#6 is mostly right. But you never use "all" in front of "y'all". "y'all" includes everyone in front of you and people associated with them (family, friends, side chicks) when you address a group. "y'all" is never used for one person. It is always used for two or more people.
Depends where you're from...I had a student at Clemson and we were having a video conference with a company from Maine...she started to ask a question about prospecting for them and said, " Where do all y'all want me to start?" They cracked up and asked her "did you say all y'all?" Her reply was, "Yes, and I'm from Charleston!" Not only was she a knockout, but a smart one, to boot...
I must disagree. Adding the "all" in front of "y'all" adds intensity, and it means in you are in trouble. Like hearing your mom yell your middle name. "Y'all need to clean your rooms." Mom is cool and you know what you are supposed to do. "I told all y'all to clean your rooms." Mom is about make sure y'all ain't gonna sit down for a while.
Years ago I was informed by a toothless guy from the back woods of Arkansas "All Y''all" is the plural of "Y'all". That was after he announced to me and a coulple of friends "All Y'all want to meet my sister"?. I took one look andI relpled; "Speaking for all of us I think we'll pass".
Y'all can be singular or plural. All y'all is often used when you want to make sure that the entire family, group, etc is included. The usage of y'all (never ya'll) is highly nuanced in ways that people who are not born and bred Southerners often miss.
The way this northerner was instructed to translate it: "y'all" = singular, "y'all's" = singular possessive, "all y'all" = plural, "all y'all's = plural possessive.
Once "you" was plural and "ye" was singular. But people began using "you" for singular, and "ye" was forgotten except for the antiquated language of the King James Bible. So people had to invent a plural for "you"; IMHO, American southerners came up with the best one, "y'all" - it's short, euphonious, and the derivation and meaning is obvious.
But "y'all" is subject to the same evolutionary pressures that turned "you" into singular first person. First, people will say "Y'all come back soon" to a single guest. Then they start using "y'all" regardless of the number of people addressed. Finally, they will say "all y'all" when they definitely need a plural.
I predict my great-great grandchildren - even though they'll probably be Yankees - will be using "all y'all" for the singular first-person, and have to think of something else for plural first-person. Perhaps "thee".
10) Many years ago my then wife had a cat that got hit by a car about a block from our house. I was content to let it be someone's else's problem. She wanted it buried. Good thing it was in the fall and wasn't bloated. I got the cat and had it doing all kind of moves (dancing,etc.) on the outside window seal as hid below the window. As she watched her tears turned into a smile then laughter. -sammy
My ex wife and I were separated, and we had a half German Shephard, half miniature Collie, that looked like a mini German Shephard, smart, and just adored my kids. I was at work, working the 4am to 4pm, running the airmelt furnace that month. She calls me, and the HR woman knew how she was a bit nuts, and always put her through to me. She tells me that the kids dog got killed under the bus tires chasing it following the kids, and would I come and bury it. Now mind you, I am an hour away, I am the only one that could run the furnace in the whole plant, and she had asked me to move out. I told her no, of course I could not. I would be there at 5pm, when I got out of work, and do it then, for the kids. She got all pissy, and said her dad would do it. He lived about 150 yards away, they had given us 2 acres that we put a trailer on. I could not believe it, now I spent the rest of the day being pissed, first for her calling me at work to ask that, then for her letting the kids stay home from school. Did I ever say how luck I am to have found a woman who was willing to work on marriage with me?
I come from a long line of back country hillbillies, hopefully not inbred. We did find out not too long ago that my brother’ wife I also his third cousin. I started calling my sister-in-law Cuz, but she wasn’t as amused as I was.
I learned you'ns from a friend in college. She was from the Athens, TN area. Only area I know of that uses that, of course I may just be woefully ignorant.
never heard You'ns in middle Tennessee and I lived there over 20 years after my father retired from the USAF and took us home. I've heard it many times here the mountains of western NC, although y'all is far more common.
I grew up in East Tennessee and my grandparents’ generation used “you’ns” pretty much exclusively. I believe it’s an Appalachian Scots-Irish thing. It’s been replaced by the more generically Southern “y’all” in my lifetime. You still hear you’ns from time to time, but it’s mostly from people over the age of 50.
