Hurricane Katrina

[icelus]

y'all

[Jolyth]

y'all

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No. It is Ya'll. Ya = You.

[icelus]

"Y'all" is short for "you all." You take away the "ou" and replace it with the apostrophe. "Ya'll" looks like it's short for "ya will" which makes no sense.

[Jolyth]

"Y'all" is short for "you all."  You take away the "ou" and replace it with the apostrophe.  "Ya'll" looks like it's short for "ya will" which makes no sense.

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Oh. Really? And in what part of New Orleans were you born in?

[icelus]

I was born in the South, which still speaks English and follows normal grammar rules.

 

You do not spell the contraction of "cannot" as "c'ant" or "is not" as "i'snt."

 

Y'all is short for you all.

 

you - ou = y'.

y' + all = y'all.

[Jolyth]

I was born in the South, which still speaks English and follows normal grammar rules.

 

You do not spell the contraction of "cannot" as "c'ant" or "is not" as "i'snt."  Y'all is short for you all.  you-ou = y'.  y' + all = y'all.

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Sorry Icelus, but that is the way we spell it in New Orleans. Right or wrong, that is us.

 

Slang contraction for the 2nd person plural pronoun, utilized amongst the indigenous populations of the southern continental United States.

 

Origin: Often incorrectly attributed to the contraction of "you + all," the word actually originated from the fusing of "ya + all." The kind of fella who would say ya'll for the first time would not be enunciating a clean and crisp "you" in his daily speech. "You" wasn't in his spoken vocabulary, but "ya" was. Now, try to say "ya all." It is actually not easy to do as two separate words. To say it with a normal cadence, it already almost sounds like ya'll, but with the slightest stutter. "Ya all" quite naturally slips into the familiar pronoun we all use. Ya + all = ya'll. When you look at it that way, the placement of the apostrophe after the "a" makes sense. Alternately, you + all = y'all. However, the ya + all transition more naturally illustrates the origin of "ya'll." "You all" is cumbersome, although that is usually how yall is explained to uninitiated Yankees, whose experience with "ya" is often limited. "You all" just doesn't lead the the inevitable ya'll that "Ya all" does. However, y'all is an accepted alternate spelling.Imperative: "Ya'll simmer down and go one at a time."

 

Looks like both of us are right. Except yours is the alternate spelling

[icelus]

Yes, you can find just about anything on the 'net. I like Definition #1 here: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=ya'll

 

Or, from apparently the same site you found your definition: http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=y%27all

[Sidhe]

Well I come from England, where we speak proper English - and yet I find no problem in accepting regional variations and dialects.

 

I quite like this definition, especially parts two and three.

[icelus]

Awww, thanks!

[Elduin]

Is ya'll/y'all really as commonly used in the States as it's made out to be?

[CamDawg]

Not really. I picked up y'all at Berkeley--from an English professor (originally from Texas) of all people.

 

I was horrifically embarassed when Atlanta hosted the Olympics. Spelling out "How Y'all Doin'?" in the middle of pickup trucks and cheerleaders in the Opening Ceremonies was not, I thought, a good way to abolish Southern or US stereotypes.

[Jolyth]

Well I come from England, where we speak proper English - and yet I find no problem in accepting regional variations and dialects.

 

I quite like this definition, especially parts two and three.

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ROFLMAO!!!!!! Thanks! I needed that before my next shift!

 

@Elduin: Actually, yes it is. The proper spelling, in New Orleans of course, was a topic of conversation yesterday.

[Guest vita muerte]

Is ya'll/y'all really as commonly used in the States as it's made out to be?

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It's a regional thing. Ya'll/y'all is very common in the southeastern portion of the US commonly now as "the South."

 

@Jolyth: It's good to see you're doing fine, and after all you've experienced still have a sense of humor. Good for ya!

[Jolyth]

@Jolyth:  It's good to see you're doing fine, and after all you've experienced still have a sense of humor.  Good for ya! 

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Thank you so much vita. I appreciate it!