'It's super Miami': Linguists identify new Floridian dialect

In Miami, people don’t “get” in line, they “make” the line (from the Spanish “hacer la fila”). It’s a form of what experts call Miami English. Subscribe to The Washington Post on KZbin: wapo.st/2QOdcqK
Follow us:
Twitter: / washingtonpost
Instagram: / washingtonpost
Facebook: / washingtonpost

[@borednow26]

My 2 cents is: I grew up in Orlando around Latinos and moved to Miami as an adult, and I would agree that Miami has an accent. It is not restricted to Latinos (though most people who have Miami accents are Latinos because Miami is mostly Latinos). Actually, I knew someone born in Pakistan and raised the burbs who had a very heavy Miami accent. I think this video doesn't explain the accent fully, either. It's also based on cadence and has heavy "L"s.

[@LittleDogTobi]

Excellent point. Miami native who’s since moved up North and so many discussions of Miami English neglect features of the accent itself, focusing solely on claques and slang. You can definitely tell someone’s from Miami-Dade from the accent alone.

[@parasitius]

Let's hope Langfocus will "do" this language so we can get the real details and not a fluff piece! Will be much more interesting;)

[@MardinaValdes]

You meant hispanics

[@tc2334]

@@parasitius Same.

[@tc2334]

@@MardinaValdes Hispanic and Latino are interchangeable in the United States. You're free to not like that or call it out for how 'inaccurate' it is, but that's the way it is and that's way 'Latinos' continue to identify themselves.

[@geraldsonofgod]

Pretty accurate… also, here, even non-English speakers, whenever they order coffee and milk, they use the phrase Café con Leche. It’s super cool

[@rosalinda-305]

Pretty accurate! I definitely say “get down from the car” and “super cute” 😅

[@jordyb57]

I’m sorry but “super cute” is not a distinct regionalism

[@lanapapas]

@@jordyb57 that lady is just a basic cub@n...not every representative lol

[@alang4190]

@@jordyb57you wouldn’t get it “bro”

[@jjgems5909]

Can you explain because I really don’t get it. Everyone says that almost everywhere. The video didn’t really explain what makes the Miami way different lol

[@scienz]

yeah this video made a weak case. Super cute is a super regular phrase

[@neeshirey]

I've lived in California all my life, so I took a lot of Spanish classes all the way through primary & secondary school - I got serious about it in college. My kids' father also spoke several languages, and we tried to expose our kids to other languages as much as possible. IMO, learning other languages gives you a lot of insight into your native language you wouldn't otherwise have. "Spanglish" is pretty rampant in some parts of California - people "watchar" (watcho, watches, watchamos...) television, but we also "PUT the alarm" when we lock up the office. It's a lot of fun!

[@Dan-hispano.]

Yo watcho Tú watchas Él watcha Nosotros watchamos Vosotros watcháis Ellos watchan Además de vos watchás Y usted watcha. Eso sería la castellanización del verbo To Watch, pero no es necesario puesto que existe el verbo VER.

[@mistylee717]

I’m in Alabama and I had a very strict/hard English teacher. She loved the language. But she instilled in us that there’s a correct way to say things and a “wrong” way. Here I am 30 years later and still trying to unlearn that. It started when I learned about the evolution of some African-American dialects in the United States. Because of segregation, education inequities as well as having different influences, it only makes sense that the languages would not develop in the same way. Also what was once slang or “wrong” in any given language will in time become accepted. On the other hand words that were proper fall out of use (I’m looking at you ‘ye’) So all languages are evolving and its inane to think every place and every culture within the US would have their languages evolve the exact same.

