California English is a dialect of the English language spoken in the U.S. state of California. The most populous of the United States, California is home to a highly diverse populace, which is reflected in the historical and continuing development of California English. As is the case of English spoken in any particular state, not all features are used by all speakers in the state, and not all features are restricted in use only to the state. However, there are some linguistic features which can be identified as either originally or predominantly Californian, or both. A dialect (from the Greek word διάλεκτος, dialektos) is a variety of a language characteristic of a particular group of the languages speakers. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Motto: (Out Of Many, One) (traditional) In God We Trust (1956 to date) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington D.C. Largest city New York City None at federal level (English de facto) Government Federal constitutional republic  - President George Walker Bush (R)  - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence from... Official language(s) English Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Largest metro area Greater Los Angeles Area  Ranked 3rd  - Total 158,302 sq mi (410,000 km²)  - Width 250 miles (400 km)  - Length 770 miles (1,240 km)  - % water 4. ...

History

English became spoken in the area now known as California on a wide scale beginning with a considerable influx of English-speaking European Americans during the California Gold Rush and after rapid growth from internal migration (from all parts of the United States, but particularly New England in earlier periods and later on, the Midwest) through the end of the 19th century and first half of the 20th century. The heavy internal migration from regions in the United States east of California laid the early groundwork for the varieties of English spoken in California today. European American is a term for an American of European descent, who are usually referred as White or Caucasian. ... The California Gold Rush (1848–1855) began on January 24, 1848, when gold was discovered at Sutters Mill. ... This article is about the region in the United States of America. ... The Midwest is a common name for a region of the United States of America. ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999...

Before World War I, the variety of speech types reflected the differing origins of these early inhabitants. At the time a distinctly southwestern drawl could be heard in Southern California, although the San Francisco area sounded more Midwestern.^{[citation needed]} When a collapse in commodity prices followed World War I, many bankrupted Midwestern farmers migrated to California, bringing speech characteristic of Nebraska, Ohio, Illinois, and Iowa; and this speech type has dominated to this day. Subsequently, incoming groups with differing speech, such as the speakers of Highland Southern during the 1930s, have been absorbed within a generation. “The Great War ” redirects here. ...

California's status as a relatively young state is significant in that it has not had centuries for regional patterns to emerge and grow (compared to, say, some East Coast or Southern dialects). Linguists who studied English as spoken in California before and in the period immediately after World War II tended to find few if any distinct patterns unique to the region ^[1]. However, several decades later, with a more settled population and continued immigration from all over the globe, a noteworthy set of emerging characteristics of California English had begun to attract notice by linguists of the late 20th century and on.

Phonology

As a variety of American English, California English is similar to most other forms of American speech in being a rhotic accent, which is historically a significant marker in differentiating different English varieties. The following chart represents the relative positions of the stressed monophthongs of the accent, based on nine speakers from southern California.^[2] Notable is the absence of /ɔ/, which has merged with /ɑ/ through the cot-caught merger, and the relatively open quality of /ɪ/ due to the California vowel shift discussed below. For other uses, see American English (disambiguation). ... English pronunciation is divided into two main accent groups, the rhotic and non-rhotic, depending on when the phoneme (the letter r) is pronounced. ... In linguistics, stress is the relative emphasis that may be given to certain syllables in a word. ... A monophthong (in Greek μονόφθογγος = single note) is a pure vowel sound, one whose articulation at both beginning and end is relatively fixed, and which does not glide up or down towards a new position of articulation; compare diphthong. ... // The father-bother merger is a merger of the Early Modern English vowels and that occurs in almost all varieties of North American English (exceptions are accents in northeastern New England (such as the Boston accent) and New York-New Jersey English. ...

Image File history File links California_English_vowel_chart. ...

There are several phonological processes which have been identified as being particular to California English. However, these shifts are by no means universal in Californian speech, and any single Californian's speech may only have some or none of the changes identified below. The shifts might also be found in the speech of people from areas outside of California. Phonology (Greek phonē = voice/sound and logos = word/speech), is a subfield of linguistics which studies the sound system of a specific language (or languages). ...

