regionalisms

Area-specific speech patterns

Regionalisms are words, phrases, or expressions characteristic of a particular geographic area.

Every region develops its own vocabulary—*soda* versus *pop* versus *coke*, *you all* versus *y'all* versus *youse*.

The term also covers regional pronunciations and grammatical patterns.

Linguists study regionalisms to map dialect boundaries and trace migration patterns.

linguistic

dialect

Regional language variety

provincialism · idiom · patois · slang · argot · accent · pronunciation · vocabulary · lexicon · usage

cultural

folk expressions

Colloquial traditional sayings

traditional phrases · heritage · identity · community · belonging · authenticity · nostalgia · homeland · roots · ancestry

geographic

Appalachian

Eastern U.S. mountain region

  • ScotsPeople of Edinburgh's nation
  • CajunLouisiana's French descendants
  • TexanSouthwest state resident

New England · Yorkshire · Aussie · Newfoundland · Geordie · Brummie · Boston · Brooklyn · Chicano · Indian English

preservation

documentation

Written proof or instructions

dying · revitalization · lexicography · fieldwork · oral history · linguistic atlas · survey · mapping · glossary · dictionary

Categories
Opposites
geographic scope of usage

regionalismsuniversalisms

Doctrines applying to everyone

common parlance

standardization status

regionalismsstandard language

Codified, official linguistic form

formal language · official language · Queen's English · BBC English

cultural specificity

regionalismsplain language

Easily understood communication

Family

regionalism, regionalist, regionalistic

Familiarity
Top 500,000
Profile
Used worldwide · Timeless · Abstract · Rated G