Ebonics The True Language Of Black Folks

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  ebonics the true language of black folks: Linguistic Justice April Baker-Bell, 2020-04-28 Bringing together theory, research, and practice to dismantle Anti-Black Linguistic Racism and white linguistic supremacy, this book provides ethnographic snapshots of how Black students navigate and negotiate their linguistic and racial identities across multiple contexts. By highlighting the counterstories of Black students, Baker-Bell demonstrates how traditional approaches to language education do not account for the emotional harm, internalized linguistic racism, or consequences these approaches have on Black students' sense of self and identity. This book presents Anti-Black Linguistic Racism as a framework that explicitly names and richly captures the linguistic violence, persecution, dehumanization, and marginalization Black Language-speakers endure when using their language in schools and in everyday life. To move toward Black linguistic liberation, Baker-Bell introduces a new way forward through Antiracist Black Language Pedagogy, a pedagogical approach that intentionally and unapologetically centers the linguistic, cultural, racial, intellectual, and self-confidence needs of Black students. This volume captures what Antiracist Black Language Pedagogy looks like in classrooms while simultaneously illustrating how theory, research, and practice can operate in tandem in pursuit of linguistic and racial justice. A crucial resource for educators, researchers, professors, and graduate students in language and literacy education, writing studies, sociology of education, sociolinguistics, and critical pedagogy, this book features a range of multimodal examples and practices through instructional maps, charts, artwork, and stories that reflect the urgent need for antiracist language pedagogies in our current social and political climate.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Ebonics J. David Ramirez, 2005-01-01 This collection of papers, comments, and documents traces the distant and recent history of the Ebonics debate in the USA. The book examines how, despite increasing access to public education over the past century, schools continue to impose language standards and expectations on children that methodically privileges some, while disadvantaging others.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: The Real Ebonics Debate Theresa Perry, Lisa Delpit, 1998-06-17 In the winter of 1996, the Oakland school board's resolution recognizing Ebonics as a valid linguistic system generated a brief firestorm of hostile criticism and misinformation, then faded from public consciousness. But in the classrooms of America, the question of how to engage the distinctive language of many African-American children remains urgent. In The Real Ebonics Debate some of our most important educators, linguists, and writers, as well as teachers and students reporting from the field, examine the lessons of the Ebonics controversy and unravel the complex issues at the heart of how America educates its children.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: African American English Lisa J. Green, 2002-08-08 This authoritative introduction to African American English (AAE) is the first textbook to look at the grammar as a whole. Clearly organised, it describes patterns in the sentence structure, sound system, word formation and word use in AAE. The textbook examines topics such as education, speech events in the secular and religious world, and the use of language in literature and the media to create black images. It includes exercises to accompany each chapter and will be essential reading for students in linguistics, education, anthropology, African American studies and literature.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Do You Speak American? Robert Macneil, William Cran, 2007-12-18 Is American English in decline? Are regional dialects dying out? Is there a difference between men and women in how they adapt to linguistic variations? These questions, and more, about our language catapulted Robert MacNeil and William Cran—the authors (with Robert McCrum) of the language classic The Story of English—across the country in search of the answers. Do You Speak American? is the tale of their discoveries, which provocatively show how the standard for American English—if a standard exists—is changing quickly and dramatically. On a journey that takes them from the Northeast, through Appalachia and the Deep South, and west to California, the authors observe everyday verbal interactions and in a host of interviews with native speakers glean the linguistic quirks and traditions characteristic of each area. While examining the histories and controversies surrounding both written and spoken American English, they address anxieties and assumptions that, when explored, are highly emotional, such as the growing influence of Spanish as a threat to American English and the special treatment of African-American vernacular English. And, challenging the purists who think grammatical standards are in serious deterioration and that media saturation of our culture is homogenizing our speech, they surprise us with unpredictable responses. With insight and wit, MacNeil and Cran bring us a compelling book that is at once a celebration and a potent study of our singular language. Each wave of immigration has brought new words to enrich the American language. Do you recognize the origin of 1. blunderbuss, sleigh, stoop, coleslaw, boss, waffle? Or 2. dumb, ouch, shyster, check, kaput, scram, bummer? Or 3. phooey, pastrami, glitch, kibbitz, schnozzle? Or 4. broccoli, espresso, pizza, pasta, macaroni, radio? Or 5. smithereens, lollapalooza, speakeasy, hooligan? Or 6. vamoose, chaps, stampede, mustang, ranch, corral? 1. Dutch 2. German 3. Yiddish 4. Italian 5. Irish 6. Spanish
