Our History, Black History: Ebonics and Black Vernacular

There is an adage that states, “You never know where you are going unless you know where you have been.” In the spirit of Black history month, the Monroe Dispatch will highlight stories and the history of Blacks that are not commonly known. Blacks have made many significant contributions to the world, and one of our most significant contributions is culture and vernacular. One can not study African-American Vernacular English (AAVE) without consideration of the trans-Atlantic slave trade, which brought Africans to America and neighboring territories. Enslaved people brought intelligence and unique cultures from many parts of Africa that still live on through today's Black American culture. When enslaved people were brought to America, they were stripped of their cultural traditions, like practicing African religions, wearing traditional clothing, and speaking their own languages. Over time they adapted English and fused words from their roots to communicate in secret. Negro spirituals were also developed to communicate. Black language has evolved from the early 1900s to today, but one constant is its popularity. Black language and culture are most often shared through music; the majority of America's mainstream entertainment was and is derived from Black culture. In the 1940s, jazz music was the predominant influence on society and culture. Words like corny, jive, and hip were coined by Blacks and shared with the masses in music. In the 1980s and 1990s, Blacks used words like fly, duck, and phat, along with the popularity of cut-off words like trippin' and buggin'. Robert Lee Williams II, a Black Psychologist, coined the word Ebonics (a combination of the word ebony, which means black, and phonics, the science of spoken sounds) in 1973 with the thought to define Black language. He performed extensive studies on Black language and developed the Black Intelligence Test of Cultural Homogeneity, which revealed how cultural content on intelligence tests might lead to culturally biased score results.

Like varying African countries, no singular Black dialect is spoken throughout the continent but varies from region to state to city. There is a healthy fascination with dialects within the Black culture that often reveals there are many common threads that provide understanding and neutrality. One common thread is the continuous tense of the 'be' verb, used to express something done in the past, present, or future. Examples include, "They be gone all the time.", "She be on the phone.", and "He be dressing."

Another thing that makes Black vernacular unique is the use of double negatives like 'nobody can't' or word pronunciation like 'bizness', 'bruvah', or 'souf'. Other examples of Ebonics are the use of the words like 'been' and 'finna'.

For years mainstream educators and media have tried to denounce the use of Ebonics and Black vernacular, but like much of what Blacks create - it is here to stay and is now becoming more common with its use in social media, music and pop culture.