F-Tizzy and Kenzos: Ya'KnaMean?

[ArcticSplash]

There is a sub-dialect of the Philadelphia accent called "Kenzospeak", or "Kenzo".

Mainly it's just the Philadelphia accent but with a nervous tick. You'll notice a Kenzo (a current or former Kenzington, Fishtown, Port Richmond and even some Frankford residents) right away from two very noticeable things:


Ya'knamean? - A slur of "You know what I mean?" which isn't really a question waiting for a response. It's just a replacement for a pause between sentences.

Just sayin' - This actually does have a meaning. This means "don't question what I just said; I'm just stating a fact that I don't want to argue about."

And of course, there's the pronunciation for Girard Ave. It's not "Girard" it's "JAIR-AHD" or "JUH-AD" or any other way that keeps the R's in Girard silent.

[ArcticSplash]

So, what other Kenzoisms do you know and are common?

Besides, of course, the obvious. Ya'knamean?

[arjay]

Splash, you been spendin' too much time on phillyneighbor.com! haha - yes, this is all true, BTW, I live near the meth clinic on Market and we got Kenzos up the ass, the conversations I have been reluctantly party to are ridiculous!

[ArcticSplash]

Splash, you been spendin' too much time on phillyneighbor.com! haha - yes, this is all true, BTW, I live near the meth clinic on Market and we got Kenzos up the ass, the conversations I have been reluctantly party to are ridiculous!

I can't help it that site is addicting! I read it every day.

[thoth]

"Pizza store", instead of Pizzeria or Pizza Parlor et al. Not only Kensington, but generally lower class white philadelphianism.

"Fire plug" instead of fire hydrant.

"The greatest song ever made" instead of "Diamond Girl"...

[Tail]

"Pizza store", instead of Pizzeria or Pizza Parlor et al. Not only Kensington, but generally lower class white philadelphianism.

"Fire plug" instead of fire hydrant.

I say pizza store and fire plug and definitely don't consider myself lower class, although I did grow up at Torresdale and Sheffield sts, which was lower middle class, so now I'm thinking, hey, maybe I am. Wife grew up at F and Westmoreland in kensington and she definitely is white trash, but I love her for that AND opening up my beer bottles with her teeth, Ya'knamean?

I travel all the time for work in midwest and Ontario/Quebec and people always comment on my speech, over the years I've gotten better, but you can't take the Philly accent outta someone after 39 years.

[thoth]

I say pizza store and fire plug and definitely don't consider myself lower class, although I did grow up at Torresdale and Sheffield sts, which was lower middle class, so now I'm thinking, hey, maybe I am. Wife grew up at F and Westmoreland in kensington and she definitely is white trash, but I love her for that AND opening up my beer bottles with her teeth, Ya'knamean?

I travel all the time for work in midwest and Ontario/Quebec and people always comment on my speech, over the years I've gotten better, but you can't take the Philly accent outta someone after 39 years.

Hey your talking like it's a bad thing. I grew up in the sticks with REAL white trash, not like you high-falutin' Philbillies with your stores and paved roads and whatnot. Anyway if I wanted to live in a town that was all snotty upper class people why would I be living here?

[CHIOSSO]

Ya'knamean and Just sayin are African American sayings you just have younger white people using them nowadays.

[Dayman]

"Pizza store", instead of Pizzeria or Pizza Parlor et al. Not only Kensington, but generally lower class white philadelphianism.

"Fire plug" instead of fire hydrant.

"The greatest song ever made" instead of "Diamond Girl"...

I say fire plug, but never heard a pizza place called a pizza store before.

[thoth]

I've heard it in the NE, but was told it was a Kenzo thing. Behold, my gfs (from the NE, says pizza store) roommate is a Kenzo, and he says pizza store. Also other, less directly obvious variants, like Chinese "store" instead of "restaurant" or "take-out", although that one actually has some sense behind it cause those places are practically little general stores.

I say fire plug, but never heard a pizza place called a pizza store before.

[Dayman]

I'm really not in contact with the larger whole of white Kenzos though.

[gideon]

"EEEEEEYEEEOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWW!!!!" Is a good one and my favorite asked of me by roaming teenagers on Cumberland Street - "WunnaFieeght?" As in "Do you want to fight?"

[hubba1]

"Pizza store", instead of Pizzeria or Pizza Parlor et al. Not only Kensington, but generally lower class white philadelphianism.

"Fire plug" instead of fire hydrant.

"The greatest song ever made" instead of "Diamond Girl"...

Ha ha... the Diamond girl quote can be used in much of South Philly also!
I also occasionally use Fire plug,never heard pizza store... I'll ask my kenzo buddies where they get pizza and see what they say.

[NE19149]

So, what other Kenzoisms do you know and are common?

Besides, of course, the obvious. Ya'knamean?

When I lived on Coral & Sargent area, there was a woman up the street who had a funny little kenzo accent...
As she decribed an incident she says: "On-a-sun the car came down the street!"
(meaning: all of a sudden)

There.
You'll hear that, eventually.

[Dayman]

When I was at the dock Sunday, I heard the yaknamean about a thousand times. I realized that the man saying it was a kenzo expat.

[ForeverChanges]

I've heard many lifers having trouble with the "th" sound in words. Long time northeast residents seem to struggle with it too.

'Are you comin' to my kid's BURF-day?'

Also, there's this weird habit of screwing up words that end in "ing"..

'Good morn-INK'

When exactly, is 'mornink?
Is that when your kid's 'burfday' is happening?


Being an uppity snob, yuppie gentrifier with perfect enunciation, I tend to notice such things and judge accordingly..(Not really. Just preemptively flaming myself,Ya'KnaMean?)

[NE19149]

I've heard many lifers having trouble with the "th" sound in words. Long time northeast residents seem to struggle with it too.

'Are you comin' to my kid's BURF-day?'

Also, there's this weird habit of screwing up words that end in "ing"..

'Good morn-INK'

When exactly, is 'mornink?
Is that when your kid's 'burfday' is happening?


Being an uppity snob, yuppie gentrifier with perfect enunciation, I tend to notice such things and judge accordingly..(Not really. Just preemptively flaming myself,Ya'KnaMean?)

OH!
So you're actually Brian Taff?

[Dayman]

I've heard many lifers having trouble with the "th" sound in words. Long time northeast residents seem to struggle with it too.

'Are you comin' to my kid's BURF-day?'

Also, there's this weird habit of screwing up words that end in "ing"..

'Good morn-INK'

When exactly, is 'mornink?
Is that when your kid's 'burfday' is happening?


Being an uppity snob, yuppie gentrifier with perfect enunciation, I tend to notice such things and judge accordingly..(Not really. Just preemptively flaming myself,Ya'KnaMean?)

Pronouncing LL as W and TH as F is a Philadelphia-area thing, period.

[Lolly]

I've heard many lifers having trouble with the "th" sound in words. Long time northeast residents seem to struggle with it too.

'Are you comin' to my kid's BURF-day?'

Also, there's this weird habit of screwing up words that end in "ing"..

'Good morn-INK'

When exactly, is 'mornink?
Is that when your kid's 'burfday' is happening?

Interesting. Eastenders from London do the same.

[Das1978]

Does finishing a statement with "...real talk." count?