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Beyond Ebonics John Baugh, 2000-02-10 The media frenzy surrounding the 1996 resolution by the Oakland School Board brought public attention to the term Ebonics, however the idea remains a mystery to most. John Baugh, a well-known African-American linguist and education expert, offers an accessible explanation of the origins of the term, the linguistic reality behind the hype, and the politics behind the outcry on both sides of the debate. Using a non-technical, first-person style, and bringing in many of his own personal experiences, Baugh debunks many commonly-held notions about the way African-Americans speak English, and the result is a nuanced and balanced portrait of a fraught subject. This volume should appeal to students and scholars in anthropology, linguistics, education, urban studies, and African-American studies.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Ebonics Is Good Abdul Karim Bangura, 2010-09-02 Ebonics Is Good is a humble response to the clarion call by Mwalimu Carter G. Woodson, Mwalimu Frantz Fanon, and Mwalimu Malcolm X, among others, to address our African language question. As all of these great Africans and others have shown throughout history, it behooves us to counter the assumption of the ill-informed that Ebonics is bad by demonstrating that it is a GOOD language and worthy of respect. Ebonics Is Good explores the following topics: Linguistic Reality of African American English Sociolinguistics of African American English Politico-Sociolinguistic Reality of African American English Social Construction of Ebonics: A Fasoldian Perspective The Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) Initiative Linguistic Connections between the African, Jamaican and Negro National Anthems
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Spoken Soul John Russell Rickford, Russell John Rickford, 2002-02-28 In Praise of Spoken Soul: The Story of Black English Spoken Soul brilliantly fills a huge gap. . . . a delightfully readable introduction to the elegant interweave between the language and its culture. –Ralph W. Fasold, Georgetown university A lively, well-documented history of Black English . . . that will enlighten and inform not only educators, for whom it should be required reading, but all who value and question language. –Kirkus Reviews Spoken Soul is a must read for anyone who is interested in the connection between language and identity. –Chicago Defender Claude Brown called Black English Spoken Soul. Toni Morrison said, It's a love, a passion. Its function is like a preacher’s: to make you stand out of your seat, make you lose yourself and hear yourself. The worst of all possible things that could happen would be to lose that language. Now renowned linguist John R. Rickford and journalist Russell J. Rickford provide the definitive guide to African American vernacular English–from its origins and features to its powerful fascination for society at large.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Ebonics Robert Lewis Williams, 1975
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Ebonics United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Appropriations. Subcommittee on Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies, 1997 Distributed to some depository libraries in microfiche.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: The English Languages Thomas Burns McArthur, 1998-03-05 Plural? Monolithic? Legion? - Tom McArthur explores the nature of English in its local and global contexts.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Racism Learned at an Early Age Through Racial Scripting Robert L. Williams, 2007-02
  ebonics the true language of black folks: The Oxford Handbook of African American Language Sonja Lanehart, 2015-05-04 The goal of The Oxford Handbook of African American Language is to provide readers with a wide range of analyses of both traditional and contemporary work on language use in African American communities in a broad collective. The Handbook offers a survey of language and its uses in African American communities from a wide range of contexts organized into seven sections: Origins and Historical Perspectives; Lects and Variation; Structure and Description; Child Language Acquisition and Development; Education; Language in Society; and Language and Identity. It is a handbook of research on African American Language (AAL) and, as such, provides a variety of scholarly perspectives that may not align with each other -- as is indicative of most scholarly research. The chapters in this book interact with one another as contributors frequently refer the reader to further elaboration on and references to related issues and connect their own research to related topics in other chapters within their own sections and the handbook more generally to create dialogue about AAL, thus affirming the need for collaborative thinking about the issues in AAL research. Though the Handbook does not and cannot include every area of research, it is meant to provide suggestions for future work on lesser-studied areas (e.g., variation/heterogeneity in regional, social, and ethnic communities) by highlighting a need for collaborative perspectives and innovative thinking while reasserting the need for better research and communication in areas thought to be resolved.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Georgetown University Round Table on Languages and Linguistics (GURT) 1999: Language in Our Time James E. Alatis, Ai-Hui Tan, 2001-09-07 Marking the return — after a two-year hiatus — of this annual collection of essays on linguistics and language education, the 1999 volume speaks to the most pressing social issues of our time. More than thirty contributors from around the world take up longstanding debates about language diversity, language standardization, and language policy. They tackle such controversial issues as the Official English movement, bilingual education, and ideological struggles over African American Vernacular English.