An Open Letter To Yankees Regarding Use of the Word "Y'all"

Dear Northern People (and yes, we really do call you "Yankees" behind your back, but we mean it in the nicest way possible),

It would appear that many of you are beginning to desire to add the word "y'all" to your vocabulary.  I do not blame you.  It is an excellent word, rich in culture, and full of practical application.  And we Southerners are gracious (MY STARS, we are gracious).  We will share this word with you happily, because we feel should not be discriminated against just because you did not have the good sense to be born in God's Country.

So by all means, take our word "y'all" and use it with pride.  You are just as welcome to it as you can be.  But please, please, use it properly.  An improper "y'all" use is just a slap in the face of all we hold dear, and we cannot bear it.  Here is what you need to know:

1.  "Y'all" is never, ever, ever, EVER singular.  It must refer to a group.  If you refer to one person as y'all, then, I'm sorry, but we can hear your Yankee-ness loud and clear.

2.  Even if you have a thick New York accent, you must attempt to say "y'all" with a southern accent.  "Y'all" spoken with a northern accent just does not work.  Go ahead, throw yourself into it: YA-A-A-AWL.  Please pronounce every one of those A's.

3.  You may hear your Southern friends say "all y'all".  This is perfectly acceptable for native Southerners.  If you are a transplant, tread carefully.  In order to pull off "all y'all", you have to have some heritage behind you.

4.  Conversely, do NOT use "y'all guys."  It is just wrong.  And when you leave the room we will laugh at you, but we will be sure to tack on a "bless his heart" at the end.

5.  Let us discuss the spelling.  "Y'all" is a contraction of "you" and "all".  Therefore, the apostrophe MUST go in the place of the "ou".  It is "y'all".  Not "ya'll".

6.  Be prepared.  If you adopt our fine word and go back home to your northern friends and family, they will give you great grief for sounding like a hillbilly.  Bear up, my friend--it is a burden we Southerners have borne for years.  Be comforted that your new word brings with it the brilliant heritage of Faulkner and O'Connor.  And also cheese grits.

Comments

[warillever]

Too funny.

I am all Yankee (well, as much as a Red Sox fan can be, but I find myself using y'all in type all the time. English has been lacking something since we lost that thou/you distinction.

[Marissa @ By Grace Alone]

I knew I had lived in Indiana too long when I started saying "you guys" instead of y'all. I'm happy to be back in Arkansas and speaking properly again.
Thanks for clarifying the spelling issue--that is such a pet peeve of mine when people get it wrong! :)

[Headless Mom]

Many might think I'm not from the south but my heritage is and I always use y'all properly, thankyouverymuch. Southern by heritage and proud!

[Tonggu Momma]

I must confess that I no longer speak with a southern accent, but I did grow up in the south!!! Plus, I have a long-standing southern heritage as well -- my grandma is from a holler in Tennessee. If that's not The South, then I don't know what is.

[Veronica Mitchell]

Ya know, just south of here some folks say y'uns. As in "you ones".

Freaky, huh?

[Katie]

I was born and raised in Indiana, so I grew up saying "you guys." I have spent 5 out of the last ten years living in the south though (Alabama and Kentucky ((I know, some southerners don't count KY as the south, but we Hoosiers sure do!))) and I am friends with countless Texans, so I find myself saying "y'all" a LOT!

My hubby learned in seminary that even the ancient Greeks had a "y'all" as part of their vocabulary. :)

[Anissa@Hope4Peyton]

What if you're a northerner transplanted in the south...that's not really the south because most of the people who live here ARE from the north originally? Am I still allowed to use y'all? Or do I need to go with you's.

[Liz C.]

Check out the bottom of my post here

http://lovingmom2boys.blogspot.com/2008/10/not-me-monday.html

you are discussing one of my favorite words!!

[erin]

Bless you for mentioning number 5. It seems like very few people can spell that correctly. The apostrophe in general has fallen on hard times, if you ask me.

Now, if you can just get everyone to realize that "alot" is NOT a word, the world will be a much more enlightened place.