[@lobos320]

Languages evolve and every person really has their own dialect different from even your parents and siblings based on your age, education, life experience. Etc. I find it so interesting to listen to people speak. In the past when most people lived their entire life within 20 miles of their birth. You could often pin point and accent to the part of what ever state they came from. People moving around and mass media has leveled out dialects very much. I am a native English speaker but I am fully fluent in Spanish,I even have a college degree in Spanish (and in The process of learning Portuguese). I live in north Florida, which is very culturally Southern. My Mom was from here but I grew up Ina small beach town in NJ. ( The (in)famous Jersey Shore) So my native dialect is very mid Atlantic near the boundary of Philadelphia and New York dialects, However myon is from the Deep South ( yes North Florida is the Deep South and until Disney came, even Orlando was Deep South . Before 1959 natives of even Miami had a Southern accent) So my brother and I picked up some very Southern aspects to how we speak. At the very least we were familiar with Southern isms ( ie it's a buggy not a shopping cart) And I know I sort of code switch very easily between dialects depending on who I am talking to. If I am talking to someone from NJ I find myself getting my NJ accent back. And my friend pointed out one NJism I almost always do is making a leading H into a Y before o or u( Youston for Houston - think Donald Trump..yuge not huge). In college u wrote a paper about being "bidualectual". My professor gave me an A . Because be grew up in Baltimore but with a mom from the hills of WV., he related very well to what I wrote. I have noticed aspects of the 'Miami dialect' as far ack as the 1990s from college friends who were from South Florida. And it was not necessarily people who were bilingual. Anglos as well as Hispanic people.. Miami dialect reminds me of New Mexico dialect'. Even monolingual English speakers whose family lived in New Mexico for generations gave a rhythm of speech and certain sound that are very influenced by Spanish.

[@coriklocek1841]

Sorry you're in Alabama

[@mistylee717]

@@coriklocek1841 I’m not. Birmingham and Huntsville are wonderful cities to live and work in.

[@coriklocek1841]

​@@mistylee717 I take back my comment after actually reading yours

[@user-mv6yv9ec1b]

Your teacher was right

[@lunallena5594]

The store owner definitely sounds like she is from Miami.

[@SunShine-ls1ul]

Bro !!!! Que Paquete !!!!

[@normagoff1916]

I need that cafecito technique 😅

[@anamariaguadayol2335]

You also "make caca," and "make pipi." My American friends who live elsewhere think this is hilarious 😂

[@briana14333]

Ha! We said this in my family in Texas and California. Still funny and nostalgic.

[@user-jk2zm7uq5s]

You do *alight* from the bus (there are bus stop signs that say "alighting only"). That basically mens "getting down" too ;)

[@Marss13z]

I grew up in Miami, was around for the various influxes of Cubans, and watched my city explode! Listening to this, my eyes rolled so hard they got stuck. They're better now.

[@tc2334]

It's just first-second generation language patterns. We see this everywhere in the country. The difference is that in Miami, there's a continuance of immigration from the same Spanish-speaking countries the other first and second generation Hispanics come from so these terms stick around, but only Latinos (mostly those with at least one Spanish-speaking adult in the house) talk like this. Even the video says others who don't speak Spanish that talk like this, but all the names of the people they showed after that are Spanish. 🤷So, I assume they're at least Hispanic, so I don't think that's a fair metric. However, as a non-Latino born and raised in Miami, I've never heard another non-Latino replace the word "beef" with "meat" or "get out of the car" with "get down from the car". I understand that Latinos form a majority in Miami, but still...this isn't really isn't unique to Miami at all. It's a Spanglish accent (mostly influenced by Caribbean Spanish) and the same thing can be heard throughout the NY, NJ, Connecticut, Massachusetts and other places with big Caribbean Hispanic communities..

[@JD-ip4fs]

YES! You completely said everything I was thinking.

[@c3ru1ean41]

You’ve never heard? Well I’m a white person from south Florida who says these things. I’m not even from Dade I’m from Broward, but I was raised primarily around Hispanics, just not in my household. As long as you are in that environment you will adopt an accent. My parents first asked me why I was “talking like that” in 8th grade.

[@tc2334]

@@c3ru1ean41 If you’re a non-Hispanic native English speaker who replaces the word beef with meat, you’re part of a very small minority..were I one of your parents, I’d ask the same question. 😅

[@tc2334]

@@c3ru1ean41 Fair. I get that people talk like the people they grow up around, but when white people in South Florida grow up mostly around other white people or with a mix of white people and others in South Florida in places like Southwest Ranches or Coral Springs, they don't talk "like that". This accent is the Hispanic accent. Like I said, I get that Hispanics make up the majority of Miami/South Florida at this point, but the rest of us: White, Black and Asian people, for the most part, don't have this accent.