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Language Diversity in the Classroom Geneva Smitherman, Victor Villanueva, 2003-11-05 It’s no secret that, in most American classrooms, students are expected to master standardized American English and the conventions of Edited American English if they wish to succeed. Language Diversity in the Classroom: From Intention to Practice works to realign these conceptions through a series of provocative yet evenhanded essays that explore the ways we have enacted and continue to enact our beliefs in the integrity of the many languages and Englishes that arise both in the classroom and in professional communities. Edited by Geneva Smitherman and Victor Villanueva, the collection was motivated by a survey project on language awareness commissioned by the National Council of Teachers of English and the Conference on College Composition and Communication. All actively involved in supporting diversity in education, the contributors address the major issues inherent in linguistically diverse classrooms: language and racism, language and nationalism, and the challenges in teaching writing while respecting and celebrating students’ own languages. Offering historical and pedagogical perspectives on language awareness and language diversity, the essays reveal the nationalism implicit in the concept of a “standard English,” advocate alternative training and teaching practices for instructors at all levels, and promote the respect and importance of the country’s diverse dialects, languages, and literatures. Contributors include Geneva Smitherman, Victor Villanueva, Elaine Richardson, Victoria Cliett, Arnetha F. Ball, Rashidah Jammi` Muhammad, Kim Brian Lovejoy, Gail Y. Okawa, Jan Swearingen, and Dave Pruett. The volume also includes a foreword by Suresh Canagarajah and a substantial bibliography of resources about bilingualism and language diversity.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Psychological Tests and Minorities Brenda Johnson Wright, Vivian R. Isenstein, 1977
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Articulate While Black H. Samy Alim, Geneva Smitherman, 2012-10-11 In Articulate While Black, two renowned scholars of Black Language address language and racial politics in the U.S. through an insightful examination of President Barack Obama's language use-and America's response to it.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: African Americans at Risk [2 volumes] Glenn L. Starks, 2015-06-22 With all of the progress African Americans have made, they still face many risks that threaten the entire race or place segments in jeopardy of survival. This work examines the widespread problem and suggests solutions. This two-volume set examines the issues and policies that put African Americans at risk in our culture today, utilizing the most recent research from scholars in the field to provide not only objective, encyclopedic information, but also varying viewpoints to encourage critical thinking. The entries comprehensively document how African Americans are treated differently, have more negative outcomes in the same situations than other races, and face risks due to issues inherent in their past or current social and economic conditions. Care is taken to note distinctions between subgroups and not further a blanket approach to the diverse members of this minority population. Intended for members of the African American community; societal scholars; students in the fields of health, social studies, and public policy; as well as general readers, this work will provide readers with a deeper understanding of key components affecting the lives of African Americans today.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Talkin and Testifyin Geneva Smitherman, 1986 In this book, Smitherman makes a substantial contribution to an understanding of Black English by setting it in the larger context of Black culture and life style. In her book, Geneva Smitherman makes a substantial contribution to an understanding of Black English by setting it in the larger context of Black culture and life style. In addition to defining Black English, by its distinctive structure and special lexicon, Smitherman argues that the Black dialect is set apart from traditional English by a rhetorical style which reflects its African origins. Smitherman also tackles the issue of Black and White attitudes toward Black English, particularly as they affect educational policy. Documenting her insights with quotes from notable Black historical, literary and popular figures, Smitherman makes clear that Black English is as legitimate a form of speech as British, American, or Australian English.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Sociocultural and Historical Contexts of African American English Sonja L. Lanehart, 2001-01-01 This volume, based on presentations at a 1998 state of the art conference at the University of Georgia, critically examines African American English (AAE) socially, culturally, historically, and educationally. It explores the relationship between AAE and other varieties of English (namely Southern White Vernaculars, Gullah, and Caribbean English creoles), language use in the African American community (e.g., Hip Hop, women's language, and directness), and application of our knowledge about AAE to issues in education (e.g., improving overall academic success). To its credit (since most books avoid the issue), the volume also seeks to define the term 'AAE' and challenge researchers to address the complexity of defining a language and its speakers. The volume collectively tries to help readers better understand language use in the African American community and how that understanding benefits all who value language variation and the knowledge such study brings to our society.