I'm pretty sure Youns originated in the southwest PA area, around Pittsburgh. I'm from near there and that's what everyone used. For what it's worth ( “You’uns” gets even shorter just north of the Appalachians, where it’s been turned into “yinz” by the residents of Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania. Yinz, like y’all, has become a sort of emblem of the area from which it comes; Pittsburgh residents sometimes refer to themselves as Yinzers, to honor the unique pronoun native to their fine city. https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/yall-youuns-yinz-youse-how-regional-dialects-are-fixing-standard-english )-sammy
#8. I have apologized to pickups for potholes, slides around curves, hitting a cattle guard too hard, but never got an apology when a bare tire went all "PSSSHHH!" 10 miles from town and the spare was down to the cord. On a gravel road. Drove slow, made it back to town, called my wife 30 miles away, said, "Bring the check book. I'm at the used tire place"
I can't believe all y'all have never heard all y'all used in a sentence to a group of people. Chris y'all need to travel around the South a bit more. This may be laying it on thick but I have heard all y'all from women asking if everyone in a group was included since I moved to the South. "Y'all got enough beer for the game? All y'all only gonna drink a case? Do y'all want me to get some more beer from the store? Are all y'all coming over to the after party?"
Y'all has come into general use in recent decades after we dropped the use of "thou" as the singular form of "you". "You" has been used as both singular and plural which causes confusion. Now we can use "you" and "Y'all". Makes sense, no?
No, "thou" was never the singular form of "you". It was the informal form (the form you'd use with buddies and family) of "ye", which was the singular form of "you". Sometime before Shakespeare was born:
Talking to a buddy: thou (or thee in some country dialects) Talking to a bunch of buddies: ? Talking to your boss: ye Talking to a bunch of bosses: you
"Ye" for the formal first person singular may have varied by dialect. It's remembered at all now (but usually misunderstood) because King James's Bible translators chose to sound impressive by using an antiquated dialect that happened to include "ye".
Since then, the language evolved. First, they dropped "thou" and the other informal pronouns. Then they dropped "ye" and made "you" both plural and singular, as well as both formal and informal. Then southerners invented "you all" for plural and shortened it to "y'all". (There are other constructions in other regional dialects, like "yinz" and "youse".) Now in some parts of the south, "y'all" has become singular, so "all y'all" is the plural.
#10 Back in the day flagging for the company doing some street work I noticed a cat had been hit near my position. I grabbed a Keystone Light can out of one of the hands truck beds and placed it between his front legs and man did that slow the traffic down, everybody had to slow roll through to see what it was. A slick looking Mustang pulled into an entrance across from where I was standing and an honest to God ZZ Top video looking gal got out, black leather mini skirt, fishnets, tight top, and heels. She popped the trunk and got a towel, walked out to the center line where the cat was, flipped the beer can out of his paws, gave me the most evil look, rolled the cat up in the towel and put it in the trunk, then drove away.
After we moved to rural TN, my wife had a great deal of trouble with the local accent. One of our neighbors stopped by and observed about our free range hens: If you're not careful, they will turn into masheduns. After he left, my wife was WTH is a mashedun? I explained: mashed ones.
#6 is mostly right. But you never use "all" in front of "y'all". "y'all" includes everyone in front of you and people associated with them (family, friends, side chicks) when you address a group. "y'all" is never used for one person. It is always used for two or more people.
ReplyDeleteNot what I heard.
Delete"All ya'll" is perfectly southern. 🤷♂️
DeleteDepends where you're from...I had a student at Clemson and we were having a video conference with a company from Maine...she started to ask a question about prospecting for them and said, " Where do all y'all want me to start?" They cracked up and asked her "did you say all y'all?" Her reply was, "Yes, and I'm from Charleston!" Not only was she a knockout, but a smart one, to boot...
DeleteI must disagree. Adding the "all" in front of "y'all" adds intensity, and it means in you are in trouble. Like hearing your mom yell your middle name. "Y'all need to clean your rooms." Mom is cool and you know what you are supposed to do. "I told all y'all to clean your rooms." Mom is about make sure y'all ain't gonna sit down for a while.
DeleteI disagree with y'all.
