Linguistics Program
Keeping a Dialect Alive on Ocracoke
Professor Walt Wolfram has taken students to the Outer Banks for spring break for 20 years. The annual expedition at first involved conducting research on the Outer Banks brogue. Now the trip aims to teach young Ocracokers about a tongue rarely spoken by anyone but the elderly. Wolfram says coming back to teach each year brings linguistic insights gleaned from Ocracoke back home.
Walt Wolfram Appears on History Channel’s “Mouthing Off” Episode
Tune in to the History Channel at 10:00 pm, Tuesday, July 12, to hear Professor of English Walt Wolfram in the “Mouthing Off” episode of “How the States Got their Shapes.” The episode looks at dialects across the country and […]
Coastal Dialect Fades
The sounds of the “hoi toid” are beginning to ebb along much of the Outer Banks. The distinctive dialect of area residents is fading as younger generations adopt more mainstream grammar and pronunciation, says Dr. Walt Wolfram, William C. Friday […]
Language Patterns Are Roller-Coaster Ride During Childhood Development
Why, and when, do we learn to speak the way that we do? NC State University linguist Dr. Walt Wolfram’s research on African-American children presents an unexpected finding: language use can go on a roller-coaster ride during childhood as kids […]
B – E – E there: CHASS co-hosts spelling bee
Remember how your grade-school knees knocked as you stood in front of your whole class to try to spell “ridiculous” or “parfait”? Relive those nerve-racking moments this Saturday at the Wake County Spelling Bee, co-hosted by NC State’s College of […]
Hutcheson Wins NC Folklore Prize
Neal Hutcheson has been awarded the Brown Hudson Award from the North Carolina Folklore Society for 2011. The announcement notes: ‘Neal Hutcheson is a documantary film-maker who has done extensive work on traditional culture in North Carolina. He has worked […]
New Dialect Developing in Raleigh
English Professor Robin Dodsworth was featured in the News and Observer for her research about Southern dialects: Southern accent in danger?By Chelsea Kellner A new dialect is forming in Raleigh, and Scarlett O’Hara it ain’t. There’s a gradual shift toward […]
Deep-fried food and NC dialects at 2010 State Fair
Carrie McGaha CHASS Communications InternFunnel cakes, corn dogs and cotton candy – you can taste them all at the North Carolina State Fair. This year’s fairgoers got some extra flavor when they visited a CHASS exhibit celebrating the state’s richly-flavored […]
Walt Wolfram Introduces Chancellor Woodson to southeastern NC
When it comes to dialects, North Carolina is one of the nation’s richest states. Dr. Walt Wolfram, William C. Friday Distinguished University professor and director of the North Carolina Language and Life Project recently introduced new NC State Chancellor Randy […]