• Front vowels are raised before velar nasal [ŋ], so that the near-open front unrounded vowel /æ/ and the near-close near-front unrounded vowel /ɪ/ are raised to a close-mid front unrounded vowel [e] and a close front unrounded vowel [i] before [ŋ]. This change makes for minimal pairs such as king and keen, both having the same vowel [i], differing from king [kɪŋ] in other varieties of English. Similarly, a word like rang will often have the same vowel as rain in California English, not the same vowel as ran as in other varieties.
• The vowels in words such as Mary, marry, merry are merged to the open-mid front unrounded vowel [ɛ]
• Most speakers do not distinguish between the open-mid back rounded vowel [ɔ] and open back unrounded vowel [ɑ], characteristic of the cot-caught merger. A notable exception may be found within the city limits of San Francisco, whose native inhabitants' speech somewhat reflects a historical East-Coast heritage which has probably influenced the maintenance of the distinction between words such as caught and cot.
• According to phoneticians studying California English, traditionally diphthongal vowels such as [oʊ] as in boat and [eɪ], as in bait, have acquired qualities much closer to monophthongs in some speakers of California English. However, the continuing presence of slight offglides (if less salient than those of, say, British Received Pronunciation) and convention in IPA transcription for English account for continuing use of [oʊ] and [eɪ].
• The pin-pen merger is complete in Bakersfield, and speakers in Sacramento either perceive or produce the pairs /ɛn/ and /ɪn/ close to each other^[3].

One topic that has begun to receive much attention among scholars in recent years has been the emergence of a vowel shift unique to California. Much like other vowel shifts occurring in North America such as the Southern Vowel Shift, Northern Cities Vowel Shift, and the Canadian Shift the California Vowel Shift is noted for a systematic chain shift of several vowels. Vowels Near-close Close-mid Mid Open-mid Near-open Open Where symbols appear in pairs, the one to the right represents a rounded vowel. ... The velar nasal is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. ... Vowels Near-close Close-mid Mid Open-mid Near-open Open Where symbols appear in pairs, the one to the right represents a rounded vowel. ... Vowels See also: IPA, Consonants Near-close Close-mid Mid Open-mid Near-open Open Where symbols appear in pairs, the one to the right represents a rounded vowel. ... Vowels Near-close Close-mid Mid Open-mid Near-open Open Where symbols appear in pairs, the one to the right represents a rounded vowel. ... Vowels See also: IPA, Consonants Near-close Close-mid Mid Open-mid Near-open Open Where symbols appear in pairs, the one to the right represents a rounded vowel. ... In phonology, minimal pairs are pairs of words or phrases in a particular language, which differ in only one phone, phoneme, toneme or chroneme and have a distinct meaning. ... The English language has undergone a number of phonological changes before the historic phoneme . ... Phonemic differentiation is the phenomenon of a phoneme in a language splitting into two phonemes over time, a process known as a phonemic split. ... Vowels See also: IPA, Consonants Near‑close Close‑mid Mid Open‑mid Near‑open Open Where symbols appear in pairs, the one to the right represents a rounded vowel. ... Vowels Near-close Close-mid Mid Open-mid Near-open Open Where symbols appear in pairs, the one to the right represents a rounded vowel. ... Vowels See also: IPA, Consonants Near‑close Close‑mid Mid Open‑mid Near‑open Open Where symbols appear in pairs, the one to the right represents a rounded vowel. ... // Father-bother merger The father-bother merger is a merger of the Early Modern English vowels and that occurs in almost all varieties of North American English (exceptions are accents in Eastern New England (such as the Boston accent) and New York-New Jersey English. ... This page is a candidate for speedy deletion. ... Regional definitions vary from source to source. ... Phonetics (from the Greek word φωνή, phone meaning sound, voice) is the study of the sounds of human speech. ... In phonetics, a diphthong (also gliding vowel) (Greek δίφθογγος, diphthongos, literally with two sounds, or with two tones) is a monosyllabic vowel combination involving a quick but smooth movement from one vowel to another, often interpreted by listeners as a single vowel sound or phoneme. ... Note: This page contains IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode. ... A monophthong (in Greek μονόφθογγος = single note) is a pure vowel sound, one whose articulation at both beginning and end is relatively fixed, and which does not glide up or down towards a new position of articulation; compare diphthong. ... Note: This page or section contains IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode. ... Articles with similar titles include the NATO phonetic alphabet, which has also informally been called the “International Phonetic Alphabet”. For information on how to read IPA transcriptions of English words, see IPA chart for English. ... Transcription is the conversion into written, typewritten or printed form, of a spoken language source, such as the proceedings of a court hearing. ... // Weak vowel merger The weak vowel merger (or Lennon-Lenin merger) is a phonemic merger of (schwa) with unstressed (sometimes written as ) in certain dialects of English. ... Nickname: Location of Bakersfield, California Coordinates: , Country United States State California County Kern County Founded 1869 Government  - Mayor Harvey Hall Area  - City  131 sq mi (339. ... Sacramento redirects here. ... A vowel shift is a systematic change in the pronunciation of the vowel sounds of a language. ... // Southern American English as defined by the monophthongization of to before obstruents (Labov, Ash, and Boberg 2006:126). ... Three isoglosses identifying the NCVS. In the brown areas is more retracted than . ... A recently identified feature (1995) found among many Canadians is a chain shift known as the Canadian Shift. ... In the study of phonetic changes, a chain shift is a type of sound shift in which a group of sounds all change at about the same time, with some sounds taking the place of others. ... Note: This page contains IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode. ...