[@alang4190]

the interesting thing imo is how people from diff spanish speaking countries have a similar american “spanglish” accent. like ive heard people from mexico, central/south america and the caribeans say word similarly, and get high pitched of stress syllables the same way

[@PracticallyZen]

You forgot to mention one of the most latin of the Miami-English phrases as heard in many restaurants “I’ll have the PINK wine”.

[@orlinasandy]

It’s like Montreal English. We “open” and “close” lights and computers rather than turn them on and off.

[@asherteddington1694]

As a Puerto Rican who grew up in NY metropolitan area in the 90s.... I don't know how this is different from any other places with many second generation Latinos. those of us in the Northeast have been speaking this way at least since the 90s ... why is it just being noticed now? And why does Miami get all the credit? Lol

[@tc2334]

Exactly. It's not, but Miami gets the credit because Miami is a Hispanic majority city, so this isn't just "Spanglish" there, it's just how they speak English. lol

[@asherteddington1694]

@@tc2334 it's how we speak English as well. that's my whole point. It's not just Spanglish. I'm talking about is the exact same phenomenon they're describing here, its way older than they're making it out to be.

[@tc2334]

@@asherteddington1694 Yeah. I'm agreeing with you. I'm just answering the question as to why they get the credit of having this name tied to a location. In the NY metro area, speaking with this accent is just one of many accents. In Miami, this is basically the only accent.

[@batcird]

I get what you're saying, but part of it might be the fact that non-Latinos also have the Miami accent. Like, I live in north Florida and I can nearly always tell when someone's from Miami even if they don't speak Spanish, something in the accent. It's subtle but I hear it. Also, on a biased note, people from Miami are in my opinion a little pretentious about being from there and think Miami is the best place in the state and the only source of real culture lol, they're cool people but a lil stuck up about it 😂

[@tc2334]

@@batcird Most non-Latinos, even if they speak with the Miami “cadence” still wouldn’t say things like “get down from the car” “married with” or “meat empanada”. Only people who speak Spanish or grew up in a house with people who speak Spanish talk like this.

[@jamesbenages649]

I don’t remember anyone in Miami in the 70’s and 80’s ordering empanadas. And I grew up in Allapattah. City of Miami.

[@deadbushinc.5105]

Such a cool story, and what an amazing linguist!

[@tonyazzaro9593]

This is no different than LA"s English being influenced by Mexicans.

[@DBoone123]

Todo el mundo dice “super cool”

[@hjlucia]

y tambien ¨bro¨

[@freddyrodriguez4732]

As an anthropology major from Florida, this is just great.

[@oldschoolben438]

If this is enough to establish a dialect, then Toronto has like 20 fams 😂😂😂

[@meowmeow5662]

It can be fun and even a joy to learn if the teacher is good. Teachers should get paid more! They are so important.

[@isaidwhatIsaid86]

@1:00 I would have a hard time pay attention in class…Got-dayum!!

[@lambdee7006]

What about the word-literally

[@richiestarks6163]

Bro is an up north thing. I heard that practically all my life in NJ. Alot of New York and New Jersey transplants in Miami.

[@ZiaRDS]

I was about to say, I live in NJ, I've never been to Florida and I hear this literally all the time

[@edantes2008]

Definitely, BRO It's a NY, NJ thing.

[@mannyruiz1954]

I've been living in Miami a looooooong time but I'm originally from California, and we said bro all the time. Miami is always late. Miami is the city that wants to be LA but can't help being NY/NJ.