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Encyclopedia of African American Education Kofi Lomotey, 2010 The Encyclopedia of African American Education covers educational institutions at every level, from preschool through graduate and professional training, with special attention to historically black and predominantly black colleges and universities. Other entries cover individuals, organizations, associations, and publications that have had a significant impact on African American education. The Encyclopedia also presents information on public policy affecting the education of African Americans, including both court decisions and legislation. It includes a discussion of curriculum, concepts, theories, and alternative models of education, and addresses the topics of gender and sexual orientation, religion, and the media. The Encyclopedia also includes a Reader's Guide, provided to help readers find entries on related topics. It classifies entries in sixteen categories: Alternative Educational Models Associations and Organizations Biographies Collegiate Education Curriculum Economics Gender Graduate and Professional Education Historically Black Colleges and Universities Legal Cases Pre-Collegiate Education Psychology and Human Development Public Policy Publications Religious Institutions Segregation/Desegregation. Some entries appear in more than one category. This two-volume reference work will be an invaluable resource not only for educators and students but for all readers who seek an understanding of African American education both historically and in the 21st century.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Ethnographies in Pan Pacific Research Robert E. Rinehart, elke emerald, Rangi Matamua, 2015-06-26 The book is about exciting ethnographic happenings in the vibrant and growing global interface which includes Australia, New Zealand, and some of the Asian geographical regions, as well as - more broadly - the global South. It explores ethnographic writing as culture(s) (re)produced, positionalities of authors, tensions between authors and others, multi-faceted groups, and as co-productions of these works. The contributors describe and discuss a variety of topical areas of interest, from Facebook to memory work, from children's sexuality to urban racism, from meanings of Indigenous knowledge to how communities can come together to retain what is valuable to themselves. The authors also manage to locate themselves and others (positionings) in the research hierarchies (tensions). This is a valuable guide to the effects of 21st-century ethnography on the qualitative research project.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: The SAGE Encyclopedia of African Cultural Heritage in North America Mwalimu J. Shujaa, Kenya J. Shujaa, 2015-07-13 The Encyclopedia of African Cultural Heritage in North America provides an accessible ready reference on the retention and continuity of African culture within the United States. Our conceptual framework holds, first, that culture is a form of self-knowledge and knowledge about self in the world as transmitted from one person to another. Second, that African people continuously create their own cultural history as they move through time and space. Third, that African descended people living outside of Africa are also contributors to and participate in the creation of African cultural history. Entries focus on illuminating Africanisms (cultural retentions traceable to an African origin) and cultural continuities (ongoing practices and processes through which African culture continues to be created and formed). Thus, the focus is more culturally specific and less concerned with the broader transatlantic demographic, political and geographic issues that are the focus of similar recent reference works. We also focus less on biographies of individuals and political and economic ties and more on processes and manifestations of African cultural heritage and continuity. FEATURES: A two-volume A-to-Z work, available in a choice of print or electronic formats 350 signed entries, each concluding with Cross-references and Further Readings 150 figures and photos Front matter consisting of an Introduction and a Reader’s Guide organizing entries thematically to more easily guide users to related entries Signed articles concluding with cross-references
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Race And Ethnic Conflict Fred L Pincus, Howard J Ehrlich, 2019-04-18 In the revised and updated second edition of this comprehensive book, the first anthology to integrate social-psychological literature on prejudice with sociological and historical investigations, contributors introduce readers to the key debates and principal writings on racial and ethnic conflict, representing conservative, liberal, and radical p
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Language in the USA Edward Finegan, John R. Rickford, 2004-06-24 This textbook provides a comprehensive survey of current language issues in the USA. Through a series of specially commissioned chapters by leading scholars, it explores the nature of language variation in the United States and its social, historical and political significance. The book is divided into three sections. Part I, American English, explores the history and distinctiveness of American English, and regional and social varieties. Part II, Other Language Varieties, looks at multilingualism and linguistic diversity. Part III, The Sociolinguistic Situation in the USA includes chapters on attitudes to language, language and education, Rap and Hip Hop, and adolescent language. It also explores issues such as the Ebonics controversy and the English Only movement. Clear, accessible and broad in its coverage, this book will be welcomed by students across the disciplines of English, Linguistics, Communication, American Studies and Popular Culture, as well as anyone interested more generally in language-related issues.