Black Vernacular English
Black Vernacular English from Virginia
Black Vernacular English, a dialect at times used by as many as 80 to 90 percent of African Americans and long identified by whites as substandard English, is in fact a different and unique form of American English. Black Vernacular English (BVE), or Black English, is fundamentally a spoken language derived from the slaves and still remarkably consistent throughout African American culture. Because of the roots and many unique aspects of Black Vernacular English, it qualifies as a unique form of American English just as other regional dialects, such as Southern English or Yankee English.
Black English is remarkably similar in structure across many geographic boundaries in the United States. Spoken BVE in Florida is virtually identical to spoken BVE in Washington State. This lends credence to the argument pointing to a common origin for the language. However, where is that location? Many linguists and scholars point to African tribal language for the origins of Black English, proposing that some of the sentence structure and verb conjugations are similar to those used by tribes in Western Africa or to Gullah, as spoken in the West Indies and Caribbean nations. However, Dr. Walter E. Williams, syndicated columnist …show more content…
Given the remarkable consistency of spoken BVE across Black America, this provides further evidence that BVE sprang from common roots. The propensity to use this rule time and again is possibly the largest single reason for the perception of Black English as lazy or substandard. Though research proves Black English is rooted in a dialect spoken by educated slave owners in 18th century Virginia, it may mistakenly be the single largest barrier to effective communication across White and Black racial
Black Vernacular English, a dialect at times used by as many as 80 to 90 percent of African Americans and long identified by whites as substandard English, is in fact a different and unique form of American English. Black Vernacular English (BVE), or Black English, is fundamentally a spoken language derived from the slaves and still remarkably consistent throughout African American culture. Because of the roots and many unique aspects of Black Vernacular English, it qualifies as a unique form of American English just as other regional dialects, such as Southern English or Yankee English.
Black English is remarkably similar in structure across many geographic boundaries in the United States. Spoken BVE in Florida is virtually identical to spoken BVE in Washington State. This lends credence to the argument pointing to a common origin for the language. However, where is that location? Many linguists and scholars point to African tribal language for the origins of Black English, proposing that some of the sentence structure and verb conjugations are similar to those used by tribes in Western Africa or to Gullah, as spoken in the West Indies and Caribbean nations. However, Dr. Walter E. Williams, syndicated columnist …show more content…
Given the remarkable consistency of spoken BVE across Black America, this provides further evidence that BVE sprang from common roots. The propensity to use this rule time and again is possibly the largest single reason for the perception of Black English as lazy or substandard. Though research proves Black English is rooted in a dialect spoken by educated slave owners in 18th century Virginia, it may mistakenly be the single largest barrier to effective communication across White and Black racial