This Virginia island speaks the closest thing to Shakespeare’s English still heard today

Tangier Island, VA

Tangier Island sits in the Chesapeake Bay, 12 miles from Virginia’s mainland. About 450 people live on this small 1.2-square-mile island. Water surrounds this community completely.

For hundreds of years, this water barrier limited contact with outsiders. This isolation created something special – a unique way of speaking unlike anywhere else in America.

When English Settlers First Arrived

Captain John Smith explored Tangier in 1608 while mapping the Chesapeake Bay. No one from Europe lived here until much later. The first permanent settlers came in 1686.

Records show these people moved from Cornwall and Devon in southwest England. They crossed the ocean looking for better lives and brought their distinct way of talking with them.

Geographic Isolation Creates Linguistic Bubble

The 12-mile water gap meant every trip required a boat. Travel was hard and risky, especially in storms. Even moving between parts of the island needed boats before bridges were built.

People mostly stayed put and talked mainly to each other. This separation from the mainland let their speech grow differently than in the rest of America.

Founders Create Linguistic Foundation

Many islanders today can trace their family lines straight back to the first settlers. The Crockett name remains common, linking to John Crockett, the first permanent settler.

Other common names – Pruitt, Thomas, Marshall, Charnock, Dise, Shores, and Parks – connect today’s residents to their ancestors. The first settlers’ speech from Cornwall and Devon formed the base of Tangier’s unique dialect.

The Distinctive Vowel System

David Shores, a language expert born on Tangier, found that drawn-out vowel sounds mark the island’s speech. Islanders stretch their vowels longer and speak them louder than mainlanders do.

This makes normal words sound very different when spoken by Tangier natives. Words like “pull” and “Paul” sound the same in Tangier speech, showing how their pronunciation split from standard English.

Unique Vocabulary Develops in Isolation

Bruce Gordy, who taught at the island school, listed 350 expressions used only by Tangier residents. Island words include “wudget” for a large sum of money.

When someone is “in the sweet peas,” they’re asleep. On Tangier, a flat bicycle tire is a “bust” bike. These terms grew naturally as islanders created their own way of talking.

Talking Backwards – A Unique Communication Style

Tangier people use a speaking trick they call “talking backwards,” which works like sarcasm. When islanders call someone “smart” with a certain tone, they actually mean that person is stupid.

How they say it signals the opposite meaning. This speaking style adds another layer to their dialect. Visitors struggle to understand without knowing this practice.

Colonial English Remnants

Some Tangier words keep old forms of English that disappeared elsewhere. Islanders say “spar grass” instead of “asparagus,” coming from the colonial term “sparrow grass.” This old word vanished from mainland speech long ago.

Fishermen still use sailing terms from hundreds of years ago. These old words lived on in Tangier while dying out elsewhere.

The Elizabethan English Controversy

Many stories claim Tangier people speak like Shakespeare did. This romantic idea appears in many articles. David Shores, a language expert, disagrees.

He points out that no dialect stays unchanged for centuries, and English during Shakespeare’s time had too many varieties for simple comparison.

Tangier speech is special but has changed over time rather than staying frozen from the 1600s.

Relationship to Other Regional Dialects

Tangier speech shares features with “Hoi Toider” dialects from North Carolina’s Outer Banks. Both grew in isolated coast communities. The most similar dialect exists on nearby Smith Island in Maryland.

These two island communities speak almost the same way due to their similar histories. Language experts group these dialects in the “Hoi Toide English” family, named for how they say “high tide.”

Modern Threats to Dialect Preservation

TV and internet bring mainstream American English into island homes. Young people increasingly speak like they hear on screens. Economic changes force many to work on the mainland.

As fishing declines, the water-based life that kept the dialect strong weakens. The unique speech stays strongest among older fishermen. Meanwhile, young people speak with fewer of the special features that made Tangier speech different.

Visiting Tangier Island

You’ll find Tangier Island in the Chesapeake Bay, accessible by ferry from Reedville, Virginia or Crisfield, Maryland. The Tangier Island History Museum on Main Ridge offers recordings of the island’s distinctive dialect and displays about linguistic history.

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