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an educational thread on aave:
*DISCLAIMER:*
i apologize sincerely if the information in this thread is inaccurate. i did all of this research on my own time in order to have a better understanding of bve. i stand firmly with blm and those involved in it and i stand for the rights of the oppressed.
- aurora
i apologize sincerely if the information in this thread is inaccurate. i did all of this research on my own time in order to have a better understanding of bve. i stand firmly with blm and those involved in it and i stand for the rights of the oppressed.
- aurora
what is aave?
AAVE is an acronym for African American Vernacular English. Also known as AAE, BE, & BVE, it is the variety of English natively spoken, particularly in urban communities, by most working- and middle-class African Americans and some Black Canadians.
AAVE is an acronym for African American Vernacular English. Also known as AAE, BE, & BVE, it is the variety of English natively spoken, particularly in urban communities, by most working- and middle-class African Americans and some Black Canadians.
Having its own unique grammatical, vocabulary and accent features, African-American Vernacular English is employed by working- and middle-class African Americans as the more informal and casual end of a sociolinguistic continuum;
on the formal end of this continuum, middle-class African-Americans switch to more standard English grammar and vocabulary, usually while retaining elements of the nonstandard accent
it is emphatically not bad English. It is a full-fledged dialect of English, just like, say, British English. It is entirely rule-bound -- meaning it has a very clear grammar which can be (and has been) described in great detail. It is not simply 'ungrammatical'.
where does it come from?
AAVE was born in the American South, and shares many features with Southern American English. However, it was born out of the horrifically ugly history of slavery in the United States.
AAVE was born in the American South, and shares many features with Southern American English. However, it was born out of the horrifically ugly history of slavery in the United States.
People from different cultures and language cultures were torn from their homelands and sold into chattel slavery. Slaves in the US were systematically segregated from speakers of their own languages.
We have a long cultural history of assuming that whatever black people in America do is defective. Couple this with what seems to be a natural predilection toward thinking that however other people talk is wrong, and you've got a recipe for social and linguistic stigma.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with AAVE, but it is stigmatized for social and historical reasons, related to race, socioeconomic class, and prestige.
aave around the world:
Certain grammatical features seem to be universally used in AAVE, however there is regional variation in pronunciation. There are at least ten distinctive accents in AAE.
Certain grammatical features seem to be universally used in AAVE, however there is regional variation in pronunciation. There are at least ten distinctive accents in AAE.
AAVE is a dialect of English like any other, but suffers extreme stigma due to the history of race in America.
Who can use AAVE?
Those who were enslaved invented their own separate version of English to speak to each other forming unity, identity and communication without interference from white enslavers.
Those who were enslaved invented their own separate version of English to speak to each other forming unity, identity and communication without interference from white enslavers.
When BVE is used by non-Black people in verbal dialogue, and on social media, it erases this origin, while commodifying parts of Black culture.
when Black people use BVE, they may be denied jobs, access to institutions of higher education, and/or otherwise judged as speaking in an “uneducated” way.
The end result is that Black people regularly have to self-police their use of BVE in order to survive, while non-Black people can toggle back and forth freely without having to worry about the social or economic consequences.
BVE is also used by many non-Black members of the LGBQ+ community, and is often overwritten as “gay slang.” However, many terms link back to the foundation of drag, which found its inspiration within the Black community of New York City.
Terms like “spilling tea,” “yas queen,” “throwing shade,” or “voguing” were first used in the NYC drag scene, specifically in Black ballroom culture, but were later introduced to mainstream media through shows like Ru Paul’s Drag Race, Pose, and Queer Eye.
When non-Black people use BVE it can feed into culture appropriation; a culture that continues to take from Black people.
Non-Black people use BVE or other methods of Black cultural expression like a costume, wearing it when it benefits them & taking it off before retreating back to privilege.
examples of bve:
