Evolution of Language
Oct. 27th, 2009 06:37 pmI'm a language geek. Always have been, though I've never studied linguistics in any official capacity. I love the fact that Icelandic has Irish loan-words and that "sauna" is the only Finnish loan-word in the English language and we all pronounce it wrong.
I'm not a traditionalist though, the thing I love about language is that it is constantly evolving. It's true, some accents/dialects I like more than others...some changes I like and some I don't...but over all, I know that languages are living things and all living things ever do is change.
Most recently though, I've discovered my love for the new contraction: "Imma"
...or "I'mma" or however you want to write it. Popularized most recently by Kanye West - unwittingly. I've started noticing it more in things I read...and I've also noticed that even I occassionally say it. Usually my own speech is a bit antiquicated in comparison to North American standard English (I still use "shall" in everyday speech), but then again, I've always loved contractions.
I just love that the four words "I am going to" have been whittled down to four letters slurred together.
It comes close to my own personally favorite of "I'd've" which I use instead of saying "I would have" in sentences like, "I'd've done it, if you'd've reminded me!" ...see, it even has a nice little partner in "you'd've" (or "you'da", as I most often pronounce it)..."I'mma" doesn't have that.
Anyway...this post is pointless. I just felt like saying that I like "Imma"
P.S. Hehehe...I love this moodtheme image.
I'm not a traditionalist though, the thing I love about language is that it is constantly evolving. It's true, some accents/dialects I like more than others...some changes I like and some I don't...but over all, I know that languages are living things and all living things ever do is change.
Most recently though, I've discovered my love for the new contraction: "Imma"
...or "I'mma" or however you want to write it. Popularized most recently by Kanye West - unwittingly. I've started noticing it more in things I read...and I've also noticed that even I occassionally say it. Usually my own speech is a bit antiquicated in comparison to North American standard English (I still use "shall" in everyday speech), but then again, I've always loved contractions.
I just love that the four words "I am going to" have been whittled down to four letters slurred together.
It comes close to my own personally favorite of "I'd've" which I use instead of saying "I would have" in sentences like, "I'd've done it, if you'd've reminded me!" ...see, it even has a nice little partner in "you'd've" (or "you'da", as I most often pronounce it)..."I'mma" doesn't have that.
Anyway...this post is pointless. I just felt like saying that I like "Imma"
P.S. Hehehe...I love this moodtheme image.