DeleteYears ago I was informed by a toothless guy from the back woods of Arkansas "All Y''all" is the plural of "Y'all". That was after he announced to me and a coulple of friends "All Y'all want to meet my sister"?. I took one look andI relpled; "Speaking for all of us I think we'll pass".
Deletejus' fuck all y'all then
DeleteY'all can be singular or plural. All y'all is often used when you want to make sure that the entire family, group, etc is included.
DeleteThe usage of y'all (never ya'll) is highly nuanced in ways that people who are not born and bred Southerners often miss.
You probably want to reconsider that one.
DeleteAlmost got it right, but the rule is that you never use ”all” after “y’all.”
DeleteThe way this northerner was instructed to translate it: "y'all" = singular, "y'all's" = singular possessive, "all y'all" = plural, "all y'all's = plural possessive.
DeleteOnce "you" was plural and "ye" was singular. But people began using "you" for singular, and "ye" was forgotten except for the antiquated language of the King James Bible. So people had to invent a plural for "you"; IMHO, American southerners came up with the best one, "y'all" - it's short, euphonious, and the derivation and meaning is obvious.
DeleteBut "y'all" is subject to the same evolutionary pressures that turned "you" into singular first person. First, people will say "Y'all come back soon" to a single guest. Then they start using "y'all" regardless of the number of people addressed. Finally, they will say "all y'all" when they definitely need a plural.
I predict my great-great grandchildren - even though they'll probably be Yankees - will be using "all y'all" for the singular first-person, and have to think of something else for plural first-person. Perhaps "thee".
10) Many years ago my then wife had a cat that got hit by a car about a block from our house. I was content to let it be someone's else's problem. She wanted it buried. Good thing it was in the fall and wasn't bloated. I got the cat and had it doing all kind of moves (dancing,etc.) on the outside window seal as hid below the window. As she watched her tears turned into a smile then laughter. -sammy
ReplyDelete#18 goes along with #6.
ReplyDeleteMy sense of humor is pretty fucked up, and I passed it on to my youngest spawn. She's one of those who would tie a "Get Well Soon" balloon to the cat.
ReplyDeleteMy ex wife and I were separated, and we had a half German Shephard, half miniature Collie, that looked like a mini German Shephard, smart, and just adored my kids.
ReplyDeleteI was at work, working the 4am to 4pm, running the airmelt furnace that month. She calls me, and the HR woman knew how she was a bit nuts, and always put her through to me. She tells me that the kids dog got killed under the bus tires chasing it following the kids, and would I come and bury it.
Now mind you, I am an hour away, I am the only one that could run the furnace in the whole plant, and she had asked me to move out. I told her no, of course I could not. I would be there at 5pm, when I got out of work, and do it then, for the kids. She got all pissy, and said her dad would do it. He lived about 150 yards away, they had given us 2 acres that we put a trailer on.
I could not believe it, now I spent the rest of the day being pissed, first for her calling me at work to ask that, then for her letting the kids stay home from school. Did I ever say how luck I am to have found a woman who was willing to work on marriage with me?
In my ancestral homeland in middle Tennessee, y’all wasn’t used. The operative term was/is you’ns. as in, “How’re you’ns doin’?”
ReplyDeleteI worked with a woman from one of the Carolinas who used all y’all.
I've also heard you'ns, so you're spot on, although it was usually used by back country inbred folks, not that there's anythang wrong there...
DeleteI come from a long line of back country hillbillies, hopefully not inbred. We did find out not too long ago that my brother’ wife I also his third cousin. I started calling my sister-in-law Cuz, but she wasn’t as amused as I was.
DeleteI learned you'ns from a friend in college. She was from the Athens, TN area. Only area I know of that uses that, of course I may just be woefully ignorant.
Deletenever heard You'ns in middle Tennessee and I lived there over 20 years after my father retired from the USAF and took us home. I've heard it many times here the mountains of western NC, although y'all is far more common.
DeleteI grew up in East Tennessee and my grandparents’ generation used “you’ns” pretty much exclusively. I believe it’s an Appalachian Scots-Irish thing. It’s been replaced by the more generically Southern “y’all” in my lifetime. You still hear you’ns from time to time, but it’s mostly from people over the age of 50.
Delete"yinz" so that's basically Pittsburgh ?
