Ebonics

In the 90’s, some academics started a movement to study the language that part of the U.S. African American population speaks, which is somewhat “different” than English taught in schools. This style was given a name: Ebonics.

The language of the blacks, or Ebonics, is also known as African-American Vernacular English, a language variant that characterizes an important part of the U.S. black population and to present different features of accepted, “correct” English. This variation is mainly associated with the groups of blacks who have been most marginalized for different reasons such as education, where they live or their profession, as well as more humble strata, though it must be kept in mind that all speakers of African American English are not black, although most, and not all, use it.

Some are clear differences in pronunciation:

Omission of final consonants in words like “past” (pas) and “hand” (han).

Pronunciation of “th” as “t” in words like “bath” (bat) or “f” (baf).

Pronunciation of the vowel in words like “my” and “ride” and “ah” (mah, rahd).

Deletion of “b”, “d” or “g” at the beginning of auxiliary verbs such as “do” and “gonna”, “Ah ‘on know” instead of “I do not know” or “amma do it” instead of “I’m going to do it.”

In the grammar, for example, speakers form sentences without “is/are” as in the phrase “John trippin” or “They all right”, but they do not omit this “am”: “Ahm walkin.”

Regarding their origin, linguists have varied opinions.

Some point to its English origin, by the fact that most of its vocabulary comes fit and that their pronunciation and grammar could come from non-standard dialects of the English spoken by indentured servants and other workers with whom African slaves interacted.

Others claim African origin, given the similarity in pronunciation with variants of English used in African spoken in Nigeria and Ghana.

Others highlight its similarities with the Caribbean Creole English, such as the suppression of “is/are” in the present tense in addition to the high proportion of speakers of Creole slaves were imported from the Caribbean in the early settlement period of the 13 original colonies.

These debates and lack of consensus about its origin are still present and, as discussed below, may be necessary to find translators for this variant of English.

(Spanish version: https://www.trustedtranslations.com/ebonics-2010-12-24.html)