Today’s blog post will explore what is and what is not
Ebonics, a language spoken among a large proportion of Black Americans in the
United States. Yes, language. Ebonics has a bad reputation as it is
considered a substandard version of standard English. The reality is that Ebonics is actually a distinct
language that shares some characteristics with standard English but has several
differences that separates it. This blog
post will address those differences, as well as the origins of the language,
and its importance among Black Americans today.
The term Ebonics was coined by Dr. Robert Williams and his
colleagues in 1973. They came up with
the term, which combines the words ebony and phonics to come up with a term that literally means “black
sounds”.
Prior to the inception of this term the language was often referred
to as “Nonstandard Negro English”, which carried with it negative ideas
and prejudicial attitudes about not just Black American English but also Black Americans generally.
Ebonics has
existed for a couple of centuries in the United States. Linguists who study the language’s
history do not agree on a specific origin, but they do identify
that it is derived from several different languages, specifically English and West African
languages. This identification is based
in part in phonological analyses that recognize and distinguish specific sounds that
exist among Ebonics speakers that are similar in sound to West African
languages spoken. Furthermore, the
history of the language and its speakers also lend itself to supporting this
notion of a West African influence.
Despite the coining of the term by Williams and colleagues
it took linguists a long time to settle on whether or not Ebonics was a formal
language. This debate came to a
hasty conclusion due to the act of the Oakland School Board in the 1990s. The school board recognized Ebonics as a separate
language that should and would be incorporated into the teaching curriculum of
the school system. This well-meaning
act, which was based in pedagogical (educational) studies and data, was misunderstood
by the general public who interpreted this move as a means of providing poor
education to the students in the district, inspiring linguists into action to
explain what was actually happening: which was using a separate language that students understood to teach them.
You see, aside
from the phonological differences in the language Ebonics has a distinctive
grammar system that separates it from standard English, and it is this grammar
system that also lends itself to the misinterpretation of the language being a “poor
version of English”. For example, it is normal
in Ebonics to use double negatives, whereas in standard English it is not. The use of double negatives is a grammatical no no in standard English. There are several other discrete differences
in the grammar systems of Ebonics and standard English that separate the two languages further. There are also specific focal terms found among
Ebonics speakers that are not used by standard English speakers. For example, the terms “ashy” (referring to
dry skin) and “kitchen” (referring to the kinky hair at the nape of the neck)
are common among Ebonics speakers and reference their shared African
identity.
Ebonics is still spoken today, particularly among Black
Americans. It is a central part of many
Black Americans’ identities. The focal
language aspects of the language demonstrate the values and meanings of what it
means to be Black, thereby holding with it aspects of their culture. The ability to speak Ebonics
is a point of pride, but this pride can be taken too far as some have said that Black
Americans who speak standard English are acting white and giving up their Black
identity. The reality is that the two
languages are separate and distinct. Individuals
who can speak both fluently are in essence bilingual speakers who can navigate
the social and cultural worlds associated with both groups speaking each language. This skill can
be very advantageous today.
Language is one of the key elements of any culture, and
therefore the study of Ebonics can provide insights into Black American culture.
Ebonics is not a “poor version” of standard English, but a separate language
with millions of speakers throughout the United States. So next time you encounter a situation where
Ebonics and standard English speakers are talking recognize that while the
languages are similar they are also distinct and provide insights into the
multicultural history and culture that exists in the United States.
References
Rickford, J.R. No Date.
“What is Ebonics (African American English)?” Linguistic
Society of America.