The Northern California vowel shift, based on a diagram at Penelope Eckert's webpage.

This image on the right illustrates the California vowel shift. The vowel space of the image is a cross-section (as if looking at the interior of a mouth from a side profile perspective); it is a rough approximation of the space in a human mouth where the tongue is located in articulating certain vowel sounds (the left is the front of the mouth closer to the teeth, the right side of the chart being the back of the mouth). As with other vowel shifts, several vowels may be seen moving in a chain shift around the mouth. As one vowel encroaches upon the space of another, the adjacent vowel in turn experiences a movement in order to maximize phonemic differentiation. Image File history File links California_vowel_shift. ... Image File history File links California_vowel_shift. ... This article, image, template or category should belong in one or more categories. ... Places of articulation (passive & active): 1. ... In the study of phonetic changes, a chain shift is a type of sound shift in which a group of sounds all change at about the same time, with some sounds taking the place of others. ... Phonemic differentiation is the phenomenon of a phoneme in a language splitting into two phonemes over time, a process known as a phonemic split. ...

Two phonemes, /ɪ/ and /æ/, have allophones that are fairly widely spread apart from each other: before /ŋ/, /ɪ/ is raised to [i] and, as mentioned above, may even be identified with the phoneme /i/. In other contexts, /ɪ/ has a fairly open pronunciation, as indicated in the vowel chart above. /æ/ is raised and diphthongized to [eə] or [ɪə] before nasal consonants (a shift reminiscent of, but more restricted than, non-phonemic æ-tensing in the Inland North); before /ŋ/ it may be identified with the phoneme /e/. Elsewhere /æ/ is lowered in the direction of [a]. The other parts of the chain shift are apparently context-free: /ʊ/ is moving towards [ʌ], /ʌ/ towards [ɛ], /ɛ/ toward [æ], /ɑ/ toward [ɔ], and the starting points of /uʊ/ and /oʊ/ toward /i/ and /e/ respectively. A nasal consonant is produced when the velum—that fleshy part of the palate near the back—is lowered, allowing air to escape freely through the nose. ... // Trap-bath split The trap-bath split is a vowel split that occurs mainly in southern varieties of English English (including Received Pronunciation), in the Boston accent, and in the Southern Hemisphere accents (Australian English, New Zealand English, South African English), by which the Early Modern English phoneme was lengthened...

