Up next in 10
Ebonics: The History They Never Taught You in School
0 views
Jun 6, 2025
Ebonics, or officially called African American Vernacular English, has a rich history. Subscribe to our channel so you don't miss any future videos! Check out the books we love and recommend in our Black Excellence Book Club: https://www.blackexcellence.com/store/ Some links are affiliate links, which means we earn a very tiny commission if you make a purchase. __________________________________________________________ Sharing interesting and noteworthy stories in Black culture. All content provided by Black Excellence Media, LLC is for entertainment purposes only. None of the information or advice provided is to replace professional advice. Website: https://blackexcellence.com
View Video Transcript
0:00
Do you speak black English or Ebonics,
0:02
also known as African-American
0:04
vernacular English, AAV ve? Or do you
0:07
speak what some people call proper
0:09
English? Or like me, every time you go
0:11
back to Chicago as a kid, do they say
0:13
you're whitewashed or you speak proper
0:16
English? In the cultural fabric of
0:18
America, language has always served as
0:20
both a marker of identity and a sight of
0:23
conflict. One such example is
0:25
Africanamean vernacular English. But the
0:27
more popular way to say that is referred
0:29
to as Ebonics. Often misunderstood,
0:33
miscatategorized, or outright mocked.
0:35
Ebonics is not merely a slang or
0:37
dialect. It's a fully developed
0:39
linguistic system with deep historical
0:42
roots. But do all black people speak
0:44
Ebonics? And how and why did this form
0:46
of English even develop in the first
0:48
place? Well, in this video, we're going
0:50
to talk about it. Hi, my name is Jared
0:51
and I talk about interesting stories and
0:53
trends in black culture. Because as you
0:55
guys all know, black culture is just
0:57
that interesting to me. If you share my
0:59
interest, hit the subscribe button and
1:01
let's deep dive into some interesting
1:03
black culture and history in every
1:05
episode. To understand Ebonics, one must
1:07
first acknowledge that language evolves
1:09
in context. Ebonics emerged as a result
1:12
of centuries of historical circumstances
1:15
that shaped the African-American
1:17
experience in the United States.
1:18
Enslaved Africans brought forcibly to
1:21
America from diverse language
1:22
backgrounds had to communicate not only
1:24
with English-speaking slaveholders, but
1:27
also with each other. The linguistic
1:29
fusion that occurred birthed a unique
1:31
form of English, one shaped by West
1:33
African linguistic patterns, the
1:35
conditions of slavery, and as
1:37
importantly, the type of English that
1:39
was spoken around the slaves. This is
1:42
the part that doesn't get talked about
1:43
enough that southern whites had and
1:46
still do have a way of speaking English
1:49
that's very similar to what is
1:50
considered Ebonics. Black people came to
1:53
the Americas speaking various languages
1:55
like Igbo, Euroba, Kongo, Mindi and many
1:59
many more. But on the plantations these
2:02
languages were suppressed. Communication
2:04
with slave holders, overseers, and among
2:07
enslaved people from different African
2:09
regions required a common tongue. The
2:12
language inevitably was English. But the
2:14
English that enslaved Africans
2:16
encountered was not the formal British
2:18
English of textbooks. It was the English
2:20
of rural southern whites, rich in
2:23
dialect full of regional idioms and
2:25
heavily inflicted by the Scott, Irish,
2:29
Anglo, and other European immigrant
2:31
influences that define the south. This
2:33
southern English was a key ingredient in
2:36
the development of what we now recognize
2:38
as Ebonics. In these plantation
2:41
environments, a creo and pigeon often
2:43
developed a simplified language that
2:45
drew vocabulary from English but
2:48
retained African grammatical patterns.
