Where Yat?

Driving cab in New Jersey for a number of years I was exposed to and had to understand dozens of accents and dialects. It was good practice for moving down here with Cajuns and Yats. The "Yat" almost sounds like someone from New York City, except spoken lazier. There is an entire vocabulary that needs to be learned in order to communicate with the indigenous population.

My friend Bobby from NJ and I often point out differences in speaking. In Jersey, if you're telling someone something they might not want to here, you preface it with "Not for nuthin, but yo motha is fat." Down here it would be phrased "I'm not sayin yur mamas fat, I'm just sayin..."


ALLIGATOR PEAR - Avocado.
AWRITE - The appropriate response to the greeting "Where y'at?" Also, a greeting in and of itself: "Awrite, Ed!"
BERL - To cook by surrounding something in hot, bubbling 212°F liquid
BOBO - A small injury or wound.
BOO - A term of endearment, frequently used by parents and grandparents for small children, even small children who happen to be 40 years old ... Believed to be Cajun in origin.
BRA - A form of address for men, usually one with whom you are not acquainted. Usually used in this manner: "Say, bra ..." Ostensibly an abbreviation for "brother."
CATLICK - The predominant religion in New Orleans.
CHARMER - The quintessential female Yat. Pronounced .
DA - The.
DAT - That.
DEM - Them.
DERE - There
DESE, DOSE - These, those.
DIS - This.
EARL, ERL - oil
ERNGE, URNGE - An orange-colored citrus fruit.
ERSTERS, ERSTAS - Oysters.
GAWD - A supernatural deity, worshipped by most New Orleanians.
GRIPPE - The flu.
HAWT - A term of endearment used primarily by local females.
I'LL TAKE ME A ... - May I have a ...
LOOKA - The imperative case of the verb "to look".
MAKE GROCERIES, MAKIN' GROCERIES - To do grocery shopping.
MAW-MAW - Ya grandma.
MYNEZ - Mayonnaise.
OR WHAT - Pronounced , and placed at the end of a question: "You gonna finish eatin' dat, 'r what?"
PO-BOY - The quintessential New Orleans lunch, a sandwich on good, crispy New Orleans French bread.

Here is a link if you feel a need to read up more on it yatspeak

I'm just sayin.....