American English centered around the
  city of Baltimore, MD.
• Baltimorese is a white, blue-collar dialect,
  originating among the working class of Baltimore.
• This dialect is largely found in the Southern
  areas of the city and the surrounding counties,
  though it may also be heard in Northern Baltimore
  and other parts of Maryland.
• Baltimorese occurs at the junction of the coastal
  Southern and Midland dialect corridors.
• The proper name for the dialect is Upper
  Chesapeake Adenoidal.

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Influences on Baltimorese

• Southern United States dialect, specifically West
  Virginian and Deep Southern. This is due to the
  Northern migration that took place during and
  directly following the Great Depression.
• The origins of working class mid-Atlantic speech
  can be traced back to Cockneys of London.
• The dropping of initial vowels and consonants has
  its origin in Cockney English. Thus, especially
  becomes speshly and emergency becomes mergency.
• German and Italian immigrants also provided
  strong influences.

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General Trends in Dialects of American English

• Northern dialects are less unified than Southern
  dialects. This may be largely attributed to the
  higher rates of immigration in Northern cities.
• Elision is common in Northern dialects.
• Maryland becomes Murlin
• Extended vowel sounds are common in Southern
  dialects.
• More becomes mooer
• Door becomes dooer

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Pronunciation of Baltimorese

• Baltimorese is one of only two rhotic dialects
  (the other being Philadelphia English) of
  American English. In a rhotic language the r
  following a vowel is pronounced.
• Elision is strikingly common.
• Baltimorese is epenthetic (the notorious r in
  wash). This feature originates in the Northern
  dialects, though much of Baltimorese is Southern
  in origin, notably the long vowels.
• The l sound is vocalized or swallowed,
  reminiscent of a w sound.
• Pool and wolf

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Elision in Baltimorese

• Elision is the removal of a speech sound for ease
  of pronunciation.
• Examples include
• Ts become ds or disappear entirely- Baltimore
  becomes Ballimer
• Dat and dere instead of that and there
• Unstressed vowels are eliminated- Annapolis
  becomes napliss
• Orange juice becomes arnjuice
• Forehead becomes fared

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Vowel Sounds

• The long a sound becomes a long e
• Bared becomes beerd
• The ai sound becomes a before r
• Fire is pronounced far
• The long i, oi and ow becomes aw
• Boil becomes bawl
• Cried become crawd
• Oil becomes awl
• The long o becomes a long a or eh-oo
• Phone becomes phane
• Home becomes heh-oom

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Other Sounds

• The ing ending changes to een
• Fishing becomes fisheen
• Going becomes goeen
• s is pronounced z
• Sink becomes zinc
• v is pronounced as b (this stems from the
  German influence)
• Every is pronounced ebry
• The f sound is substituted for th
• Thread becomes fread

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The Changing Face of Baltimorese

• As with any dialect, Baltimorese is constantly
  evolving and taking in new influences.
• The trend for American English is a single,
  homogenized accent. Baltimorese is no exception.
  The dialect is becoming more mainstream, and much
  of the accent is becoming rare. Small pockets of
  dialect remain, particularly in Essex, Dundalk
  and Middle River.
• Changes in immigration and suburbanization have
  diminished the influence of Baltimorese.

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The End
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References

• "Baltimorese." Wikipedia. 1 Oct 2008
  lthttp//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baltimoresegt.
• "'Dialect'." Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary.
  29 Sep 2008 lthttp//www.merriam-webster.com/dictio
  nary/dialectgt.
• Rapid Intelligence, "Encyclopediagt Baltimorese."
  NationMaster Encyclopedia. 1 Oct 2008
  lthttp//www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Baltimor
  esegt.
• "Rhoticism." Indopedia. 29 Sep 2008
  lthttp//www.indopedia.org/Rhoticism.htmlgt.
• Salvucci, C.. "Linguistic Geography of the United
  States." The American Dialect Homepage. 29 Sep
  2008 lthttp//www.evolpub.com/Americandialects/AmDi
  alhome.htmlgt.
• Seigle, Jeff. "Dictionary of Baltimorese."
  Baltimorese. 29 Sep 2008 lthttp//www.seigle.net/ba
  ltimorese/gt.
• Smith, Ernest. Hey Hon! How to Talk Like a Real
  Bawlamoron. Phoenix, Maryland 38th Street Press,
  1993.
• "The Mid-Atlantic Dialects." Evolution Publishing
  1 Oct 2008 lthttp//www.evolpub.com/Americandialect
  s/MidAtldialects.htmlgt.