[Adrienne]

How come a southerner (from NC) told me that:

y'all was singular

all y'all was plural

??????

[Jeana]

Okay, on the all y'all, I have to say really? I have never heard that one used, except by a Yankee who said "all of y'all" and I made fun of him. I said, "The all is included in the y'all. We may be hicks but we're not redundant."

[Heather]

Ya'll are too funny! LMBO! :)

I am from the north but my state has a southern accent - it's weird for sure. But I love the word y'all. ;)

[chrissy]

Thank you for clarifying the proper place for the punctuation mark. That always bugs me.

I say "all y'all" all the time. But I'm from Georgia so it's okay.

[Jeana]

Also. Never say "y'all" in England. They do not understand the word. Don't ask me how I know.

[Natalie]

I'm a born and raised Oklahoma girl. I do not say y'all. I've never been one to say it. My mom thought it was tacky, as did her mother.

I've tried to say it, but it just sounds weird coming out of my mouth.

Oh well. I've not said it for 38 years. Won't hurt me to not say it for another 38. :)

Thanks for clarifying this, though. When I hear it used incorrectly, it bugs.

[Jenn]

Love this! My brother lives in Manhattan and hates when I use the word Y'all in public!! Of course, I do it anyway. You can take the girl out of the South, but you can't take the South out of the girl. Even and especially on vacation. Y'all know! I also think THANKS needs to be properly pronounced THAA-AANKS.

[melanie dawn]

THANK YOU for clarifying the spelling of y'all! And that it cannot be singular...I throw things at my tv when "Southerners" use it that way. And how hard is it to speak with a Southern accent without sounding like a moron? We do it every day! :) Love your blog!!

[boomama]

I would go so far as to say that if someone is going to throw down the "all y'all" gauntlet, then he or she had better be prepared to answer the following five questions:

1) What is a mamaw?
2) How's your mama and 'em?
3) Can you hum the fight song of at least three SEC schools?
4) Can you use the phrase "fixin' to" correctly in a sentence, and if so, would you provide an example?
5) What's your recipe for sweet tea?

Just sayin'.

Y'all.

[Sarah@Life in the Parsonage]

Too funny!

I'm a full blown Yankee, and I was just telling my Southern friend, from Arkansas, that in real life, I never say y'all, I say you guys...but when blogging, I type "ya'll" ALL the time. I have NO IDEA why. :)

I'll try to spell it correctly from now on though ;)

[Kristin]

What about Californians saying "you all" instead of "you guys." it's slowly seeping into my vocabulary. It's not the full "y'all" yet. But I do now say, "grilling," instead of "barbequeing," and "keeping," instead of "babysitting."

[Lisa @ Stop and Smell the Chocolates]

I'm in California, so we just say "dude" (kidding - sort of).

We don't use "y'all" here, but I am getting influenced and have almost used it many times on my blog - kind of the same way that I would start using an accent if I was in the South for a while.

[Minnesotamom]

From a Northerner who occasionally tosses out this word, I have great respect for those southerners who can not only use it properly but PUNCTUATE it properly. Thank you, thank you for point #5.

[onemotherslove]

Giving you a great big pat on the back for that one! ; ) Now if they'd all oblige...

[Donna @ Thirsty?]

I really feel like part of your community and I was wondering if you would extend that invitation to those of us in Australia who have joined you on this blogging journey?

I would consider trading my citizenship for the permission to use the phrase.

:) Donna

[Kris @ Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers]

Oh, never, ever let it be said that Shannon of Rock in my Dryer fame is afraid to tackle the hot-button topics on her blog. Never, I say!

Thank you, thank you, thank you for this! The whole misplaced apostrophe thing is on my top ten list for worst pet peeves.