[@richiestarks6163]

@@mannyruiz1954 Miami need to stick with Dalle of Calle Ocho 😂😂😂😂

[@miriamcjackson706]

Spanglish! I grew up with freekeecheekee (Kentucky fried chicken) boorgoorkeen (Burger King) and hatdok (hotdogs). Normally the sentence from the back seat of the stick shift chevette would go “Mami yo quiero …. “ fill in the blank). And also when I was growing up in la “sawesera” it was crroquetas all the way. None of this empanada nonsense 😂. Finally, it was never “pizza” because it was always “Frankees” we were plain addicted to the stuff. So wonderful to see this flavorful fusion, this language juiciness being acknowledged. 305 forever bro!

[@JD-ip4fs]

I agree with your point!

[@norwegian24]

Is "super cute" something "Floridan"?????

[@username01201]

Bro.

[@Tanya-el8ix]

For Miamians it’s super cute and super hot and super everything lol

[@Fernando-nz3gm]

Lol "Super hot" I have heard of. Then again it's like 100 degrees

[@user-nh3gy9vc4z]

That's it?

[@taitai5680]

do new york english next

[@Ozaiyah]

So Spanish with the literal translation

[@scienz]

if she says bro let her go

[@DaveYoung-dl3mo]

Miami have many accents, from black americans to white americans

[@economicdevelopmentplannin8715]

Why you be wanting to not talk good in normal English?? 😂😂😂😂

[@guayames]

Sorry to tell you but it is not a Cuban thing, Puerto Ricans have been speaking this way since 1898 when we become part of the USA. Yes we have been speaking* like that since then, and the Cubans just started doing 5he same since the 1960! Spanglish!

[@Fernando-nz3gm]

It's just Cubans speaking English or their "Spanglish"

[@huyoken7953]

What

[@retlaw190]

New? Pshh you just caught on

[@ancientstarfruit]

This is just your average Latino-American household 😂

[@malone1482]

So , let’s Speak gamelote!

[@David-nr3wr]

Grew up in south Florida 25 years now , this is misleading

[@nevalyin7802]

Very misleading . . I think this is a depiction of the tourist view on how Miami dialect is . . Dialect is more predominantly measured by people of culture . . This seems like a reality for brickell/wynwood tho.

[@grimeatales]

Naw bro this is inaccurate

[@tbam73]

Why are we calling this a dialect??

[@leoriopaladiknight7588]

you have to admit it sounds slightly stupid tho

[@iamchickpea]

no.

[@whimsicalhamster88]

If I had that professor in college I would have stayed for my PhD 😅

[@lizbocuicui6749]

Carne=meat. Carne de res=beef. 🤦‍♀️

[@thedigitalodometer945]

Does anyone actually take the time to specify carne de res in the real world?

[@zytrik1]

It’s wrong and incorrect 😂

[@teamgraysouth3003]

Ebonics for Latin Americans?

[@FamilyRide-kc8my]

This is just broken english spoken in Cuban accent. That’s all it is.

[@thedigitalodometer945]

Boo

[@user-we5dw9mo7u]

I'm a Miami native. Growing up if I said Miami and pronounced it as"my am ee"my granddad would send me out in the backyard to cut a switch off the orange tree. We pronounced Miami as "My am uh".

[@economicdevelopmentplannin8715]

Why you be wanting to not talk good in normal English?? 😂😂😂😂

[@thedigitalodometer945]

Wow

[@economicdevelopmentplannin8715]

@@thedigitalodometer945 lol

[@chimi1924]

C7banazos

[@user-rt4pb3mk4e]

Embarrassing!

[@creativemindplay]

Yawn

[@georgeprendergast8305]

Yeah they cant speak properly 😂sounds about right 👍

[@thekingofmoney2000]

Most can’t speak Spanish properly either.

[@Superator69]

Just another accent of basketball people 🏀

[@faizet2]

On a side note 📝, Phillip Carter @ 0:57 really needs to get his ears 👂 pinned back, no offence!

[@mrslavanderblu]

Miami belongs to the Haitians.

[@christophergarcia8783]

Sike.

[@juniorcruz3866]

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 Stop it Cubans 🇨🇺 run Miami and the State of Florida nice delusion tho

[@AYouTubeChannelwithNoName]

This take is hotter than Miami.

