Once back in about '72 while traveling by car through Arkansas, we happened to tune in to an AM station on the radio and some fellow was talking...he had the damnedest accent I ever heard anywhere...can't even begin to describe it. If I hadn't known where I was I would never have believed I was somewhere between Dallas and Memphis.
When finishing up all my English courses in college, I had a choice between 19th century American or British literature and a course titled "History and Structure of the English Language." I really, REALLY didn't want to go through either off those lit courses so I took the last choice, hoping to not be as bored as I would have with the literature courses. I hit the jackpot with that one...it was one of the most interesting of all the college courses I ever took and would have enthusiastically taken Part 2 had it been available. I was surprised to learn that there are isolated locales in the Ozarks where you here local dialects that are closer to 18th century Queen's English than you're likely to hear anywhere else.
I think maybe I should have been a linguist. There's just an awful lot to be interested in if you take a close look at things.