2:50
Over time, these pigeon became more
2:52
complex and stabilized into a creole
2:56
like language. In some regions like the
2:58
Sea Islands of South Carolina and
3:00
Georgia, Gulla developed a creole with
3:03
strong African influences that still
3:06
actually survives today. But in most of
3:08
the south, what emerged was a distinctly
3:10
African-American variety of English that
3:13
absorbs southern white speech patterns
3:15
while maintaining a unique African
3:17
identity. One of the clearest examples
3:19
of southern white influence is the
3:21
pronunciation. The southern draw
3:22
characterized by elongated vowels and a
3:25
distinctive intonation can also be heard
3:28
in ibonics. Another shared feature is
3:30
the use of double negatives, a
3:32
construction found in both southern
3:34
white and black speech. like I don't
3:37
know what you think this is. I ain't got
3:38
no money. While this structure exists in
3:40
many world languages, it's present in
3:43
both dialects suggests a shared
3:44
linguistic evolution rooted in the same
3:47
geographic and social environment.
3:49
Grammar also tells the story. The use of
3:51
done as an auxiliary verb like he done
3:54
left already and been to indicate remote
3:56
past. Example, she been married are
3:59
staples of Ebonics that also exist in
4:01
southern white vernaculars. These forms
4:03
reflect older English usage preserved in
4:06
southern speech and passed down through
4:09
generations. It's important to
4:10
understand that while southern white
4:12
English influenced Ebonics, the exchange
4:14
was not equal. The power imbalance of
4:17
slavery and segregation meant that
4:19
African-Americans had to learn and adapt
4:21
to the dominant group's language while
4:23
preserving their own linguistic heritage
4:25
as best as they could. Ibonics evolved
4:27
not as a broken or inferior language but
4:30
as a legitimate rulegoverned dialect
4:32
forged in the crucible of oppression and
4:35
resistance. Its grammar, pronunciation,
4:37
and vocabulary reflect creativity and
4:40
resilience even as it carries the marks
4:42
of forced cultural assimilation. When
4:45
millions of African-Ameans moved north
4:47
during the great migration, they took
4:49
Ebonics with them. Although it evolved
4:51
in its new environments, cities like
4:54
Chicago, Detroit, and Philadelphia, the
4:56
southern base remained. And I mean, if
4:58
you ever go there, you could definitely
5:00
hear it. New York has its own way of
5:01
speaking. So, I would love to do a video
5:03
on how, you know, they got to where they
5:05
are today. Even though, of course, you
5:07
can hear the southern influence in the
5:09
way that they speak. Also the term
5:10
Ebonics was coined in 1973 actually by
5:14
psychologist Robert Williams who
5:16
intended it to highlight the African
5:18
roots of the language spoken by
5:20
African-Americans. Ebonics combines
5:22
ebony and phonics reflecting both racial
5:25
and linguistic heritage. Although the
5:27
term gained widespread public attention
5:29
in the 1990s, actually 1996, when the
5:33
Oakland Unified School District proposed
5:35
recognizing Ebonics as a legitimate
5:38
language system in order to help
5:40
African-American students learn standard
5:42
English, it had long been the subject of
5:45
linguistic and educational research.
5:48
Critics of the Oakland resolution
5:50
misunderstood its intent, fueling a
5:52
media firestorm that framed Ebonics as
5:55
an improper or inferior language. Ask or
5:58
ask. Woo! I need all of you right now on
6:00
the count of three to say ask. On three.
6:03
1 2 3. Ask. Very good. Gerard McClendon
6:08
is giving these high schoolers at
6:10
Aquinus Academy in Palos Hills an
6:13
English lesson they've never never ever
6:16
had. The C sound comes at the end. The S
6:19
sound comes in the middle. But what do
6:21
people say? X. Yes. Again, it's the form
6:25
of a subculture there. A subculture uh
6:29
that just goes from one generation to
6:32
another and just passing on poor
6:34
language skills. Yet linguistic experts
6:37
noting that Ebonics, like any language
6:40
variety, has consistent grammar rules,
6:42
phonetic patterns, and vocabulary. Far
6:45
from being broken English, Ebonics is a
6:48
rulegoverned dialect spoken by millions
6:50
and millions of Americans. But not all
6:52
black people speak AAB or Ebonics. And
6:56
not everyone who speaks it is black.