I'm sorry. Was that a little too much enthusiasm for a post on the usage of "y'all"? It's the Southern Girl coming out in me. ;-)

[Melanie]

I am from Indiana also. I say "you guys" so everyone knows that I am a Texas transplant. Sorry, but I can't bring myself to say y'all and I definitely am NEVER fixin to do anything and I never have doubts and think to myself, I might coulda done that instead! LOL

[dieMutti]

Hmmm... I really appreciate the lesson on correct spelling. If I see one more "ya'll" I'll have to go out and beat up y'all. :)

I am a recent transplant to the Lone Star State and have to tell you, I hear the locals using "y'all" in a singular fashion on a regular basis. Or maybe I just think they're using it in the singular, when really they're using it in plural - being polite and actually referring to all my family and friends not in the near vicinity... Who knows? Maybe they are just transplants too, masquerading as locals. It happens.

[Roxy]

LOL, proud yankee here. I have to say this is the best post I've read all day! I especially love #4. Thanks for sharing!

[Steffj89]

ROFL....I'm in fits of giggles here after reading the post AND the comments(particularly BooMama's). My kids are well on their way to the SEC songs I think. OK so I exaggerate they can't do any more than call the HOGS but heck they are only 4 and 5 y'all.
Steff

[Cyndi]

Great post. First off, far be it from me to correct a Southern authority the caliber of BooMama, but I feel the need to clarify the pronunciation of Mammanem.

Second, Franklin Graham (Billy Graham's son and a NC native) preached at our church last Sunday and said that his Mama would have jerked a knot in him if he'd missed worship. My husband, a native Yankee, looked at me astonished and said he thought that my family had made up, "Boy, I'll jerk a knot in you if...[insert offense to be avoided]." Bless his heart.

[The Roost]

That is Too funny! Love the field guide to Ya'll :)

[Melanie]

Yes, Shannon. Please help these poor people.

Bless their cold, unsweetened tea hearts.

;>)

[Bubba's Sis]

Do we have to let the Yankees use our y'all? Really? Can we still laugh at them?

Oh wait, where's my Southern hospitality? I'm sorry, y'all. Forgive my manners. Can I get you some sweet tea? I'm fixin' to make some, just the way my MawMaw used to.

[Catherine]

I love that word! We've lived in Wisconsin for the last 11 years, but my husband and I refuse to give up such a useful word! Great post!

[Jane]

This is great! I am a Yankee...regretfully. After attending my first Southern wedding this weekend with ***TWO***cakes, I know I will not make this mistake again in my next life. No, I will come back under the Mason Dixon line. LOL Anyway, the all y'all confused me because my husband was trained in the army that if you say "Y'all" you might not get all your troops to come. You need to say "All Y'all" for a large group. Any clarification?

[Penny Raine]

Shannon, I just love you! Now we can use y'all in our everyday blog talk and know that it is now politically correct. Not that it ever stopped me before. And you're right we do call them Yankees, if they aren't from here, no matter where they are from. But we love em. And yes we do live in hollers here in TN. Y'all should try it, my house is cooler than yours in the summer and we don't have AC. But we do have sweet tea. Come and see me sometime. Now I am fixin to go to bed. Night.

blessings, Penny Raine
http://pennyraine.com/blog

[Penny Raine]

Oh one more thing. Y'all is biblical. The translators just spelled it wrong they said you all. :)

you are great Shannon!

blessings, Penny Raine
http://pennyraine.com/blog

[Kristen Schiffman]

As a New Yorker, I love you Southerners...but the word y'all scares me half to death! lol. I won't be borrowing it but I love listening to you guys use it.

: ))

[Roxanne Kristina]

Here's the deal. We feel left out. It's not our fault y'all decided to move out west. Why? Was it really the gold? What was wrong with the East? What was wrong with the mid west. Nothing. Yet the further y'all continued west, the further we became from y'all. So it's really not our fault. Furthermore, the further folks traveled west, it seems to me the precious value of butter, whole milk, fried foods, etc., got replaced with soy milk, whole grains, and tofu. WHAT? This is not cool people. Again, not our fault. Yet we in the west get targeted for the misuse of the clever, efficent and whitty word, "y'all", when in reality our brain cells daily drown in caffine which cancels out the Pacific air, health food and outdoorsisms, leaving us all confused, left to crave y'all's y'alls, if ya know what I mean.

