Oberlin College Library Perspectives

Number 12, May 1995

Frederic Cassidy '30

Dictionary of American Regional English

to Speak at Commencement

When the first volume of DARE (covering A-C) was published in 1985, the New York Times hailed the set as "...an astounding achievement, a landmark for the American language and of American scholarship," and declared the set would be "a major reference and sourcebook for lexicographers, linguists, social historians and folklorists for generations to come." Volume two of the set (D-H) was published in 1991; volume three (I-O) is approaching completion. In the introduction to DARE, an 1899 quote from the American Dialect Society, the sponsoring body of DARE, is used to express the essence of DARE's purpose and scope: "the investigation of the English Dialects of America with regard to pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary, phraseology, and geographical distribution." The editors' words, however, also from the introduction, provide the larger picture: "In DARE the editors have sought to produce a work...that will testify to the wondrous variety and creativeness of human language...."

What is perhaps most extraordinary about DARE is the depth and breadth of the project, as demonstrated by the extensive research undertaken by the editorial staff and fieldworkers. For five years a corps of about 80 fieldworkers conducted almost 3,000 face-to-face interviews in over 1,000 communities, covering all 50 states, in order to collect the data presented in DARE.

Frederic G. Cassidy received both the B.A. and M.A. from Oberlin College in 1930 and 1932, subsequently earning the Ph.D. from the University of Michigan. Professor Cassidy taught at Oberlin, Columbia, Stanford, the University of Strasbourg, and the University of Wisconsin, Madison, where he was Professor of English from 1949-1978, and has been professor emeritus since 1978. Cassidy's publications, in addition to the Dictionary of American Regional English, include Dictionary of Jamaican English, A Method for Collecting Dialect, and Jamaica Talk. Cassidy has been the recipient of numerous awards and grants, including the Gold Musgrave medal, a National Endowment for the Humanities grant, a National Science Foundation grant, and a grant from the U.S. Office of Education. He has received honorary degrees from Oberlin, Indiana State University, the University of Wisconsin, and the University of Michigan.

Frederic Cassidy's talk, "American Regional Language: How We All Speak" will take place at 3 p.m. on Saturday May 27, in King 106. A reception in the Rice/King courtyard will follow.

From the Dictionary of American Regional English

beatenest n One's best; one's utmost effort. 1907 Wright Shepard 12 Ozarks, 'Taint no wonder 't all, God rested when he made these here hills; he jus naturally had t' quit, fer he done his beatenest an' was plumb gin [=given] out.

callithumpian n A boisterous, rowdy group (or a member of such a group) that assembles with noisemakers, spec: a For merrymaking in a parade, esp on New Year's Eve or the fourth of July.

hooky bob v phr, hence freq vbl n hooky bobbing, also hooky bobbins Also sp hookey bob chiefly NW Cf bum-riding To hold onto a moving vehicle so as to be towed along over snow or ice.

Table of Contents Library Perspectives, no. 12

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