Unlike some of the other vowel shifts, however, the California Vowel Shift is generally considered to be in earlier stages of development as compared to the more widespread Northern and Southern Vowel Shifts, although the new vowel characteristics of the California Vowel Shift are increasingly found among younger speakers. As with many vowel shifts, these significant changes occurring in the spoken language are rarely noticed by average speakers; imitation of peers and other sociolinguistic phenomena play a large part in determining the extent of the vowel shift in a particular speaker. For example, while some characteristics such as the close central rounded vowel [ʉ] or close back unrounded vowel [ɯ] for [u] are widespread in Californian speech, the same high degree of fronting for [oʊ] is common only within certain social groups. No matter the individual degree a speaker displays, the emergence of the California Vowel Shift and its spread among younger speakers point to a future form of California English which will have undoubtedly diverged significantly from other varieties. Sociolinguistics is the study of the effect of any and all aspects of society, including cultural norms, expectations, and context on the way language is used. ... Vowels Near-close Close-mid Mid Open-mid Near-open Open Where symbols appear in pairs, the one to the right represents a rounded vowel. ... The close back unrounded vowel is a type of vowel sound, used in some spoken languages. ...

Lexical characteristics

The popular image of a typical California speaker often conjures up images of the so-called Valley Girls popularized by the 1982 hit song by Frank Zappa and Moon Unit Zappa or "surfer-dude" speech made famous by movies such as Fast Times at Ridgemont High. While many phrases found in these extreme versions of California English of the 1980s may now be considered passé, certain words such as awesome and dude have remained popular in California and have spread to a national, even international, level. The use of the word like for numerous grammatical functions or as conversational "filler" has also remained popular in California English and is now found in many other varieties of English. This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... Frank Vincent Zappa[1] (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American composer, musician, and film director. ... Moon Unit Zappa (born September 28, 1967, in New York City) is the oldest child of late American rock star Frank Zappa and Gail Sloatman; she goes by the name Moon Zappa. ... “Ridgemont High School” redirects here. ... Look up dude in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Look up like in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... For the rules of English grammar, see English grammar and Disputes in English grammar. ... Speech disfluencies are parts of speech which are not generally recognized as purposeful or containing formal meaning, usually expressed as pauses such as uh or er, but also extending to repairs (He was wearing bla—uh, blue pants), and articulation problems such as stuttering. ...

A word that is used by many Northern California teenagers and younger adults is "hella" (from "hell of a lot of", alternatively, "hecka") to mean "many," "much," or "very".^[4] It can be used with countable and non-countable nouns. For example: "I haven't seen you for hella long"; or "There were hella people there"; or "That guitarist is hella good." The term is rarely used by those residing in Southern California; in some situations operates as a way for Southern Californians to identify Northern Californians, and it is often used as a derogatory stereotype when Northern Californians are parodied by Southern Californians. However, the term has gained more usage in that area, particularly with the release of the song "Hella Good" by the band No Doubt, which hails from Southern California. Hella Good is a single by rock band No Doubt, taken from the album Rock Steady. ... For other uses, see No Doubt (disambiguation). ...

California, like other Southwestern states, has borrowed many words from Spanish, especially for place-geographical names, food, and other cultural items reflecting the heritage of Latino Californians. High concentrations of various ethnic groups throughout the state have contributed to general familiarity with words describing (especially cultural) phenomena. For example, a high concentration of Asian Americans from various cultural backgrounds, especially in urban and suburban metropolitan areas in California, has led to the adoption of words like hapa (itself originally a Hawaiian borrowing of English "half"^[5]). A person who was hapa was either part European/Islander or part Asian/Islander. Today it refers to a person of mixed racial heritage—especially, but not limited to, half-Asian/half-European-Americans in common California usage) and FOB ("fresh off the boat", often a newly arrived Asian immigrant). Not surprisingly, the popularity of cultural food items such as Vietnamese phở and Taiwanese boba in many areas has led to the general adoption of such words amongst many speakers. The Southwest region of the United States is drier than the adjoining Midwest in weather; the population is less dense and, with strong Spanish-American and Native American components, more ethnically varied than neighboring areas. ... For the Brazilian pop singer, see Latino (singer). ... An Asian American is a person of Asian ancestry or origin who was born in or is an immigrant to the United States. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Fresh off the boat (often abbreviated as F.O.B., FOB, F.O.T.B., FOTB, fobbish, freshie,boat, or fobbie) is a slang phrase applied to people of foreign nationality who have arrived in a host nation as tourists, immigrants, students, or, most commonly, as work permit applicants. ... Typical beef phở (phở bò ) A chicken-based phở (phở gà) with basil leaves, hoisin sauce, and Sriracha hot sauce, before mixing. ... This article is about the history, geography, and people of the island known as Taiwan. ... Pearl milk tea typically found in Taiwan Bubble tea is a tea beverage that originated in Taiwan[1] in the 1980s. ...