:0)

Roxanne from the west.

[Cordy]

The boy I'm kinda sorta dating right now is from Georgia. His accent is ADORABLE.

Everytime I'm around him I start speaking with an accent. I can't help it. It's that whole thing where people who are musical pick up accents without meaning to. His sister thinks I'm making fun of him, but I honestly can't help it.

And I do keep saying y'all. But I say it all drawly and proper like. :>

[southern]

We just had our supper group over a few weeks ago and one of the couples is a transplant from St Louis. She went on and on about how southerners talk and pretty much was cutting us down for saying y'all and fixing to do something. She did all but say out loud that she thought that because we use a word like y'all we have no education and are illiterate. I just smiled and tried to be gracious. There are southerners who do not speak properly, outside of having an accent, but where I grew up people spoke well and were not dumb. She then asked me outright if I was offended if a child did not say, "Yes, maam" and said she didn't like it. I told her that, yes, it does sound rude and disrespectful to me. I don't expect it from adults, but when I am teaching a class at church they say it or I remind them to say it. I am trying to love and get along with her, but, whew, I feel like it is an uphill climb because she is so anti-southern.

[Lainie@ Mishmash Maggie]

Okay so I've been using "y'all" since I was a little girl.

I'm Southern alright...Southern Californian that moved to Minnesota (pronounce that long O y'all) and now live in Oregon (Orygun).

After reading this post I had to think about why I say y'all? My parents didn't and still don't. No other relatives or neighbors said it. Actually I grew up in the ghetto and I definitely don't remember any of the Bloods or the Cryps saying "y'all."

So where did I get it?

And please know, I use it correctly.

It hit me. I was a latch-key kid. I came home from school and watched TV.

I picked it up from the Beverly Hillbillies!!!

I actually thought Jethro was cute!

(I did not just type that)

And, oh, AND I kinda wanted to be a little like Ellie May when I grew up except smart like Jane Hathaway.

I can't believe I still remember this stuff.

Y'all need to be careful what you let your kids watch on TV. It could really warp 'em.

[Jenny]

I think I said "y'all" in a comment to BooMama last week - I'm in Indiana too, so I hope I used it right! I've heard "all y'all" plenty before - we have extended family in Arkansas and Georgia. I've even heard "all y'alls" before!

[mimi2six]

I think y'all is one of the most convenient words in the English language. Through the years I've been around several international students in exchange programs in our small town.......almost without exception they left the U.S. with y'all in their vocabulary!

[Kelly]

Thank you for my part of the favor, but after four years in North Carolina, I still can't bring myself to even THINKING about saying it. It would stick to the roof of my mouth like peanut butter. It still irks me, though, that people spell it wrong.
I have learned to make proper Southern tea (where I come from, if you ask for tea, you get a teacup full of the hot stuff) and fry chicken. So I guess I'm not completely lost. :-D

[Leanne]

Love y'all. It's a great word, but we say "youse" (pronouced yooze) in Northern Ireland. Or in certain circumstances we say "all youse".

We also say "uns", but not "y'uns". Just "these'uns", those'uns", "them'uns". You get the idea.

[Melissa]

Ha-ha!!
I loved reading this since I JUST used y'all in a comment earlier! But me being the lazy on didnt use proper puncuation...oops!
All the same, I loved your post! :)
~Melissa
http://mylifemystory.typepad.com

[Sarah @ Short Stop]

CRACKING UP at BooMama's comment!

I have used the word y'all for most of my life - I grew up in the hills of West Virginia. I use it regularly in speech, but you and BooMama have freed me get all bloggy with it, too. I'm currently transplanted in the Midwest - people look at me very strangely when I ask - "Y'all don't have sweet tea?? Mercy."

:)

[Yew Nork Babe]

Youse....that's what us New Yorkers say.

[Jennifer R.]