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: The Lexicographer's Dilemma Jack Lynch, 2009-11-03 In its long history, the English language has had many lawmakers--those who have tried to regulate or otherwise organize the way we speak. Proper Words in Proper Places offers the first narrative history of these endeavors and shows clearly that what we now regard as the only correct way to speak emerged out of specific historical and social conditions over the course of centuries. As historian Jack Lynch has discovered, every rule has a human history and the characters peopling his narrative are as interesting for their obsession as for their erudition: the sharp-tongued satirist Jonathan Swift, who called for a government-sponsored academy to issue rulings on the language; the polymath Samuel Johnson, who put dictionaries on a new footing; the eccentric Hebraist Robert Lowth, the first modern to understand the workings of biblical poetry; the crackpot linguist John Horne Tooke, whose bizarre theories continue to baffle scholars; the chemist and theologian Joseph Priestly, whose political radicalism prompted violent riots; the ever-crotchety Noah Webster, who worked to Americanize the English language; the long-bearded lexicographer James A. H. Murray, who devoted his life to a survey of the entire language in the Oxford English Dictionary; and the playwright George Bernard Shaw, who worked without success to make English spelling rational. Grammatical rules or laws are not like the law of gravity, or even laws against murder and theft--they're more like rules of etiquette, made by fallible people and subject to change. Witty, smart, full of passion for the world's language, Proper Words in Proper Places will entertain and educate in equal measure.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Culpability of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Abdul Karim Bangura, 2016-12-07 This book contributes to the debate over the culpability of the Trans-Atlantic Slave from various disciplinary perspectives. The general thesis that undergirds the book is that by knowing who was predisposed to benefit the most from the trade and why, prompting them to initiate it, appropriate culpability can be assigned. This approach also allowed for a more in-depth analysis of the issue from many disciplines, making it the first of its kind. For the sake of cohesion and coherence, some of the major questions addressed by every chapter are quite similar, albeit authors were encouraged to fine-tune and add to these questions to meet their disciplinary requirements. By emphasizing the why in some of the questions, a qualitative explanatory case study approach was utilized. Both primary and secondary data sources were also used for each chapter to offer a cogent analysis and new information on the topic.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Encyclopedia of Diversity and Social Justice Sherwood Thompson, 2014-12-18 The Encyclopedia of Diversity and Social Justice contains over 300 entries alphabetically arranged for straightforward and convenient use by scholars and general readers alike. This reference is a comprehensive and systematic collection of designated entries that describe, in detail, important diversity and social justice themes. Thompson, assisted by a network of contributors and consultants, provides a centralized source and convenient way to discover the modern meaning, richness, and significance of diversity and social justice language, while offering a balanced viewpoint. This book reveals the unique nature of the language of diversity and social justice and makes the connection between how this language influences—negatively and positively—institutions and society. The terms have been carefully chosen in order to present the common usage of words and themes that dominate our daily conversations about these topics. Entries range from original research to synopses of existing scholarship. These discussions provide alternative views to popular doctrines and philosophical truths, and include many of the most popular terms used in current conversations on the topic, from ageism to xenophobia. This reference covers cultural, social, and political vernacular to offer an historical perspective as well. With contributions from experts in various fields, the entries consist of topics that represent a wider context among a diverse community of people from every walk of life.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Language Ideologies Roseann Duenas Gonzalez, Ildiko Melis, 2014-01-27 Addresses the complex & divisive issues at the heart of the debate over language diversity & the English Only movement in U.S. education. Offers a range of perspectives that teachers & literacy advocates can use to inform practice as well as policy.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: History of the Association of Black Psychologists Robert L. Williams, 2008 This book, The History of Black Psychologists: Profiles of Outstanding Black Psychologists is about the origins and development of African/Black psychology. It is essentially a sequel to Robert Guthrie's book Even the Rat Was White: a historical view of psychology (1976). Whereas Guthrie's book contains the history of early Black Psychologists (as Drs. Francis Cecil Sumner, Kenneth Clark, and Martin Jenkins to name a few) from 1920 to 1950, this book contains valuable information from the 60's through 2000 about why, where, and when the Association of Black Psychologists (ABPsi) was organized and developed. In addition, the book includes the autobiographical and biographical profiles of the lives, achievements and contributions of nearly 50 outstanding Black psychologists. There are many hard working, dedicated, and educated black men and women professionals whose success stories have not been told. Although their peers and colleagues respect many of these professionals, only a select few have been reported as outstanding. What is it, then, that qualifies one as being exceptional, above the ordinary and outstanding? It is hard to define in terms of human traits and accomplishments. What is easier is to provide examples rather than explanations of what it means to be outstanding. Such individuals who exemplify the definition of outstanding are many unknown Black Psychologists. This book will present some of these Scholar Activists. It is apparent that the majority of the Black psychologists made it against the odds. Many of these psychologists were born in southern states and had to migrate to northern states to receive a graduate education. For Black achievement is invariably a triumph over odds, a victory over struggle. In order to receive graduate education these psychologists report how they had to overcome the destructive effects of racism. Frequently, they were the only Black students in the graduate program. But they still made