Freeway nomenclature

This article or section may contain original research or unverified claims. Please improve the article by adding references. See the talk page for details. (September 2007)

Since the 1950s and 1960s, California culture (and thus its variety of English) has been significantly affected by "car culture" — that is, dependence on private automobile transportation and the effects thereof. Image File history File links Emblem-important. ...

One difference between California and most of the rest of the U.S. has been the way residents refer to highways, or freeways. The term freeway itself is not used in many areas outside California; for instance, in New England, the term highway is universally used. Where most Americans may refer to "I-80" for the east-west Interstate Highway leading from San Francisco to the suburbs of New York, or "I-15" for the north-south artery linking San Diego through Salt Lake City to the Canadian border, Californians are less likely to use the "I" or "interstate" designation in naming highways or freeways. Interstate 80 (Eastshore Freeway) in Berkeley, California: a typical American freeway (MUTCD definition) A freeway, also known as a highway, superhighway, autoroute, autobahn, autostrada, dual carriageway, expressway, Autosnelweg or motorway, depending on the country of discussion, is a type of road designed for safer high-speed operation of motor vehicles... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Interstate 80 (abbreviated I-80) is the second-longest Interstate Highway in the United States. ... Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Interstate 15 “I-15” redirects here. ...

• Northern California

Northern Californians will typically say "80", "101 (one oh one)" to refer to freeways. Some long-time San Francisco Bay Area residents and many traffic report broadcasts still refer to such highways by name and not number designation: "the Bayshore", for 101, or "the Nimitz" for I-880, which was named for Admiral Chester Nimitz, a prominent World War II hero with strong local ties). California State Route 1 is called "Highway 1" or simply "One" (ie "take One down the coast").

• Southern California

In Southern California, freeways are called either by name or by route number, but with the addition of the article "the", such as "the 405" or "the 605" (as contrasted with typical Northern California usage, which omits the article). A typical example would be "Take the 101 west, get off at Sepulveda, and make a left to get to Ventura", meaning drive west along Highway 101 (Ventura Freeway), exit at the Sepulveda Blvd offramp, make a left turn and continue until you reach Ventura Blvd. Similarly, California State Route 1, is called "PCH" (for Pacific Coast Highway) in Southern California, occasionally pronounced as "peach" but much more often as "PCH".

The sequential numbering of freeway exits, common in most parts of the United States, has only recently been applied in California and initially appearing only in more populous areas. Thus, virtually all Californians refer to exits by name rather than number (e.g., "take the Grand Avenue exit" rather than "take exit 21.") U.S. Highway 101, or U.S. Route 101 (often just U.S. 101), is a north-south highway that is aligned along the Pacific West Coast of the United States. ... Interstate 880 (abbreviated I-880) is an interstate highway in the San Francisco Bay Area. ... Chester William Nimitz (February 24, 1885 – February 20, 1966) was the Commander in Chief of Pacific Forces for the United States and Allied forces during World War II. He was the United States leading authority on submarines, as well as Chief of the Navys Bureau of Navigation in 1939. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... State Route 1, often called Highway 1, is a state highway that runs along a large length of the Pacific coast of the U.S. State of California. ... State Route 1, often called Highway 1, is a state highway that runs along a large length of the Pacific coast of the U.S. State of California. ...

In a related vein, when referring to the Bay Area Rapid Transit, or "BART" high-speed subway system located in the San Francisco Bay Area, Northern Californians will typically refer to "BART" (e.g., "I'm taking BART this afternoon," whereas Southern Californians will refer to the Los Angeles Metro subway system as "the Metro." A westbound BART train with aerodynamic design A car in downtown San Francisco. ... San Francisco redirects here. ...