Thanks for throwing in #5. I have seen good Southerners misplace that apostrophe and it drives me nuts... Bless their hearts. ;)

[Ottermom]

I'm a native Texan. We use the word y'all all the time, living in NE Oklahoma we still hear it correctly from the Okies. I also use the word fixin' - that's the word that gets me strange looks. Both are proper Texasspeak, by the way. Along with several other words that most northerners wouldn't understand, including my husband's yankee stepmom.

[Corey]

I am from the south and say all y'all also. To the reference to "all y'alls" above; that's the possesive form, of course!

[Janna]

Thank you, thank you for #5. I have seen more people spell "y'all" as "ya'll", including my SOUTHERN sister (who is also a teacher - huh?). I will be passing your post along to my less souther-en friends (I am originally from Alabama and live in NC, I can add the extra syllable).

Keep up the good work educating our friends to the North!

[Staci at Writing and Living]

I'm a Midwesterner, and I will abide by your rules for y'all. But Southerners have GOT to accept that "you guys" is gender neutral. If one more Southerner tries to correct me on that, I am going to start writing "y'all" as "ya'll" just to drive you guys crazy.

:)

[Jennifer, Snapshot]

I am from Texas, but I am raising Yankee children. We always have to tell my four-year-old not to say "see-rup," because everyone knows it's "sur-up," and that is a sure fire Yankee signal.

My ten-year-old daughter has her own affectations, but she has the proper pronunciations of syrup and pecan down, so she'll do.

However, Kyle tried to say y'all recently (I don't know why -- I think it was a new word he was trying out), but he couldn't get it. He said, "yull", "yull." Oh, it's sad.

[chocolatechic]

Giggle....

Having lived in the South for 9 years, then to move back North....you are treated like a hillbilly, but I love it.

All y'all.

[Karen]

Thank you, oh thank you for covering the proper use of the apostrophe in y'all. That might be a pet peeve of mine.

[Superchikk]

Amen, sister!

[Robyn (3girlsmom)]

Amen and amen.

And holla on #5. Yes.

[Kim @ My Little Corner of History]

Thank you for enlightening the world to the correct spelling of "y'all." When I see it written the other way, I question the Southern upbringing of the poor misguided soul.

And dieMuttie, as a lifelong Texan I can assure you that your friends were asking about you, your family, your friends, your pets, and the little old lady that sits in the back pew of your church. :)

[Gabreial]

"Conversely, do NOT use "y'all guys." - This cracked me up!

Y'all come back now, Ya Here? It just has that familiar ring to it doesn't it.

Have a great day, thanks for making me laugh!

[Tara]

Native Northerner here. I use y'all correctly and often. And, just to add to your amusement, last week at dinner my three year old announced, "happy fall, y'all!" I guess he's a y'all user as well! And remembered the giveaway festival from last year!

[Lisa@take90west]

Living up here is 'you guys' country, I get extremely strange looks when I throw out a y'all in casual conversation, but my 10 years spent living in the South have made a permanent change to my vocabulary!

I do keep the use of the word fixin' to the confines of my own home though!

[rrmama]

Love it, love it, love it. Being from the south is such a blessing! We have all the great sayings...y'all and fixin' to! My family in New York loves it when they hear me talk and say just those two little words.

[T with Honey]

Someone taught me long ago to be myself, that even on my blog I should use my own voice. Plus, those are just too many rules for this lady. I'll leave "y'all" to the true Southerners and stick to stealing your recipes.

[Michele]

I'm a yankee. Born and bred in Southern California. However, through a set of rather strange familial issues, I was with my southern grandmother for most weekends growing up. I am teased Mercilessly for my flagrant use of y'all. Correctly used, mind you. P.S. - You'll never find better homemade cherry pie, coleslaw, and fried chicken then my grandmother, may she rest in peace.

[Renee]

I have to say that the apostrophe placement is a matter of where you are in the southern geography...I've been a southern girl for my whole life and have always spelled it ya'll. To see ya'll spelled any other way seems foreign to me...

