“DAHNTAHN” Pittsburgh: MONOPHTHONGAL /Aw AND REPRESENTATIONS OF LOCALNESS IN SOUTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA

In this paper we report on an exploratory study of the history of the monophthongization of the diphthong /aw/ in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. We suggest that the persistence of this feature may be linked to the dominant role it plays in print representations of local-sounding speech. In sketching the history of the variable (aw) in the speech of working-class male Pittsburghers as far back as 1850 or so, this study contributes to the small body of descriptive and historical research about the North Midland speech of Pittsburgh and southwestern Pennsylvania. In addition, the study contributes to the growing sociolinguistic literature exploring the linguistic correlates of the rapid social and economic changes of the last few decades and their effects on people's senses of self and place