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Readings in African American Language Nathaniel Norment, 2003 Readings in African American Language: Aspects, Features, and Perspectives, Volume 2 brings together scholars who research various theoretical approaches of the origin, characteristics, and development of African American Vernacular English (AAVE). The advantages of AAVE, codeswitching, dialect interference in writing, theories, and politics in AAVE, text analysis, and critical pedagogy all are discussed in this volume. Each article provides a different perspective attesting to the vitality and relevance of African American language as an academic, social, and cultural/linguistic entry in the field of language studies.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Groupthink in Science David M. Allen, James W. Howell, 2020-04-23 This book discusses one of the hottest topics in science today, i.e., the concern over certain problematic practices within the scientific enterprise. It raises questions and, more importantly, begins to supply answers about one particularly widespread phenomenon that sometimes impedes scientific progress: group processes. The book looks at many problematic manifestations of “going along with the crowd” that are adopted at the expense of truth. Closely related is the concept of pathological altruism or altruism bias—the tendency of scientists to bias their research in order to further the ideological or financial interests of an “in-group” at the expense of both the interest of other groups as well as the truth. The book challenges the widespread notion that science is invariably a benevolent, benign process. It defines the scientific enterprise, in practice as opposed to in theory, as a cultural system designed to produce factual knowledge. In effect, the book offers a broad and unique take on an important and incompletely explored subject: research and academic discourse that sacrifices scientific objectivity, and perhaps even the scientist’s own ethical standards, in order to further the goals of a particular group of researchers or reinforce their shared belief system or their own interests, whether economic, ideological, or bureaucratic.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Black Linguistics Arnetha Ball, Sinfree Makoni, Geneva Smitherman, Arthur K. Spears, Foreword by Ngugi wa Thiong'o, 2005-08-19 This groundbreaking collection re-orders the elitist and colonial elements of language studies by drawing together the multiple perspectives of Black language researchers.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Concise Oxford Companion to the English Language Thomas Burns McArthur, Roshan McArthur, 2005 From Sanskrit to Scouse, this book provides a single-volume source of information about the English language. The guide is intended both for reference and and for browsing. The international perspective takes in language from Cockney to Creole, Aboriginal English to Zummerzet, Estuary English to Caribbean English and a historical range from Beowulf to Ebonics, Chaucer to Chomsky, Latin to the World Wide Web. There is coverage of a wide range of topics from abbreviation to Zeugma, Shakespeare to split infinitive and substantial entries on key subjects such as African English, etymology, imperialism, pidgin, poetry, psycholinguistics and slang. Box features include pieces on place-names, the evolution of the alphabet, the story of OK, borrowings into English, and the Internet. Invaluable reference for English Language students, and fascinating reading for the general reader with an interest in language.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: African American, Creole, and Other Vernacular Englishes in Education John R. Rickford, 2013 This comprehensive bibliography provides more than 1600 references to publications from the past half century on education in relation to African American Vernacular English, English-based pidgins and creoles and other vernacula Englishes, with accompanying abstracts for many.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Encyclopedia of Diversity in Education James A. Banks, 2012-05-17 The diversity education literature, both nationally and internationally, is broad and diffuse. Consequently, there needs to be a systematic and logical way to organize and present the state of research for students and professionals. American citizens need to understand the dynamics of their increasingly diverse communities and institutions and the global world in which we live, work, and lead. With continually evolving information on diversity policies, practices, and programs, it is important to have one place where students, scholars, teachers, and policymakers can examine and explore research, policy, and practice issues and find answers to important questions about how diversity in U.S. education—enriched with theories, research and practices in other nations—are explained and communicated, and how they affect institutional change at both the K-12 and postsecondary levels. With about 700 signed