6:58
Ebonics is a socioelect, meaning it is
7:00
more closely tied to the social and
7:02
cultural identity than a race alone.
7:05
Some African-Americans grow up speaking
7:07
standard English, as some would say, or
7:10
others regional dialects, all depending
7:12
on their community, family, and personal
7:15
identity. Conversely, non-black
7:17
individuals raised in predominantly
7:19
black communities may speak fluent
7:21
Ebonics. The idea that all
7:23
African-Americans speak the same way is,
7:25
of course, a crazy stereotype and one
7:28
that overlooks the complexity of black
7:30
identity. African-Ameans are not a
7:33
monolith. And this goes for everything
7:35
that we do. Like I said, we hail from
7:37
urban and rural communities from the
7:40
South, North, Midwest, and West, and
7:43
from immigrant backgrounds as well.
7:45
African-American speech is as diverse as
7:47
the community itself. Yet, Ebonics has
7:50
long been stigmatized in education,
7:53
employment, and media. Hey yo, fool. We
7:55
about to have some hardcore drama go
7:57
down right about now. That's right.
7:59
That's what I'm talking about. We get
8:01
ours.
8:03
Children who speak Ebonics at home may
8:06
be labeled as less intelligent or
8:08
uneducated by teachers unfamiliar with
8:11
linguistic diversity. Medium portrayals
8:14
often mock Ebonics, using it as a
8:16
shorthand for criminality, ignorance, or
8:19
comedy. Despite these challenges,
8:21
Ebonics has been a wellspring of
8:23
cultural innovation. From gospel to
8:25
jazz, from civil rights speeches to
8:27
hip-hop lyrics, Ebonics has shaped the
8:30
rhythms, cadence, and creativity of
8:33
American expression. First they make fun
8:35
of it, then they probably take it as
8:37
their own. Writers like Zoran Neil
8:39
Hursten and Langston Hughes infuse their
8:42
work with the patterns of black speech,
8:44
offering authentic portraits of
8:46
African-American life. Today, artists
8:48
like Kendrick Lamar and Issa Ray
8:51
continue that legacy using Ebonics to
8:53
tell stories that resonate across
8:55
cultural boundaries. There is also
8:57
growing recognition of the importance of
9:00
linguistic inclusion in education.
9:02
Culturally responsive teaching practices
9:04
now encourage educators to value student
9:07
home languages and dialects. The goal is
9:09
not to replace Ebonics with standard
9:11
English, but to help students become
9:13
more by dialectable, fluent in both
9:15
their home dialect and their dominant
9:17
standard. As a lot of you guys might
9:19
know, this is called code switching. I
9:21
love those videos of how black people
9:23
talk at home and then how they come to
9:26
work. A lot of us have to do this
9:27
already. Hey, brother. I'm going to be
9:29
real with you. We detectives and uh uh
9:31
we need to borrow a car real quick cuz
9:32
if we in the middle of a case, it's
9:33
emergency. I feel you. I do, brother. I
9:36
really do. So, you let me get a car?
9:37
no. I'm your brother. What? Were
9:39
you at a cookout, What? Mrs.
9:40
Weinstein, how you doing? Yeah, leave it
9:42
right there. I'll be right over. No,
9:44
that's how you gonna call a code switch.
9:45
Oh, you one of them cold switch
9:47
huh? Ultimately, African-Amean
9:49
vernacular English is more than just a
9:51
way of speaking. It's a living, evolving
9:53
expression of people's history,
9:56
struggle, creativity, and pride. It
9:58
carries the echoes of African languages,
10:01
the scars of enslavement, the vibrancy
10:03
of Harlem, the protest chance of the
10:06
civil rights era, and the innovation of
10:08
the digital age. As linguistic John
10:11
Rickford said, "Ebonics is not
10:12
deficient, it's just different, and in
10:15
its difference lies its power." Well,
10:17
that's it for this video. Don't forget
10:19
to like and subscribe and I'll catch you
10:22
guys on the next