[Queen of My Domain]

Oh this post just made my morning. There is nothing I like more than poking fun at Yankees and their lack of all things Southern. I do this while trying to educate them to our superior ways. ;)

From the first mornin' y'all to the last night y'all I embrace my southern heritage and all it entails. Now I'm fixin' to go get me some more coffee and sit down a spell.

Love your post this morning and hope all y'all have a great day!

[Brenda]

Very funny! I am from California but am surrounded by southerners and its tempting to say y'all. . but the "bless his little heart" always throws me into hysterics. Its just funny the way they (you?) say it.

[Lori L.]

As a Southerner, I am totally fascinated by 'youse' used by you Northerners. It is almost as illustrious as y'all, however, as y'all is a perfect conjugation, what is 'youse' a conjugation of? You is? Hmm...

[Pastormac's Ann]

Your post and the comments that follow are totally hilarious! Thanks for clearing this up Shannon.

[Shannon]

Cracking up over number one and the one about not saying guys after it. So true!!!! We really can spot an import from a mile away. And we call everyone a Yankee from Virginia on up, lol.

[Sarah at themommylogues]

I am so moved. I am a Minnesotan through and through, but all my life I think I've been a misplaced Southerner. Nothing beats sweet tea, and I'd eat my own fist in BBQ sauce. I've been dying trying to incorporate y'all into my vocab, but it sticks out like a sore thumb. I posted about this very fact in July:
http://themommylogues.blogspot.com/2008/07/im-discouraged-yall.html

[sandy]

Well, being an Oregon girl I just can't relate to "y'all" LOL! Always love coming to your site, Shannon!

[Jennifer]

I lived in GA for a few years growing up and even though I didn't really develop much of an accent I've never been able to shake the "y'all" thing. Its just a perfect word..what else do you say in it's place? "you guys"? "folks"? "you people"?

My husband hates that I say "y'all". He says it is grammatically incorrect because the word "you" is plural...but no one ever says "you" to refer to a group of people so I think he's full of crap.

But I just go make him some sweet tea and all is forgiven. ;-)

[Dusty]

lol! I am a proud Yankee, but married a VERY country Southern boy, so y'all has made it's way into my vocabulary. lol. My hubby and his family even use "y'uns" as a previous commenter said.

[sarah]

I picked up y'all after going to college in the panhandle of Florida and still use it, despite the fact that I now live in Minnesota, where they have a whole different way of talking.

[Mandy]

Oh mercy. I was born and raised in KY... y'all was my first word. Kidding, but it was close.

I love Boomama's comment too! All southerners know "Fixin" can be used as a noun OR verb.

[Danielle Bean]

I've always envied the y'all but would never feel right using it. "You guys" it is for this Yankee.

[Desi]

Woo, that's right! so many people have fought me about that apostrophe! As if I dunno what I'm talkin' about! Crazy Yanks. ^_^ <3

[K Storm]

Thank you for #5. I posted on that sometime a couple of years ago. I even saw it misspelled on a Southern Belle tshirt. Southern Belles should know their rules of punctuation!

[Steph at the Red Clay Diaries]

I'm a California native, but I've been in Georgia for 11 years. I have to say that I love "y'all."

(I love y'all, too, but we're talkin about grammar right now.)

(If you got that, you get to share the Grammar Geek award with me.)

Also love:
Sweet Tea (and how the opposite is "Unsweet" not unsweetened. Say THAT in CA and be prepared for some funny looks.)
"I don't know if I'm goin to the Scarecrow Contest tomorrow, but I might could."
"Honey, could you mash the button for the 4th floor for me?"
"Y'all need a buggy?" (overheard at the Piggly Wiggly)

Finally, love:
The fact that all three of my kids have the cutest Southern accents.

[Sandy Toes]

I am a Yankee HOWEVER my husband is a true southerner so I mix his southern words with my yankee words...I would drive you crazy!

My mother-in-law says bless his heart...ALL the time!
-Sandy Toes

[Becky]

Thank y'all. :)
Sincerely, A Mountain Girl.