Place names

Northern California

Another common Northern California expression is the way in which residents refer to San Francisco as simply "The City" if they live in nearby suburbs (such as San Mateo) or cities like Oakland or Danville, or even as far south as San Jose. Similarly, the city of South San Francisco is sometimes referred to as "South City", especially in the pages of the San Francisco Examiner. The terms "San Fran" and especially "Frisco" are almost never used by residents, except in jest, much as "The Big Apple" is not typically used by native New Yorkers. However, although well-known newspaper columnist Herb Caen once castigated the use of the term "Frisco", he later recanted, and the use of that term continues. ^[6]. Still, the term "Frisco" continues to be viewed by many northern Californians as being vaguely derogatory. When used, it is typically employed with a sense of knowing irony. Northern California, sometimes referred to as NorCal, is the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. ... This page is a candidate for speedy deletion. ... San Mateo is a city in San Mateo County, California, in the San Francisco Bay Area. ... “Oakland” redirects here. ... The Clock Tower square in the heart of downtown The north side of the downtown The southern end of downtown proper Town Meeting Hall Danville is an incorporated town located in a part of Contra Costa County, California called the San Ramon Valley, United States. ... For other uses, see San José. Nickname: Location of San Jose within Santa Clara County, California. ... A Genentech-sponsored sign declaring South San Francisco to be the Birthplace of Biotechnology. ... The San Francisco Examiner is a daily newspaper in San Francisco, California, where it has been published continuously since the late 19th Century. ... New York, New York and NYC redirect here. ... Herbert Eugene Caen (April 3, 1916 – February 1, 1997) was a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist working in San Francisco. ...

Northern California and Southern California are sometime abbreviated as "NorCal" and "SoCal", respectively. Some Southern Californians refer to Northern California as "NorCal," to emphasize perceived feelings of Southern California's superiority. In exchange, "SoCal" is often used derisively in some areas of Northern California, ("Oh, he's from SoCal, no wonder he's such an airhead.") especially in conversations about water usage or Los Angeles (sometimes referred to as "La La Land").

The metro region often referred to as the Bay Area includes San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Alameda, Marin, Contra Costa, Sonoma, Solano and Napa counties.

Furthermore, the San Francisco Bay Area is occasionally referred to as "the Bay" and more commonly "The Bay Area" in mainstream culture as well as hip hop culture. The San Francisco Bay Area is sub-divided into regions such as:

• The "North Bay" (Marin County, the southern half of Napa County and the southern half of Sonoma County with the northern border of the North Bay ending just north of Santa Rosa). The northern portions of Sonoma and Napa counties are typically considered to be Wine Country, a separate region. Some cities in central areas of these counties are considered to be members of both communities.
• The "South Bay" (Santa Clara County—San Jose, Milpitas, and surrounding cities, sometimes extending as far south as Gilroy)
• The "East Bay" (Alameda and Contra Costa counties—Oakland, Berkeley, Walnut Creek, Fremont, Hayward, Martinez, Pittsburg, etc.)
• "The Peninsula" (San Mateo county, including San Mateo, Redwood City, Menlo Park, et cetera, but excluding San Francisco).
• "The City" (San Francisco).