entries with cross-references and recommended readings, the Encyclopedia of Diversity in Education (4 volumes, in both print and electronic formats) will present research and statistics, case studies, and best practices, policies, and programs at pre- and postsecondary levels. Diversity is a worldwide phenomenon, and while most of the entries in the Encyclopedia will focus on the United States, diversity issues and developments in nations around the world, including the United States, are intricately connected. Consequently, to illuminate the many aspects of diversity, this volume will contain entries from different nations in the world in order to illuminate the myriad aspects of diversity. From A-to-Z, this Encyclopedia will cover the full spectrum of diversity issues, including race, class, gender, religion, language, exceptionality, and the global dimensions of diversity as they relate to education. This four-volume reference work will be the definitive reference for diversity issues in education in the United States and the world.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Lorenzo Dow Turner Margaret Wade-Lewis, 2022-05-11 The first biography of the acclaimed African American linguist and author of Africanisms in the Gullah Dialect In this first book-length biography of the pioneering African American linguist and celebrated father of Gullah studies, Margaret Wade-Lewis examines the life of Lorenzo Dow Turner. A scholar whose work dramatically influenced the world of academia but whose personal story—until now—has remained an enigma, Turner (1890-1972) emerges from behind the shadow of his germinal 1949 study Africanisms in the Gullah Dialect as a man devoted to family, social responsibility, and intellectual contribution. Beginning with Turner's upbringing in North Carolina and Washington, D.C., Wade-Lewis describes the high expectations set by his family and his distinguished career as a professor of English, linguistics, and African studies. The story of Turner's studies in the Gullah islands, his research in Brazil, his fieldwork in Nigeria, and his teaching and research on Sierra Leone Krio for the Peace Corps add to his stature as a cultural pioneer and icon. Drawing on Turner's archived private and published papers and on extensive interviews with his widow and others, Wade-Lewis examines the scholar's struggle to secure funding for his research, his relations with Hans Kurath and the Linguistic Atlas Project, his capacity for establishing relationships with Gullah speakers, and his success in making Sea Island Creole a legitimate province of analysis. Here Wade-Lewis answers the question of how a soft-spoken professor could so profoundly influence the development of linguistics in the United States and the work of scholars—especially in Gullah and creole studies—who would follow him. Turner's widow, Lois Turner Williams, provides an introductory note and linguist Irma Aloyce Cunningham provides the foreword.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: The Workings of Language Rebecca S. Wheeler, 1999-09-30 The essays in this book help to make sense of the workings of language in our everyday world—on the personal, local, national, and international levels. The authors are all linguists, seeking to help readers free themselves of language prejudices, thus opening the way to better informed views on the function of language in society, a more balanced treatment in schools, and more linguistically-sound public policies. Defusing Chicken-Little prognostications about English, this volume suggests that dark claims about language are not to be taken at face value. Instead, these claims function as a signal: time to step back. Offering just such a time-out, eminent linguists explore the fuller picture underlying language in our society, examining prescriptivism, Black English, Ozark English, American Sign Language, English-Only, and Endangered Languages. After helping stomp out such linguistic fires, the linguists showcase the potent workings of language: world englishes, language and politics, media, prejudice, creativity, gender, and humor, thus opening the way to better informed views on the function of language in schools, and more linguistically sound public policies.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Black Pioneers in Communication Research Ronald L. Jackson II, Sonja M. Brown Givens, 2006-01-13 Black Pioneers in Communication Research is the only book in the field of communication that—through personal interviews—systematically explores the lives, careers, and profound conceptual contributions of the men and women who have helped shape the contours of humanistic and social scientific inquiry within communication studies and beyond.
  ebonics the true language of black folks: Language, Discourse and Power in African American Culture Marcyliena Morgan, 2002-07-04 African American language is central to the teaching of linguistics and language in the United States, and this book, in the series Studies in the Social and Cultural Foundations of Language, is aimed specifically at upper level undergraduates and graduates. It covers the entire field - grammar, speech, and verbal genres, and it also discusses the various historical strands that need to be identified in order to understand the development of African American English. The first section deals with the social and cultural history of the American South, the second with urban and northern black popular culture, and the third with policy issues. Morgan examines the language within the context of the changing and complex African American and general American speech communities, and their culture, politics, art and institutions. She also covers the current heated political and educational debates about the status of the African American dialect.
Ebonics (word) - Wikipedia
Ebonics (a portmanteau of the words ebony and phonics) is a term created in 1973 by a group of black scholars …

