A popular myth claims that this dialect closely resembles Early Modern or Shakespearean English. Although this dialect retains many words from the Elizabethan era that are no longer in common usage, this myth is apocryphal. (apocryphal means false).

I beg to differ. I watched the movie Dancing at Lughnasa, (highly recommended), with Meryl Streep, I was amazed at the speech patterns and “sayings” used were similar to those of southern West Virginia. The movie, based on a play of the same name, is set in Ireland, therefore it is the Scotch-Irish influence of our ancestors which gives us such a unique language. If someone would have asked me 20 years ago what I thought of “West Virginia Speak,” I would have said-”Embarrassing.” I disliked the accent and was mortified when my parents spoke a certain word/phrase in front of non-native West Virginians- I wanted no one to have the impression they were ignorant. I can now admit, I’m not ashamed and so glad I regained the accent, (not to mention embraced the idioms), I almost lost.

At any rate, my mother and I talked for over an hour on the phone, trying to come up with a list- it’s a challenge when you’re so used to speaking it without giving thought, but we managed to and cracked up, for not realizing how often we speak a language almost foreign to some. Without further adieu, the list:

1. All Y’all: Despite how it sounds, this is not a plural form of “y’all.” Y’all is the plural version of you. If you’re speaking to one person, for instance, “Y’all going up the road?” Translation: “Are you all going somewhere?” When speaking to a group of people, “All y’all going up the road?” Translation: “Are all of you going somewhere?” It becomes more complicated when using either word in the possessive form-this was the most difficult for my mom and I to figure, (yes, we use the word figure-a lot), out, due to the variations of both phrases. I have a bad habit of saying “Your all’s” when speaking in the possessive tense. Imagine the explanation of “all y’alls” and “y’alls.” Enough said.
2. I swan: My mom is notorious for using this phrase. She was taught as a child to not say “I swear,” on the grounds that it was seen as swearing against God or the Bible. We have no idea who decided to use the word “swan” in place of “swear”-think of walking into a store and hearing someone say these words- you’d think the person was nuts. I grew up using it, but after realizing I wasn’t swearing at God or the Bible, I began saying, “I swear,” and “I declare.”
3. Yonder: Yonder is definitely Elizabethan/Old English. Used in a sentence: “Look over yonder at the trees.” Translation: Look over there at the trees.” Yonder means something is at a distance from you. We went to Florida one year to my Dad’s sister’s house and my mom said, “Robbie, would you go in yonder and get an ashtray?” The look on my cousin’s face was priceless- she had to ask what my mother meant.
4. Plum wore out, or worn out: I say it, my mom says it, easy translation: “I’m really tired.”
5. All tore up: Guilty as charged, I use this phrase as well. It means a person feels guilty, remorseful or saddened. Used in a sentence: “She’s all tore up that she had to fire Bob.” The word “torn” is used as well as “plum tore up.”
6. Bad as I hate to do it: Translation: You really do not want to do something, usually referring to a person. Used in a sentence: “Bad as I hate to do it, I’m gonna have to tell Joe he can’t go to the movies.” (As bad as I hate to do it is common also, but we’re known for shortening sentences as much as possible.) The phrase may be used in reference to one’s self: “Bad as I hate to do it, I’m gonna have to vacuum the living room.”
7. Bound and determined: The phrase, to me, should be self explanatory. Most become confused when the word “bound” is used in conjunction with determined, which is what the phrase means- one is determined to complete a task. Used in a sentence: “I’m bound and determined to finish my degree.”
8. Dab: I have Googled until I can Google no more and cannot find the origins of the word. The translation of “Dab” essentially means “a small amount,” more often a substance. Used in a sentence: “You have a dab of sauce on your shirt.” Or, “You need a dab of concealer under your eyes.”
9. Draw up: Translation- to shrink. Used in a sentence: “Don’t dry the sweater or it will draw up.” I use this phrase all the time.
10. Everwhichway: I cannot tell you how often this is heard, plus I say it. The phrase is used two different ways. One translation is something, or someone is physically moving around wildly. Used in a sentence: “Bob was running everwhichway trying to catch the balloons.” The second definition refers to how one wants to perform an action, or task. Example: “You can arrange the furniture everwhichway you want.”
12. How come: My mother and I laughed so hard when we said this phrase-several times. To us, the phrase makes sense, but the more we said it, the more we realized someone from another state, or country, who isn’t aware of idioms used in Southern Appalachia, would be confused as to why the two words were together. Translation: Why? It’s always used as a question. Used in a sentence: “How come you aren’t going with us to the movies?” Hey, I didn’t make these up, the damn sayings were passed down to me.
13. Play like: I used “play like” and ” ‘tend like” as a kid. Translation: Pretend. Used in a sentence: “Play like you’re a lion sleeping.” Or, ” ‘tend like you’re a dog.” Heaven forbid we use the whole word- it’s easier to abbreviate.
14. Sure don’t: Used when a person asks if you are in possession of an item. Translation: No, I don’t have…whatever item. “Do you have a hammer?” “Sure don’t.”
15. Smack Dab: I know I have used the phrase “smack dab” on this blog. It’s a given, especially when one is telling a story. The translation, loosely means-right there. Used in a sentence: “Joe was smack dab in the middle of the road.”
16. Ways: Almost always means distance, used when giving directions to the poor, already confused strangers trying to find a place. We know what a ways means. Farther than at least 5 miles. “You go a ways down the road and turn to the right.” For some reason, we can’t give actual mileage. Ways can also be used when you have a certain amount of time remaining to do a task. “How much longer is it going to take to paint your house?” “I have a ways to go.” So, “ways,” means both time and distance.
17. Be it, (that), as it may: This phrase is infamous in my family. My mom learned it from her dad, (when he was drunk-not good), and I learned it from her. Loosely translated: You aren’t changing your mind about something, or, “Oh well.” Used in a conversation: “Bob said he was going to marry Joan despite what others thought.” “Be it as it may.”

The phrases, or idioms, however one wants to distinguish, are but a few I hear, or say on a daily basis. It’s amazing once you sit down and begin the process of dissecting the meanings and the usage. It’s no wonder people cannot understand us- hell after typing the words and thinking of how often I say the words and phrases, I couldn’t understand my own self.

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