DeleteI'm pretty sure Youns originated in the southwest PA area, around Pittsburgh. I'm from near there and that's what everyone used. For what it's worth ( “You’uns” gets even shorter just north of the Appalachians, where it’s been turned into “yinz” by the residents of Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania. Yinz, like y’all, has become a sort of emblem of the area from which it comes; Pittsburgh residents sometimes refer to themselves as Yinzers, to honor the unique pronoun native to their fine city. https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/yall-youuns-yinz-youse-how-regional-dialects-are-fixing-standard-english )-sammy
DeleteThe fact that “you’uns” appears to exist indicates there might also be a "we'uns".
DeleteTrue?
CC
#8. I have apologized to pickups for potholes, slides around curves, hitting a cattle guard too hard, but never got an apology when a bare tire went all "PSSSHHH!" 10 miles from town and the spare was down to the cord. On a gravel road. Drove slow, made it back to town, called my wife 30 miles away, said, "Bring the check book. I'm at the used tire place"
ReplyDeleteI can't believe all y'all have never heard all y'all used in a sentence to a group of people. Chris y'all need to travel around the South a bit more.
ReplyDeleteThis may be laying it on thick but I have heard all y'all from women asking if everyone in a group was included since I moved to the South.
"Y'all got enough beer for the game? All y'all only gonna drink a case? Do y'all want me to get some more beer from the store? Are all y'all coming over to the after party?"
"all Y'all" has it's place. i.e; "All y'all m'fU4ker$ fittin ta get shot".
ReplyDelete#4 is dead wrong. It starts with making arrangements with a liquor company for at least 20,000 gallons of bourbon.
ReplyDeleteI don’t mind if it’s all y’all or just y’all, just as long as it’s not alla youse.
ReplyDeleteJFM
Y'all has come into general use in recent decades after we dropped the use of "thou" as the singular form of "you". "You" has been used as both singular and plural which causes confusion. Now we can use "you" and "Y'all". Makes sense, no?
ReplyDeleteNo, "thou" was never the singular form of "you". It was the informal form (the form you'd use with buddies and family) of "ye", which was the singular form of "you". Sometime before Shakespeare was born:
DeleteTalking to a buddy: thou (or thee in some country dialects)
Talking to a bunch of buddies: ?
Talking to your boss: ye
Talking to a bunch of bosses: you
"Ye" for the formal first person singular may have varied by dialect. It's remembered at all now (but usually misunderstood) because King James's Bible translators chose to sound impressive by using an antiquated dialect that happened to include "ye".
Since then, the language evolved. First, they dropped "thou" and the other informal pronouns. Then they dropped "ye" and made "you" both plural and singular, as well as both formal and informal. Then southerners invented "you all" for plural and shortened it to "y'all". (There are other constructions in other regional dialects, like "yinz" and "youse".) Now in some parts of the south, "y'all" has become singular, so "all y'all" is the plural.
#10 Back in the day flagging for the company doing some street work I noticed a cat had been hit near my position. I grabbed a Keystone Light can out of one of the hands truck beds and placed it between his front legs and man did that slow the traffic down, everybody had to slow roll through to see what it was. A slick looking Mustang pulled into an entrance across from where I was standing and an honest to God ZZ Top video looking gal got out, black leather mini skirt, fishnets, tight top, and heels. She popped the trunk and got a towel, walked out to the center line where the cat was, flipped the beer can out of his paws, gave me the most evil look, rolled the cat up in the towel and put it in the trunk, then drove away.
ReplyDeleteGood times, good times.
HTR
Bless y'all heart(s)!
ReplyDeleteAfter we moved to rural TN, my wife had a great deal of trouble with the local accent. One of our neighbors stopped by and observed about our free range hens: If you're not careful, they will turn into masheduns. After he left, my wife was WTH is a mashedun? I explained: mashed ones.
ReplyDeleteI still have problems with the accent occasionally. Sometimes it's completely undecipherable. I just smile and grin and nod my head.
DeleteWirecutter has certainly created a mess for "all ya'll."
ReplyDeleteAryun's = any of them (and no I don't mean Nazis)
ReplyDeleteNaryun's = none of them
Eastern KY near Floyd County
Okrathief