[@sssssssss111]

@@juniorcruz3866 what about running Cuba 🥴 ... anyway nice way to fall for a bait comment

[@Robert-ur8mi]

@@sssssssss111 how is the gang wars in Haiti going?

[@thomascrutchfield4572]

This is not english. This is broken guttural English spoken improperly. This is been accepted by the community because of the lack of enthusiasm and the downright laziness from those who come from other places to seek peace and refuge and absolutely refuse to assimilate or learn the language common to the nation that they so desperately chose to live. I'm embarrassed when I hear people speak like this because I think to myself either they don't know any better or they simply don't care. I lived there over 50 years and no longer do, this is one of the many millions of reasons why I don't. Celebrating ignorance and an inability to communicate with people in a Common Language in a quite frankly it's a direct slap in the face, I also find it dangerous in emergency situations including hospitals emergency rescue teams if you look through the history of Dade County in the past 50 years there's all kinds of incidents because people were unable to communicate with each other lives have been lost and families had have suffered because of this

[@gizmoz2329]

Languages naturally change over time. There is no such thing as a "proper way" to speak any language, and often what is considered to be the "proper way" at any given point in time is just however the richest and highest-class people in a society speak (how convenient!). Dialects of English exist around the world, and they are all equally valid. Your opinions are toxic and harmful.

[@thekingofmoney2000]

The Spanish spoken in many parts of the USA is also mostly Spanglish.

[@delftfietser]

​@@gizmoz2329 Would you say that the French are toxic and harmful in their work to jealousy guard the purity of their language from intrusions from English?

[@donreyes3921]

From Miami, we have a lot of what truly is non speakers. Proper Eng was once present here but for decades now its been eroding as teachers with heavy accents seem to have filled schools and so wrong has been passed down gradually… aside from those who outright refuse to assimilate and learn the language… Get down from car is flat out wrong to me…?!?

[@gizmoz2329]

@@donreyes3921 In your reply here you've used a number of english words that derive from either Latin or Old French (and thus ultimately Latin as well). In fact, about 2/3 of all English words come from Latin or Old French. This is in spite of the fact that English is a Germanic language. English is not related to Latin, it's related to German, Dutch, etc. The reason for this is that in 1066 CE the Old-French-speaking Normans (from what is now France) conquered England. For many years Old French was the language of government and literature in England, while only the commoners spoke Old English. Over time, the Old French blended with Old English creating the language much closer to the English we have today. All that's to say that the very language we are speaking here is a messy amalgamation of two very different languages created when different cultures interacted. It makes zero sense to hold that the Spanish influence in Miami English is bad or corrupting when this exact same form of so-called corruption is what gives us what you hold to be correct. This is just what happens with language, it evolves over time, and it's all correct. Looking down on people for speaking a certain dialect is toxic behavior. There is no correct English. And yeah, "Get down from the car" is wrong in Standard American English. But it's not wrong in Miami English, that's the point. It's a completely different dialect, it's going to be different from Standard American English. And Standard American English is different from Southern American English, Black English, etc., etc.

[@madroxomalley6569]

This is literally just broken English

[@mackereltacos2850]

If you're not speaking Old English you're speaking broken English

[@Davin4xe]

Most likely why so many people need the media to spoon feed them misinformation.

[@MarcAlexander-bo1fe]

so people who speak French Spanish and Portuguese are just speaking broken Latin, right? Be for real, bro. This is how language evolves.

[@raycenteno7698]

Yuck. Miami is garbage. I hate the place. When I’m there I always take a shower. I feel like theres a filth that clings on my skin when I go there.

[@DR.DRE.123.]

Miami is a troubled, busy and for the most part an unorganized city but Ray…DAAAAYUMMMM Bro, who hurt you?

[@Robert-ur8mi]

@@DR.DRE.123.he mad the Latinas don’t want to date him

[@youtubename3838]

Peeksa, SaLmon, “This guy swears”, Pero Liiiiiike, Eh-Q-me, “what do you think of liiiife?” + many more. LOVE MY CITY!!! 🫶

[@indeed7135]

What