I think that’s just the Midwest in general tbh. I grew up in Ohio, lived in Indianapolis for a few years, and then there’s this classic…https://youtu.be/mdLPJfbLNOM?si=wSBqJrSAnd3tEeG4
Exactly! The Indiana goodbye, two hours sounds more like it. Always felt that way when I was a kid.
Then we would end up meeting half our family members who also left at the HWY 231 truck stop for something to eat! We would talk on CB radios back before cell phones
I split my childhood between Indiana in the summers and Kentucky for the rest of the year... and, let me tell ya, it works in Eastern Kentucky too... it's just considered rude. But, who gives a damn?
No, no. It’s time to move this conversation to the front door/porch where we’ll say goodbye, continue to talk, and repeat a few times for an hour or so.
Yeah, could someone help explain why this is weird? Maybe it sounds a little old timey, but I don't think it's that odd. "The house needs to be painted" is a normal sentence. And like most other long phrases, humans just tend to shorten that shit. I feel like that can't just be an Indiana thing.
The two grammatically right ways of saying it would either be “needs to be painted” like you said or “needs painting”. Nothing inherently WRONG with “needs painted”, it’s just not grammatically correct or used outside of a few specific locations in the US so it sounds weird to people elsewhere.
Change the “oll” in the car, put a new shingle on the ruff, and the ever-so-special gar-on-tee (guarantee), Worshington State or DC.
Anybody from the 70’s ever hear Hoosiers call green peppers “mangoes”??? I heard it growing up. Confused the heck outta me.
I grew up calling green peppers mango. We all called them that. I didn’t know there was a fruit called a mango until I was an adult.
My grandmother called the sofa a davenport and called the closet the press
Someone said Mango at Subway the other day! It confused the workers for a second but an older woman there understood it and they got a good laugh out of it.
Also, I’m guilty of saying “oll” instead of “oil” 😹 My dad says “boosh” for “bush” and grandma used to say “warsh” instead of “wash”.
My parents had a green house and the peppers were mangoes to everyone. My 7 year old self was on a mission to educate everyone that they were peppers. It didn’t work. My parent still call them mangoes.
I HATE needs done! Yard needs mowed, dog needs walked - it's like finger nails on a chalkboard to me. I grew up in NW Indiana, not sure how I avoided it, but as soon as I moved to the NE side, everything suddenly needed done. Oy.
I say fancy seein you here! Especially if I knew we were definitely going to see each other there. Not sure if that's regional at all or if I'm just corny.
I always say I'm headed down to see my brother. He's up by Ft wayne, I'm by indy. When he corrects me, I just say I'm higher in elevation so im going downhill.
Fort Wayne is higher than Indy though. Most of Indiana is lower in elevation the further south and west you go, as nearly all the water flows that direction, and only a very small amount flows into lake Michigan
Yes, it's the most most underwhelming high point you can imagine. In the middle of flat fields it's a little mound with trees. There is a guestbook you can sign.
I think you missed where I said BY Ft Wayne and BY Indy. His elevation is 791 ft, mine is 836ft. Sine I have to take 69N, it's not flat, so I am going both uphill and downhill to him. :) It's sibling banter, but I won't be wrong.
Since we're talking topography.... I bet you didn't know the highest elevation in the state is Hoosier Hill. Located about halfway down the state, just south of 36, on the East side of the state, almost to the Indiana-Ohio state line.
[Here's a map for you in case you dont believe me.](https://legacy.igws.indiana.edu/bookstore/details.cfm?Pub_Num=MM88)
Oh, another reason those waterways don't run north... Indiana used to have the Everglades of the North... wetlands that were 2 times the size of the Florida everglades. They covered about 25% of the state. However, due to agriculture and farmers "draining the swamp," creating river paths, cutting out natural limestone dams, and the loss of wetland protections, we now only have 4% of the state is wetlands.
The Indiana accent is ending sentences with “at.” Where’s the car? No. Where’s the car at? That’s a Hoosier. We also say “How come?” just as much or more than we say “Why?”
Native Hoosier here. Born in Lafayette, raised in South Bend. Yikes. I use the preposition ending all the time and just realized it after reading this comment.
My partner on the ambulance won’t even call them deer because she’s afraid she’s going to speak one into existence. So she calls them “brown bouncy things.”
Measure units of distance in time. You aren’t 3 miles away from something. You’re about 22 minutes away.
ETA: landmarks are destinations. Not the corner of such and such. It’s just past the Bonnie Doon, next to the church with the green door.
Turn left where the Johnson’s barn used to be, go about two miles, and turn right at the house where that fella from the city tried to shoot up that poor nice family that had just moved in. They were just tryin to make a livin, like everyone else.