[laska]

I use y'all for a small group, all y'all for a larger group. I tried really hard to lose my accent in high school when we moved from TN to AZ and everyone called me Crystal Gayle, and I'll never forget the comment my husband made to me when we were in TX on our way to GA- "I thought you were making fun of that gas station attendant you were talking to, until you got in the car just now and kept speaking in that accent". I think it scares him a little that my kids think "dad" is a two syllable word, lol.

[wanda]

That is classic FUNNY!!

I remember growing up (I'm from south Florida) and when winter hit....the yankees took over our area. We weren't excited to see them come (they seem to drive differently than we crazy southerners!).

But now.......girlfriend lives in Indiana and I can't call them yankees without thinking I'm being mean.

Ya'll........is sacred!
So is.....fixin'! As in, I'm fixin to come over there now!
Oh....and yes ma'am and no ma'am! It's rude not to use those manners!

[Kathy C.]

Oh I love it!!! Being a born and bred Texan gal y'all is part of my heritage. I love the sweet sound of it coming out of my mouth, lol. Sadly, it has been lost since I've lived in Florida for so long - maybe I need to chat on the phone more with my Texan friends and get back to my roots, LOL. :)

[Shannon]

oh. my. word.! y'all are too funny!
From the commentary to all those wonderful comments!
Thanks for the chuckle!
from a true GRITS (Girl Raised in the South) girl.

And as for sweet tea, if it caint git up and walk away on its own- it's not sweet enough.....

and what about the y'nt to?

[rachel]

thanks for saying what needed to be said! I tried for years to hide my "y'all"'s, but it just doesn't happen. Glad to be back in Arkansas, where y'all is used frequently and well : )

[Leanne from Canada]

I suppose we are more a product of our environment than we realize!! Up here in B.C. I don't even realize that I say "eh"...until it's pointed out to me. I could swear I never use it. What can a girl do eh? I'm more than willing to share though...nothing territorial here folks. Y'all have a great day eh!!!

[Renee]

this post was great! I love your blog! I am from Cali and say you guys even when talking to a room full of ladies.... my husband is from the south and will always say thoes are girls...lol ... I have lived in the south now for 7 yrs and I thought I would pick up on Y'all but you guys is stuck with me for life I guess.... when I moved to the south I found alot of sayings I had to ask "huh" to ... My husband says the bottom fell out over here...Meaning it rained really hard... I had a lady call me and ask if I collected "what-nots" aka"nick-knacks" I could go on forever! I love living in the south!

[Sandi]

My husband's Mother and Grandmother would say you'ens!!! They also called a cookware "Pot" a "stewer" but they pronounced it "Stirrer"! They also put a r in the word "Wash"!! He is from a place where there are more gravel roads than paved and I could walk 2 blocks and be at school or a 7 11 store!!! But we are like Peas and Carrots!!!

[kr]

WOW, thank you so much! #5 is my all time pet peeve... when it's spelled wrong I know it's not a southerner that wrote it! I am a true Texan, born and raised here and I thank you for this post! Bless your heart!
kris

[Christy]

Passing this along to my family and friends. And by "passing" I mean sending the FULL LINK, not copy and pasting.

Too Funny.

[Renee]

Love this post.

[Amy @ MomsToolbox]

Fantastic!
My dear, sweet parents, who did not have the privilege of growing up in the South, have chided my y'alls (and an occasional drawl) for years. I just feel so absolutely fortunate that they got me to Texas at just the right time in my development so that I can use the word properly. And I cringe when I see it misspelled or misused. Thanks for upholding the high standards of this gem for us all.

[The Girl Next Door]

OH this is good! I grew up a damned Yankee saying "you guys" which ticked off the females in my world. then I moved south and discovered no one - except maybe Yankees so who cares - gets upset by y'all.

Love it.

[Kerry-Colored With Memories]

thanks for hitting on #5...it is a huge pet peeve of mine when people spell it ya'll!

[jen]

I grew up saying "youse" but my college friends ridiculed it out of me. Funny though I haven't heard it in a long time.

[MM]

LOVE this post!