Ebonics | Meaning, Examples, Language, & Origin | Britannica
Apr 30, 2025 · Ebonics is a variety of American English spoken by a large portion of Black Americans. Many …

ebonics - Urban Dictionary
African American Vernacular English (AAVE), also called African American English, Black English, Black …

EBONICS Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster
The meaning of EBONICS is african american english.

African American Vernacular English - University of Hawaii …
African American Vernacular English (AAVE) is the variety formerly known as Black English Vernacular or …

Ebonics (word) - Wikipedia
Ebonics (a portmanteau of the words ebony and phonics) is a term created in 1973 by a group of black scholars who disapproved of the negative terms being used to describe their type of …

Ebonics | Meaning, Examples, Language, & Origin | Britannica
Apr 30, 2025 · Ebonics is a variety of American English spoken by a large portion of Black Americans. Many scholars hold that Ebonics, like several English creoles, developed from …

ebonics - Urban Dictionary
African American Vernacular English (AAVE), also called African American English, Black English, Black Vernacular, or Black English Vernacular (BEV), is a type variety (dialect, …

EBONICS Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster
The meaning of EBONICS is african american english.

African American Vernacular English - University of Hawaii System
African American Vernacular English (AAVE) is the variety formerly known as Black English Vernacular or Vernacular Black English among sociolinguists, and commonly called Ebonics …

Do You Speak American . Sea to Shining Sea . American ... - PBS
Ebonics is the antonym of Black English and is considered to be a language other than English (Smith 1997). Ebonics refers to language among all people of African descent throughout the …

Ebonics - Slang Meaning and Examples - FastSlang
Ebonics has its roots in the West African languages brought over by slaves during the transatlantic slave trade, and it developed into a distinct dialect in the United States due to …

A History of the Term ‘Ebonics’ - Linguistics Girl
Mar 15, 2023 · The term Ebonics has been criticized for reinforcing negative stereotypes about Black speech and perpetuating linguistic discrimination. In contrast, many view AAL as a more …

What Happened to Ebonics?. Turmoil in 1980s Oakland ... - Medium
Dec 15, 2023 · Ebonics, a term coined in 1973 by Dr. Robert Williams, combined the words ebony and phonics. In the 1970s and 80s, Ebonics and AAVE (African American Vernacular English) …

Ebonics - Wikipedia
Ebonics may refer to: African-American Vernacular English, a distinctive lect, or variety, of English spoken by African Americans, sometimes called Ebonics; Ebonics, originally referring to the …