With the rise of social media, phrases like chile, cap, tea and period/pur have made their way into the mix of many trending internet conversations. There’s a common misconception that Gen Z created a new era of slang. If not all, the majority of modern slang stems directly from AAVE. AAVE stands for African American Vernacular English.
Many linguists define AAVE as an English dialect formed by African Americans in the South. The dialect is a direct result of slavery. Slave owners obliterated the slaves away from their native West African language in fear of them revolting. For years, Black Americans have been mocked and scrutinized for the use of AAVE. Phrases that were deemed “ghetto” or “unprofessional” have now become a trend and many non-black people misuse them.
AAVE isn’t just slang, in fact it’s an entirely different way of speaking. The most noticeable use of AAVE is the “habitual be”. The habitual be is commonly used amongst African Americans. It creates the idea that something happens frequently but not always. For example, the phrase “she be late” in AAVE translates to “she is usually late” in General American English. AAVE is so compelling that it has even influenced the development of many other “languages” such as the New York Accent and several other Spanish-language accents.
With the rise of TikTok, many Black Americans feel that AAVE has turned into a caricature for non-black people’s entertainment, as the use of it has become excessive and overdone. Some people even call it modern colonization.
Not to be confused, not all Black people speak AAVE, but it’s quite common for most to speak both AAVE and General American English making us bidialectal.
So next time you’re out getting “ lit” or “turning up” make sure you thank us Black Americans for sharing our culture with you.