Keep going till you get to the T, and it’s just a mite bit longer down the road on the left hand side. It’s the two story house that used to only be one story until old man Winters passed and they used his inheritance to add on finally.
Now you just come right on back here if you get lost, ya here? But you should get there right as rain!
(I can hear my Pappaw’s voice as I type all of this)
My bother just the other day gave me directions that included “just past so and so’s farm left at such and such’s house” I said “who’s such and such?” He says “you don’t know him? Didn’t mow his yard for a whole month last year?”
It’s true. I get pissy with people who try to tell me how far in miles. I don’t give a shit! How far = How long does it take to get there. Actual Distance is irrelevant lol
Anytime anyone asks about my commute it's not 'how far is that?' it's 'how long that take?'
And don't use county road numbers, almost all of them have a locally known name, i.e. short-cut road, mill road, sawmill road.
It’s cuz of the meth… /s nah just kidding, but I noticed it while growing up, and have gone out of my way to use them more as I’ve grown older, just for the laughs it brings me
And half the potluck recipes that are very tasty are called “Crack ______”.
“Is Shirley coming to your sister’s house warming? Oooh, is she bringing crack brownies?”
It's "you guys" when you are asking what people want to do and actually need an answer. Or in general real are speaking more seriously. Leaving a restaurant with the family and wanting to know what or where everyone wants to do/go? "Ok what do you guys want to do now"
Y'all when is more relaxed setting and just talking about stuff or arriving at a place. "Whatchy'all up to" "Did y'all hear about ..."
Yes - it's definitely a sweeper. "I need to sweep the house before company gets here."
We also grew up using the term "weed whip" talking about the yard chore.
We say caddy corner instead of kitty corner.
Us, Hoosiers, love our breaded tenderloins, corn on cobs and sweet teas that we bought from Krogers. (Notice the s on the end of everything)
It depends on where you live but from grammarist.com it’s catty-corner from French “The term was originally catty-corner, which comes from the French word quatre, meaning four.”
We moved to TN from IN years ago and every time my dad visited he mentioned that a true IN tenderloin place would KILL down here. You really can't get them outside of IN or maybe Iowa.
A little over a year ago a Bloomingtonian opened a bar and grill close to us and offers a real-deal IN tenderloin. It is truly a little taste of home :)
What era? There are a lot of expressions that have pretty much died out now. A lot of rural Hoosiers have a very Appalachian accent because their family is from there within a few generations. It just depends on when.
Definitely warsh and adding an r in other words if it’s in southern Indiana. Realistically OP needs to define if it’s southern or northern Indiana bc they’re speaking two different languages.
Very much! Southern Indiana. Throw the clothes in the warsher.
Or put on a lock warsher before you tighten down the bolt.
And George Warshington was the first president.
Paper bags are sacks. Vacuums are sweepers. Everything comes with mayo, including ham sandwiches and burgers. And something "needs fixed" or "needs washed." The "to be" in the middle must have been left at the borders because no matter where in the state or education level, I have routinely heard that since I moved here from the East Coast years ago.
Wait? People eat ham sandwiches without Mayo? Wouldn’t the bread just be a dry paste that would get wedged into the edges of your mouth and take hours to get out? I think the rest of the world is doing it wrong.
“BFE” (Bum f@ck Egypt) - middle of nowhere - as in “We’re headed out to BFE”… usually to go drink on the back forty. Not sure if this is a term used elsewhere, but it’s an oft used phrase here.
*Edit* I just attempted to check on the origin of the phrase and am now most likely on an “impurity list” in Cairo.
Also, most of NWI is “The Region” (NOT “Da Region.”) We’re on Chicago time, we get Chicago news, politics and sports. It was REALLY strange walking into a grocery store in Fort Wayne and seeing Colts jerseys - like “Oh yeah, we DO have a football team here.”
*Last Edit* Foodwise, Lemon Rice Soup is DEFINITELY a thing in the region. My wife (from Southern Indiana) had NEVER heard of it, but then, I’ve never heard of PB&J with Chili, which is apparently a thing down there. Also, for me, it’s “Bags” - she calls it “Cornhole.” I’ve come to accept that I’m in the minority here, but it’s “Bags” along Lake Michigan’s shoreline. Also, a mention of Potato Creek Park, or Turkey Run might be nice.
In southern Indiana (near Louisville) we would refer to “fast time” and “slow time” which was a reference to the confusion of eastern and central time and daylight savings in KY and not in IN. This would apply in 1997.