Although the region is known to the U.S. Census Bureau as the San Jose Metro Area, residents continue to use the historic "San Francisco Bay Area." San Francisco is in the foreground in this picture looking north. ... Marin County (pronounced muh-RIN) is a county located in the North San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco. ... Napa Valley redirects here. ... Sonoma County is on the northwest coast of California, one of the northernmost parts of the greater San Francisco Bay Area, U.S. Its population at the 2000 census was 458,614. ... Location in Sonoma County and the state of California Country State County Sonoma Area  - City 40. ... Vineyard on Sonoma Mountain with background of the Mayacamas Mountains Wine Country is a region of Northern California in the United States that is known world-wide[1] as a premium wine-growing region since the mid-19th century. ... The South Bay is a subregion of the San Francisco Bay Area, California, United States and is roughly synonymous with Silicon Valley and the Santa Clara Valley. ... Santa Clara County is a county located in the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California. ... For other uses, see San José. Nickname: Location of San Jose within Santa Clara County, California. ... Location in Santa Clara County and the state of California Country State County Santa Clara Government  - Mayor Jose Joe Esteves Area  - City 13. ... Gilroy (IPA: ) is the southmost city in Santa Clara County, California, USA. According to the United States 2000 Census, the city population was 41,464. ... A satellite image of the East Bay The East Bay is a subregion of the San Francisco Bay Area, California, United States and is comprised of Alameda and Contra Costa Counties. ... Official website: http://www. ... Contra Costa County is a suburban county in the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California. ... “Oakland” redirects here. ... Berkeley is a city on the east shore of San Francisco Bay in northern California, in the United States. ... Walnut Creek is a largely affluent suburb several miles east of Oakland in Contra Costa County, California, USA, in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. ... For the unincorporated community in Yolo County, California, see Fremont, Yolo County, California. ... Hayward is a city located in the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area in Alameda County. ... John Muirs home. ... For other places with the same name, see Pittsburg. ... USGS Satellite photo of the San Francisco Bay Area. ... San Mateo County is a county located in the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California. ... San Mateo is a city in San Mateo County, California, in the San Francisco Bay Area. ... Redwood City is a suburb located on the San Francisco Peninsula in the San Francisco Bay Area of California. ... Menlo Park is a city in San Mateo County, California in the United States of America. ... San Francisco redirects here. ... San Francisco redirects here. ...

Northern Californians refer to Sacramento, the state capital, as "Sac", "Sactown", "Sacra" (by the Chicano community), and various other nicknames.

Residents of the San Fernando Valley (the section of Los Angeles to the north of the Santa Monica mountains), often use the phrase "over the hill" to refer to Los Angeles, where the San Fernando Valley itself is generally called "the Valley". Similarly, Bay Area and Sacramento residents refer to going "up the hill" in to the neighboring mountains to Lake Tahoe or Reno, Nevada and "over the hill" for crossing the Santa Cruz Mountains. In the Sacramento area, "the Valley" refers to the Central Valley. Additionally, residents of the San Francisco Bay Area will sometimes refer to the area of the Santa Clara Valley and surrounding cities as "the Valley" and sometimes as, the more famous term, "Silicon Valley". Lake Tahoe is a large freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada mountains of the United States. ... “Reno” redirects here. ... The Santa Cruz Mountains, part of the Pacific Coast Ranges, are a mountain range in central California, United States. ... For the Nintendo 64 game, see Space Station Silicon Valley. ...

Southern California

In Southern California, the "South Bay" refers to the area between Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and Los Angeles Harbor. This area is usually downwind from the southern part of Santa Monica Bay. The South Bay and surrounding regions in Southern California The South Bay is a region in the southwest peninsula of Los Angeles County, California, United States. ... Runway layout at LAX LAX redirects here. ... Santa Monica Bay is an arm of the Pacific Ocean in southern California. ...

A common complaint from residents of Southern California's Orange County is the reference to the area as "the OC" instead of just as "OC" proper. ^{[citation needed]} Attributed to the Fox television show The O.C., the inclusion of "the" in the county's title is mainly perceived to by those from outside of the area rather than natives. Still, the influence of the show on local youth culture also seems to have made the phrasing more acceptable among residents of the area. Cities in Orange County Orange County is a county in Southern California, United States. ... The Fox Broadcasting Company, usually referred to as just Fox (the company itself prefers the capitalized version FOX), is a television network in the United States. ... The O.C. is an American teen drama television series that originally aired on FOX in the United States from August 5, 2003, to February 22, 2007, running a total of four seasons. ...

