Yooper dialect
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Yooper is the form of North Central American English spoken in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, which gives the dialect its name (from UP for Upper Peninsula).
Yooper differs from standard English primarily due to the linguistic background of settlers to the area. The majority of people living in the Upper Peninsula and Wisconsin are of either Finnish, Flemish, Scandinavian, or German descent. Yooper is so massively influenced by these languages that speakers from other areas may have difficulty understanding it. The Yooper dialect is also influenced by the Finnish language making it similar in character to the so-called "Rayncher speek" of the Mesabi Iron Range in northeast Minnesota.
Differences between Yooper and standard English
- Canadian raising
- "roof", "book", and "root" all use the same vowel.
- Use of German/Scandinavian "ja" as an affirmative filler or emphatic; the standard American English "yes" is used to answer questions and to start an explanation.
- Tendency towards a "sing-song" intonation. The area's earliest European settlers were primarily Scandinavian, and this has influenced the local dialect. More recently, this has been reinforced by an influx of Asians, most of whom speak tonal languages.
- W becomes V, particularly well to vell and what to vaht, as in German pronunciation. This feature appears to be found mostly in people over 35 (i.e., born before 1970).
- Ending of sentences in "Eh (Aye)?" or "Ya know?" Used at end of sentences with the expectation of receiving an affirmative response ("So, you're /yɛr/ goin' out t'nide, eh?"). This is often associated with Canadian English, but used exclusively in either expectation of a response or as a repetition of a statement made by the co-conversant. "Hey" is used interchangeably and perhaps more often among younger Yoopers.
- Ending of sentences in "You betcha."
- The dropping of some t's, for example, mountain would be pronounced moun-in, and Houghton would be pronounced Hough-in
- Replacement of dental fricatives with alveolar stops so then becomes den and thigh becomes tie, etc.
- German second verb word order ("We are going to shoot trap" becomes "We're goin trap shootin'")
- German definite articles (The = Da, Dem, Die), also a result of the above replacement of "th" with d.
- The progressive and gerund "-ing" becomes "-in'"
- Many German, Scandinavian, and Flemish loanwords or cognates.
- Deletion of "to the" ex. "I'm goin' mall" or "I'm goin' shop" due to the lack of these words in Finnish.
- Combining words that precede "you". For example, "don't you" would become "doncha" and "won't you" would become "woncha"
List of words unique to Yooper
- Teer - Deer, from German Tier (animal)
- Ja - Used for Yes, from Scandinavian languages, pronounced variously [ja:] or [jæ:], often depending on the situation.
- Wurst - Name for Sausage, used by itself [As opposed to the rest of the country, where it is used only as "Bratwurst"], usually pronounced "[vɛrst]. This is identical to the German word Wurst, also used for Sausage.
- Kart - Cards, used to refer to any generic game of cards: "let's play us some kart"
- Brandy - Used as a generic term for Wine, not just Brandy
- Vom, Fom - From, of, Contraction of German "von" and English "From", with which it rhymes
- Shant - Shack, from Flemish [Not the same as an ice Shanty]
- Flatland - Illinois
- Chicago [Pronounced Shi-kah-ko] - The state of Illinois in General
- Troll - Resident of Michigan's Lower Peninsula, as they live "under Da Bridge"
- Hound, Hount - A domestic dog, probably a confluence of English "Hound" and German "Hund" (/hunt/)
- Kyot [Pronounced Kah-yot] - A Wild dog (a corrupted form of coyote) "Kyot" can also be heard in the Lower Peninsula, but generally in the more rural areas.
- Hinder - The human buttocks, or the butt as of a gun. Also, in reduced form, "hind" is used to mean "the back end" of anything, for instance, "the hind end of nowhere" is a way of "in a place as possibly the furthest removed from anywhere worth noting".
- Oxenscheisse - manure, from German Ochsen (by association with English "oxen") "cattle" + Scheiße "excrement"
- Spreker - A mayor or town leader, one who makes important speeches (from Dutch/Flemish "spreker": speaker)
- Chook - a knit cap (taken from the French-Canadian "tuque")
- Choppers - Thick mittens made without individual placements for digits. [making the hand look as if it might 'chop' like 'karate chop']
- Holy Wah - an exclamation of excitement and surprise ("Holy wah! Da Pack cut Favre!")
- Pop - refers to all types of soft drinks.
External links
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