ebonics
noun

- another name for African American Vernacular English (AAVE)

- a dialect of English typically spoken by working-class African Americans

- African American English, especially when regarded as a language in its own right rather than as a dialect of standard English.

Collins Dictionary, Oxford Languages

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WORD ORIGIN

“Ebonics”, comes from a blend of "ebony" (referring to the dark wood, and by extension to Black people) and "phonics" (the study of speech sounds). The term was coined in 1973 by psychologist Robert Williams during a conference on the language development of Black children.

Williams created this portmanteau to describe what linguists now more commonly call African American Vernacular English (AAVE) or African American English (AAE). He wanted a term that would emphasize the distinct linguistic heritage of African Americans rather than viewing their speech patterns as simply "nonstandard English”.

The word gained widespread public attention during the 1996 Oakland School Board controversy, when the district passed a resolution recognizing Ebonics as the primary language of many African American students. This sparked intense national debate about language, education, and cultural identity.

From a linguistic perspective, the term reflects the systematic nature of AAVE - it's not "broken English" but rather a legitimate variety with its own consistent grammatical rules, pronunciation patterns, and vocabulary that can be traced to both West African language influences and the historical circumstances of African Americans in the United States.

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TRY TO UNDERSTAND EBONICS

“Man, Bae came through lookin’ on fleek, talkin’ ‘bout she finna throw down in the kitchen. I said, ‘Bet.’ Next thing I know, she bussin’ with that mac and cheese — that slaps, that’s fire, dead ass. I’m here for it. Then she start flexin’ her new shoes at the table, I’m weak. But bruh, when I told her Jamal ghosted me last week, she got salty, talkin’ ‘bout I’m trippin’. Periodt.”

Standard English:

“My girlfriend arrived looking perfectly styled, saying she was about to cook a meal. I agreed. Soon she served an incredible macaroni and cheese — it was excellent, genuinely amazing. I was really enjoying it. Then she started showing off her new shoes at the table, which I found hilarious. But when I told her that Jamal had suddenly stopped contacting me last week, she became annoyed, saying I was overreacting. And that was the end of the matter.”

- Bet = okay, agreed (alles klar, abgemacht)
- Bae = term of endearment for a loved one (Schatz)
- Bussin’ = exceptionally good, especially tasty food (voll lecker, mega lecker, schmeckt bombig)
- Dead ass = seriously, for real (im Ernst, echt jetzt)
- Flex / Flexing = showing off (angeben)
- Finna = fixing to, about to do something (vorhaben zu, gleich, dabei zu)
- Ghost / Ghosted = to abruptly stop communicating with someone (geghostet)
- Here for it = excitedly supportive or enthusiastic (voll dabei)
- On fleek = perfectly styled or groomed (perfekt gestylt)
- Period / Periodt = emphatic end to a statement, no further debate (ende der story, punkt. aus. ende.)
- Salty = bitter, upset, annoyed (beleidigt, sauer, verbittert)
- That slaps = that’s really good (das rockt, das ist hammer)
- That’s fire = that’s excellent, amazing (das ist der hammer, das ist genial)
- You trippin’ = you’re being crazy or unreasonable (du spinnst, du übertreibst)

So what? This proves every community develops its own verbal shorthand - corporate jargon does the same thing, just with less flavour.



Helga & Paul Smith

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SYNOYNMS

AAE, AAVE, African-American English (language, lingo, spoken english, vernacular, vernacular English), Afro-American English, American Black English, BE, bev, blaccent, Black American English, black english, black English vernacular, black slang (talk, vernacular, vernacular English), BVE dialect, EBONICS, ethnolect, harlem jive, jive, negro dialect, urban English

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SMUGGLE
 OWAD into a conversation today, say something like:

“Compare EBONICS to standard English and you’ll notice that it uses about 10% fewer words,… it’s not broken language, it’s linguistic compression."

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P L E A S E   S U P P O R T   O W A D

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