California sociolects and Chicano English

As a very diverse state (there is no ethnic majority in California), several significant sociolects associated with particular cultural or ethnic groups are found within California. Current and historical Mexican immigration to California has resulted in a unique form of English spoken by Chicanos in the state, with Chicano English receiving the most attention in linguistic research into sociolects in California English. Chicano English is a native variety of English marked by a historical and current Spanish substratum (whether or not the speakers in question speak Spanish). Researchers have paid particular attention to the use of "barely," representing "had just recently" which may or may not be in analogy with Spanish apenas ^[1]. Recently, research has shown California speakers of Chicano English have been participating in some aspects of the California Vowel Shift typically found in the speech of younger whites and Asian Americans (amongst other groups), but some of the characteristics of the shift are altered for speakers of Chicano English. ^[1] Some hold that some Chicano English influences may be found in the speech of non-Chicano English speakers in California, such as the presence of "yes" and "no" as tag questions (traditionally not found in most varieties of English) or the /ɪŋ/ → /in/ process mentioned above ^[1], but such will probably not be settled without further research into the area. It should also be noted that Chicano English is by no means spoken by all Chicanos in California and the features noted as Chicano English form more of a continuum amongst speakers (some may have more Chicano English features than others) than a monolithic entity spoken the same by everyone. More work also remains to be done on various other English sociolects as spoken in California. US states and districts in which non-Hispanic whites are a plurality/minority. ... In linguistics, a sociolect is the language spoken by a social group, social class or subculture. ... For other uses, see Chicano (disambiguation). ... Chicano English is a dialect of American English used by Chicanos (persons of Mexican descent in America). ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... European American is a term for an American of European descent, who are usually referred as White or Caucasian. ... An Asian American is a person of Asian ancestry or origin who was born in or is an immigrant to the United States. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

See also

• North American Regional Phonology
• Boontling
• Chain shift
• Chicano English
• Hyphy
• Sociolect
• Sociolinguistics
• Spanglish
• Valspeak
• Vowel Shift

In many ways, compared to British English, American English is conservative in its phonology. ... Boontling is a folk language spoken only in Boonville, California. ... In the study of phonetic changes, a chain shift is a type of sound shift in which a group of sounds all change at about the same time, with some sounds taking the place of others. ... Chicano English is a dialect of American English used by Chicanos (persons of Mexican descent in America). ... Hyphy (pronounced HI-fee; IPA: ) is a style of music and dance primarily associated with the Bay Area hip hop culture. ... In linguistics, a sociolect is the language spoken by a social group, social class or subculture. ... Sociolinguistics is the study of the effect of any and all aspects of society, including cultural norms, expectations, and context on the way language is used. ... It has been suggested that Hispanicisms_in_English be merged into this article or section. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... A vowel shift is a systematic change in the pronunciation of the vowel sounds of a language. ...

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} Walt Wolfram and Ben Ward, editors (2006). American Voices: How Dialects Differ from Coast to Coast. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing, 140, 234-236. ISBN 978-1-4051-2108-8. 
2. ^ Ladefoged, Peter (1999). "American English." In Handbook of the International Phonetic Association, 41–44, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-63751-1.
3. ^ Labov, William, Sharon Ash, and Charles Boberg (2006). The Atlas of North American English. Berlin: Mouton-de Gruyter, 68. ISBN 3-11-016746-8. 
4. ^ http://ling.ucsc.edu/Jorge/waksler.html
5. ^ Mary Kawena Pukui, Samuel H. Elbert & Esther T. Mookini, The Pocket Hawaiian Dictionary (Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1983)
6. ^ "Frisco, that once-verboten term for the city by the bay, is making a comeback among the young and hip. Herb Caen is spinning at warp speed.", San Francisco Chronicle, October 14, 2003. 

Peter Nielsen Ladefoged (September 17, 1925 – January 24, 2006) was a British-American linguist phonetician who traveled the world to document the distinct sounds of endangered languages and pioneered ways to collect and study data. ... Listen to this article · (info) This audio file was created from an article revision dated 2006-02-04, and does not reflect subsequent edits to the article. ... is the 287th day of the year (288th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Further reading

• Vowels and Consonants: An Introduction to the Sounds of Languages. Peter Ladefoged, 2003. Blackwell Publishing.
• Language in Society: An Introduction to Sociolinguistics. Suzanne Romaine, 2000. Oxford University Press.
• How We Talk: American Regional English Today. Allan Metcalf, 2000. Houghton Mifflin.

External links

• Do you speak American? PBS
• Penelope Eckert, Vowel Shifts
• Phonological Atlas of North America
• A hella new specifier Paper by Rachelle Waksler discussing usage of hella
• [http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=hella Urban Dictionary entry on "hella"
• Word Up: Social Meanings of Slang in California Youth Culture by Mary Bucholtz Ph.D., UC Santa Barbara department of Linguistics Includes discussion of "hella"