"Southern Marylandisms" (Baltimore, Bowie: sale, 2013, schools)

[Tezcatlipoca]

I'm curious as to what linguistic features people may have heard in Southern Maryland that seemed unusual or unique compared to "Standard American English" (That is, the dialect that's taught in schools and used professionally).
What differences in grammar have you heard?
What differences in pronunciation have you heard?
Have you heard any new or unique words?
Was there anything in SoMD speech you found amusing?

I'm looking for the linguistic features that people may have heard in Southern Maryland, not an opinion as to what regional dialect SoMD falls into. There is plenty of published literature, from academic journals, newspapers, books, and amateur websites if you want to know more about dialect regions in the USA and their definitions and history. Read up on it sometime, it's very interesting.

I remember North Beach Person talking about "Southern Marylandisms" some years ago, so NBP, i'd love to hear from you!






To start off:
I lived in Central PA for the past three years, these are a few of the things I got blank stares for or had pointed out:
Referring to crabs by gender/maturity: (Jimmys, Sallys, Sooks).
Pronouncing town names differently, esp. Bowie /bu.wi/ vs /boʊ.wi/. (boo-ee vs bow-ee) (I think this is a general MD thing).
Pronunciation differences such as pronouncing "out" /ɛut/ instead of /ɑʊt/. (eyoot instead of owt). Dipthongizing various words: (that becomes tha-it) /thæt > thæɪt/, R-dropping some but not all words.
Names for various weather phenomena: (Sun dog, devil beating his wife.)
Sailing jargon.

It's very late so i'll stop there. I'm curious what others have to say.

[North Beach Person]

You have a right fair thread here. I might could add more but I'm pressed for time.

[P47P47]

Originally Posted by Tezcatlipoca

Pronouncing town names differently, esp. Bowie /bu.wi/ vs /boʊ.wi/. (boo-ee vs bow-ee) (I think this is a general MD thing).

Check the map showing Central Maryland and Texas as the two places where the name Bowie is pronounced as "Boo-ee".



22 Maps That Show The Deepest Linguistic Conflicts In America - Business Insider


In the case of Maryland, it's pronounced that way because the local family that the town is named for pronounced it that way. Oden Bowie gave his first name to the town of Odenton, which is pronounced with the accent on the first syllable, as "O-den-ton", not the second, as "O-DEN-ton". Actually, it usually comes out more as "ODE-en-ton".

[Tezcatlipoca]

Originally Posted by North Beach Person

You have a right fair thread here. I might could add more but I'm pressed for time.

Why thanks. No pressure, you just seem to be good candidate for an outside observer since what I understand is you moved to SoMD from somewhere else but have been here long enough to understand us.

Originally Posted by P47P47

In the case of Maryland, it's pronounced that way because the local family that the town is named for pronounced it that way. Oden Bowie gave his first name to the town of Odenton, which is pronounced with the accent on the first syllable, as "O-den-ton", not the second, as "O-DEN-ton". Actually, it usually comes out more as "ODE-en-ton".

Very interesting. I'd no idea about the history. I definitely say "ODE-en-ton" as well. I've had people act like i'm mentally damaged for saying "Boo-ee". They say "needs warshed" in PA so I judge them right back.

[P47P47]

I've heard many people add a "g" to Odenton, pronouncing it as "O-ding-ton".

Check out the history of the Bowie family in Maryland. Politicians and early railroad magnates.


In the mid-'70's, I went to school in Boulder, Colorado. Among my friends there was a guy from L.A. (who was a big David Bowie fan), a guy from Dallas, and people from all over the rest of the country. It drove the guy from L.A. crazy when the guy from Dallas and I would make reference to David "Boo-ee".

"Why can't you say it like everyone else?", he'd say.

I told him, "As long as Jim Bowie died at the Alamo, and there's a town and racetrack in Maryland by that name, you can bet that people from Texas and Maryland are going to say 'Boo-ee'."


Until I saw that map recently, I didn't know that Texas and Maryland were the ONLY places where it was pronounced that way.

[North Beach Person]

Originally Posted by P47P47

I've heard many people add a "g" to Odenton, pronouncing it as "O-ding-ton".

Check out the history of the Bowie family in Maryland. Politicians and early railroad magnates.


In the mid-'70's, I went to school in Boulder, Colorado. Among my friends there was a guy from L.A. (who was a big David Bowie fan), a guy from Dallas, and people from all over the rest of the country. It drove the guy from L.A. crazy when the guy from Dallas and I would make reference to David "Boo-ee".

"Why can't you say it like everyone else?", he'd say.

I told him, "As long as Jim Bowie died at the Alamo, and there's a town and racetrack in Maryland by that name, you can bet that people from Texas and Maryland are going to say 'Boo-ee'."


Until I saw that map recently, I didn't know that Texas and Maryland were the ONLY places where it was pronounced that way.

I see you've been busy while I haven't hit a lick all day long.

[slowlane3]

"Indeed, by gawd, Captain." (St. Mary's County).

People in the Chesapeake Bay area in general, including Baltimore, often pronounce the long "O" sound very nasally. This was exaggerated by John Travolta's character in the movie "Hairspray" (the second version). It's perhaps the most extreme among old watermen in places such as Smith Island.

[P47P47]

Speaking of the Bowie family, here's an article from yesterday's "Maryland Gazette", about the sale of Fairview, the Bowie family home, and an auction being held there this Saturday:



Gov. Oden Bowie's family treasures up for auction - : News

[P47P47]

We went to the auction. Lots of interesting items, most selling for very reasonable prices. Gov. Oden Bowie's desk went for $45,000. I bought a small piece of modern art for $30.