Street
yatspeak
What does yatspeak mean?
The working-class New Orleans dialect — named for the greeting 'Where y'at?' (meaning 'how you doing?'). Sounds shockingly close to Brooklyn or Jersey to outsiders: 'oi' for 'er' (toilet → terlet), dropped R's, 'dese, dem, dose', 'making groceries' for grocery shopping, 'neutral ground' for median, 'where you stay at?' for where you live. Heavy in the Ninth Ward, Mid-City, Chalmette, Metairie. Fading with each generation but locals still clock it instantly.
"Pure yatspeak — 'I'm gonna make groceries by Schwegmann's, dawlin', want me to bring you back somethin'?'"
Frequently asked questions
What does Yatspeak mean?
It's the whole bundle of New Orleans pronunciations and grammar, as in 'where y'at?'
How do you use Yatspeak in a sentence?
"You could tell she was local the moment she broke into full Yatspeak."
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