Black Talk: Words and Phrases from the Hood to the Amen Corner [Hardcover]

Geneva Smitherman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 25, 1994 | ISBN-10: 0395674107 | ISBN-13: 978-0395674109

Smitherman presents a historical guide to the uniqueness of African American English--its distinct patterns of grammar, lexicon, and verbal rituals rooted in oral tradition. Black Talk crosses boundaries of sex, age, religion, region, and social class, and provides definitions of words, sayings, and popular expressions from all segments of the African American community.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Part dictionary, part historical guide, this somewhat amusing but informative work is a compilation of words and phrases from the African American experience. In her introduction, Smitherman (English, Michigan State Univ.) gives a thorough analysis and colorful history of what's commonly known as black talk. The expressions cited are used by blacks from all walks of life-blue-collar workers, preachers, political activists, musicians, and senior citizens. Some terms (down south, pay dues, and gold digger, for instance) are obvious and not necessarily limited to the black community. Others (e.g., big foe, which refers to hard-core, tough, usually big, urban police detectives; hammer, a good-looking woman; and jackleg, an unprofessional or phony preacher) are not as familiar and need to be defined. This book is for the unhip; it's not a necessary purchase for most libraries, but those with a steady flow of black patrons may want to consider. For another perspective on African American Slang, readers may want to check out Juba to Jive (LJ 1/94).
Ann Burns, "Library Journal"
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

This is a somewhat less formal work than Juba to Jive [RBB Mr 1 94], and the language covered is more contemporary, with a strong emphasis on hip-hop culture. Smitherman's long introduction is as polemic as it is introductory. She buys into a number of stereotypes of European-descended American culture: it is monolithic, bland, without oral tradition, and without passion. The section entitled "They Done Took My Blues and Gone: Black Talk Crosses Over" suggests that whites use black language partly to spice up their dreary lives and partly as an act of cultural oppression. "What is Africa to Me?" is a useful brief discussion of grammar, pronunciation, and context of black speech. A phonetic key to pronunciation would have been helpful. Smitherman mentions some scholarly works but does not provide complete bibliographic information for them. In her "Explanatory Notes" she describes her sources for definitions and pronunciation as primarily oral.

In the dictionary, definitions and example sentences illustrating use are given for words and phrases. Some regional or special group uses are noted, but not consistently. There are extensive, helpful cross-references. Every area of life from church to gangs is covered. Many of the phrases speak with a painful poetry of violence, sex, and drugs. Others show an ironic wit--the term chicken for a preacher suggests that children have more imagination than adults suspect. There are plenty of terms to shock both liberal and conservative sensibilities.

As in Juba to Jive, claims for the exclusivity of some terms to the black speech community are debatable. Crib as a term for one's home is cited in OED as far back as 1812 in Flash Dictionary, a book of English street talk.

Smitherman has pulled together words and phrases and their meanings through the early 1990s. Black Talk will be a useful purchase for medium-size to large public libraries and most academic libraries with interest in black speech and American slang.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 243 pages
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin (August 25, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0395674107
• ISBN-13: 978-0395674109
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,768,778 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Reference Library Must for Writers, March 18, 2003

By A Customer

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This review is from: Black Talk: Words and Phrases from the Hood to the Amen Corner (Paperback)

This is a great reference. As a working screenwriter and published novelist, I find I use this book almost every day. One nit, however: it would be a lot more helpful if the book were cross-referenced so that you could look up a common word and find the Black Talk "translation." Just a thought for those of us who aren't hip. BTW, this author is very good, a fine writer and her work is extremely well researched. Check out her other books.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Black Talk--A great resource!, February 26, 2003

By 

Mike Ramey (Indianapolis, Indiana) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Black Talk: Words and Phrases from the Hood to the Amen Corner (Paperback)

In studying the language of African Americans, there is rich, historical tradition of oral communication that pre-dates our arrival to the shores of America. Each time an author braves the winds and waves of time to re-capture how we say things, and why we say the things that we say is a cause for not only for excitement, but a reason for celebration.

Geneva Smitherman has accurately captured the humor, wit, and wisdom of our language in her revised volume "Black Talk: Words and Phrases from the Hood to the Amen Corner (2000, Houghton Mifflin Publishers, 305 Pages)." With 300 additional new terms, phrases and definitions included, the book is quickly going to be a writer's companion, a teacher's dictionary and a journalist's friend. It covers a great deal of distance, and provides some explanations as to OUR language, our customs, and our traditions.

Now, the work was originally released in 1994. Smitherman has expanded this volume by including a little history behind our pronunciation patterns, the pros and cons of the great Ebonics debate of the 1990s, and brought forth explanations of terms that have found their way into the American mainstream from our people. One of the true beauties of this work is the inclusion of the Amen Corner--some of those terms and phrases that have emerged from the walls and pulpits of many a Black preacher, and Black church congregation.

This book will have young and old alike anxiously turning the pages to find out the meanings and the history behind such phrases as `Stuck On Stupid' (which is one of my personal favorites), and `Benjamins' (which has several sub-meanings coming from the Hip Hop language of today). No, it won't have the `exact' time and date of such word origins--but it does provide enough uncluttered background confirming whether or not a phrase or word which originated with us has/has not slipped into the American pool of daily conversation.

With all of the `fuss' being made over being bi-lingual because of the infusion of more and more of the Hispanic community into the American mainstream, Smitherman's work clearly shows that our language had long cleared the way for such inclusion. I would encourage any parent interested in teaching/reaching their youth concerning the historical origins of our language to invest in a copy of this book. Who knows? You, like I, may re-discover part of your childhood, as you can reflect on some of the sayings of your parents and grandparents around the dinner table, or on the porch during those summer evenings `Down Home'. I highly recommend it.

Mike Ramey

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very Enlightening, July 17, 2000

By 

"2legit" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Black Talk: Words and Phrases from the Hood to the Amen Corner (Paperback)

I read a review for this book and thought that I'd check it out. As an African American woman from the Midwest, I have to honestly say that there were a lot of words and phrases that I'd never heard before and some that I'd heard in passing and had no clue what their meanings were. Now you can call me informed. I enjoyed reading this book and actually laughed out loud when I read something that I hadn't heard in ages that brought back lots of memories. I recommend this book to anyone wanting to understand more about Black talk.