Black Talk

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"

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.