Twang and Slang: Regional Origin and Perceptual Dialectology in Ohio

The methodologies of perceptual dialectology have generally not been used to study perceived variation within U.S. states due to the claim put forward in Preston (2002) that “US dialects do not (usually) reveal … finely-tuned differences” on that level. Following in the path of previous studies examining intrastate variation (such as Bucholtz et al. 2007 and Evans 2011), this study refutes this claim by comparing the perceptions of Central and Northeastern Ohioans. It combines the findings of the previous Ohio perceptual dialectology studies Benson (2005) and Campbell-Kibler (2012) with the data gathered from Campbell-Kibler, Bauer (Forthcoming) to find trends amongst evaluations given by Ohioans of linguistic variation within their state. This analysis shows Central Ohioans and Northeastern Ohioans differ noticeably in their attitudes toward their home regions and other regions of Ohio, as well as in what they believe the size these regions to be. It also shows that these two groups’ home regions roughly align with traditional dialect boundaries in Ohio and that perceived variation can happen on a smaller scale than even a statewide level.No embarg