What did Americans Sound Like 250 Years Ago?
Failed to add items
Add to basket failed.
Add to wishlist failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
What did Americans Sound Like 250 Years Ago?
-
Narrated by:
-
By:
What did you think of this episode?
As America celebrates 250 years, we're reflecting on how Americans may have sounded from the colonists to Confederados. Drawing on a prior episode with Dr. Valerie Fridland and research by linguists like Michael Montgomery, I'll discuss how settlement patterns, class, mobility, and political affiliations shaped regional speech, contrasting Scots-Irish and North Midland influences in Appalachia with London-oriented coastal Virginia, and discussing rhotic vs. r-less pronunciation and shifting prestige norms. I'll also touch on Michael Montgomery’s study of Confederado descendants in Brazil whose 1970s speech preserved 19th-century Southern traits.
Ivy Attic CoJewelry from coal, river glass, and discarded books handcrafted in the central Appalachian Mountains
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Support the show
*Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts and review the podcast (if you like it)!
*Support the show by sharing links to episodes on social
*Subscribe to support the podcast on the Facebook Talking Appalachian page, or here at our Patreon page to get bonus content:
Talking Appalachian Podcast | Covering the Appalachian Region from North to South | Patreon
*Follow and message me on IG, FB, YouTube: @talkingappalachian
*To sponsor an episode or collaborate: talkingappalachianpodcast@gmail.com or message me at the link here or on social.
Unless another artist is featured, acoustic music on most episodes: "Freight Train" written by Elizabeth Cotten and performed by Landon Spain