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Documentary by NC State linguist
to be shown on public TV
Hoi toiders. Cherokee and Lumbee Indians. City folk. Mountain dwellers.
From the Outer Banks to the Smoky Mountains, the people of North Carolina are unique, and so are the languages they speak. A new documentary developed by a prominent NC State linguist examines the state’s diverse dialects and reveals how communities across the state are preserving their heritage through language.
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Photo courtesy of Neal Hutcheson |
In "Voices of North Carolina," Roy Parsons of Ocracoke Island says
he has been accused of talking funny because he didn't talk like
others. "Well, they didn't talk like I did either," he says. |
“Voices of North Carolina” will be broadcast statewide on North Carolina public television on Thursday, Jan. 6, at 10 p.m. The hour-long documentary was created by Neal Hutcheson under the direction of Dr. Walt Wolfram, William C. Friday Distinguished Professor of English at NC State. The video is narrated by Bill Friday, president emeritus of the University of North Carolina System.
“Voices” spotlights different regional and ethnic dialects across North Carolina, including the Cherokee language, Outer Banks brogue, Lumbee English and African-American English. The documentary also features vignettes on the unique dialects of the state’s mountain and city communities, and it highlights the state’s growing Spanish-speaking population.
“The most interesting thing about dialects is the way in which they reflect a culture,” Wolfram says. “You could probably travel throughout the entire Western part of the United States and not find dialect differences as distinct as you get within North Carolina.”
“Voices of North Carolina” takes viewers into living rooms, front porches, schools, workplaces and gathering halls across the state, where people from all walks of life tell the stories of their unique heritage and language. Music is also central to the documentary and is as diverse as the dialects. Selections range from banjo pickin’ to gospel to rap.
“We break the mold in documentary style,” Wolfram says. “We don’t function as experts, and we don’t serve as tour guides. We let people tell their stories.”
The project was funded by a $74,000 grant from the National Science Foundation and with support from the North Carolina Language and Life Project. Wolfram’s ultimate goal is to use material from the documentary to produce educational books and curriculum for use in North Carolina’s public schools.
Posted December 17, 2004
All Rights Reserved
