HOW CAPICOLA BECAME GABAGOOL: THE ITALIAN NEW JERSEY ACCENT, EXPLAINED

Atlas Obscura ^ | November 5, 2015 | DAN NOSOWITZ

[Albion Wilde]

ping!

[Larry Lucido]

Cappy-Cola. Also available in Orange.

[free-in-nyc]

Thanks for this - fascinating!

[Albion Wilde]

There's a fishing village in Maryland, Tilghman Island in the Chesapeake Bay, that for the first three centuries was so isolated, surrounded by water, that they still spoke a working-class British accent from the 17th century. Lasted until the saturation of television, more or less.

Italian-Americans were somewhat isolated by ethnicity during their first century here, and some old linguistic ways have been carried down.

I had some friends visit me from Italy when I was living in an Italian neighborhood and studying Italian language for an upcoming trip to Italy. My visitors spoke no English, and several of the Italian-American neighbors came around, excited to see visitors from Italy and trying to trot out their Italian words and phrases. After they left, the visitors told me in Italian, "I hope you are not trying to learn Italian from them; their accents are cosi brutti (so terrible)."

[ETL]

I was on Mulberry St a few hours ago. Hardly any Italians living in the neighborhood anymore. Almost all Chinese and Starbucks-type yuppies now. Gotti’s old HQ is now a shoe store.

[Albion Wilde]

I work with a guy from New Jersey who is of Polish descent. He speaks in so many double, triple, quadruple negatives I can barely understand what he's saying.

"Not fah nuttin, pal, I ain't never done nuttin, ain't dat right?

[W.]

Yeah, they have prosciutto, but I just stick with the Virginia ham, it’s only $5/pound. Also, good in omelets!

[Albion Wilde]

Different regions, different dialects. I can understand most of them.. it’s the Sicilian dialects that can confuse me!

This is the first article I have heard on the subject that explained that Sicilian has Arabic influences, due to its location. Now that I hear that, I can understand better the way Sicilian pronounces most vowels as "u" instead of "a" or "o."

[knarf]

At least ah uncles dint marry INSECTS !!!

[Albion Wilde]

Another thing we grew up saying was "man-i-gawt" for manicotti.

Yep. And "bazilligawt" for "basilico" (basil).

[Kid Shelleen]

Now I am starving for a Tony Luke's!!!

[mountn man]

I enjoy WATCHING Giada speak EYEtalian

[who_would_fardels_bear]

I get my Italian accent from my mom who grew up in Massachusetts.

I was at an Italian restaurant in the middle of an orange orchard in Ojai, CA and I ordered a sub with prozhut.

An older woman with an FBI (Full Blooded Italian) T-Shirt tried to correct me and said prosciutto.

Turns out she was from Chicago.

So evidently there is not gabagool in Chicago either.

What a shame.

[Tax-chick]

What’s Eyetalian for “BOOOOOOBS!”?

[fruser1]

I always understood the difference as between south and north. The different dialect from the modern Florentine is Sicilian which, incidentally, why you’d hear it more in mob run areas.

[surrey]

I grew up on Long island in a Jewish/Italian area. To this day i use the Italian pronunciation of most foods and pro-shoot is one of them. It drives my kids crazy.

[fieldmarshaldj]

“Giada !”

[john drake]

Tette. Just Sayin’

[leaning conservative]

I believe Bobby Flay does too;)

[Vaquero]

I grew up on Long island in a Jewish/Italian area.

Sounds like Matzo-Pizza NY. ( Massapequa)

. I was upstate last week opening up my hunting camp to prepare for Nov 21 opening day. Stopped at a restaurant for dinner Saturday. The waitress asked if we wanted mazzerella sticks. I corrected her...."you mean moots-arella....right?"