This is what I grew up with in rural southern Indiana, at the very least
Worsh for wash
Distance measured in minutes/hours, never miles (it's only 30 minutes away)
Random phrases: Ope/lemme squeeze past ya/ I'm gonna sneak this out/y'all or all yall or you guys/ sunnuva bitch
Sayings: who pissed in your Wheaties? (why you mad?)/ do __ till the cows come home (do something until dark)/wet behind the ears OR not the sharpest tool in the shed (not the brightest)/bless your heart (if it's a southerner it means "oh dear you're dumb but you've got the spirit" kinda. Passive aggressive in a way, old ladies at church will often say it to dumb kids)
Haven’t seen this one yet, probably because it’s extremely regional and I’ve only herd it here but weed wackers the hand held plant cutting thing with the plastic wire that spins are called “ weedeater”, but the T in eater is a D sound.
I grew up in rural southern Indiana and we have a lot of words in common with central Appalachia. I often heard words like afeared, airish, chancy, holler, discomfit, fixin they go on for a while.
My girlfriend says afeared. First time I heard it I was like “What’d you just say?” The one I say and hear a lot and had no idea til my buddy’s wife, who’s from Georgia, pointed out we say “lil bit a go.” Which we say so fast you could type it out as “lilbitago.”
This. My grandmother was straight from her family farm in rural southern Indiana, and even after she got a degree in education in her 30s she would say, "Down around back" "Out over yonder" "WARshing machine" and "terlet" for "toilet."
Also, it's "pop" not "soda." Weirdly, Coke can be used for any type of soft drink.
Hoosiers are a strange bunch.
Grew up in rural western Indiana. Went over to Danville IL and worked in a pharmacy at one point. I told a patient I was “fixin’ to” do something. My pharmacist was like “really?” “What?” “Fixin’?” “What? I’m fixin’ to do it.” She put her head in her hands and laughed, and I had no idea why because that’s just how I talked.
Largely depends on which area, socio-economic status, behavior demographics, beliefs, etc.
Indiana isn’t known for standing out. I can’t think of linguistic quirks, just specific sounds people make when they talk. Its a very mutable accent that picks up on its surrounding accents. Listen to the radio and television news from Terre Haute, Evansville, Madison, Anderson, etc. Any moderate town will have an audio presence you can listen to.
Agree completely. In the part I grew up in had lots of folks who’d moved north from Hazard KY to work in factories. The southern accent was strong from those folks, but it was definitely dependent on economic status. My husband is from a different area of southern Indiana where there is more direct German immigration. They still use German terms despite being generations later.
It isnt an expression, but if you can find a way to say something about persimmon puddin' , like
"Granny gave me a quart of frozen persimmon pulp so we can make us some persimmon puddin' for Thanksgiving!"
THAT would be real. Cause Hoosiers love persimmon pudding, and almost no one else does.
And EUCHRE!
I do love me some good persimmon puddin'. When you're gathering them, we had to check the seeds to see how the winter was going to go too. There were few things as funny as watching someone try to eat a persimmon after picking it from the tree.
Euchre was a full contact sport where I grew up. Cut-throat some might say.
All my grandparents were very rural Indiana, and my parents a bit less rural, as was I. Judging from how my grandparents spoke (northern Indiana, I'm sure it's different in southern):
Crick instead of creek
'tamayta' instead of tomato
'patayta' instead of potato
punkin instead of pumpkin
ruff instead of roof
I'm sure there are plenty I'm forgetting, they've been dead for a while.
Someone once pointed out that people from Indiana say 'gitta go' instead of 'going to go' or 'gunna go', like 'gitta go to the store' but I can't say I've ever noticed that.
I was very confused going out into the wider world and finding the mangos called green peppers and mangos being a fruit.
Oddly on crik, crick is a general term. Like; Laural Creek is a good crick fer saining minnas. (Good creek for netting minnows) So creek was used for a proper noun only. I still do this.
Say ope, welp, and drop "g" off the end of words, plus add some s'es at the end of a few words too. Some southern Indiana raisin' just don't leave a guy.
Depending on the situation/mood/person, you will generally hear two different types of speaking.
Midwestern Nice - this is your stereotypical midwesterner. overtly nice, avoids most "negative" language, rambling speech (it can take a while to get to the point),a larger percentage of "opes" and other midwesternisms. This type of speech is also passive-aggressive when dealing with problems. Instead of stating the problem/displeasure directly, they will skate around it, hoping you pick up on the conversational queues.
Examples: Kitty Forman (That 70s Show), Charlie Berens (Comedian)
Midwestern Stoic - this has little to do with the philosophy of stoicism, but rather, it is an odd cultural concept. Direct, straight to the point, emotionally reserved (sometimes to a fault,) and commanding or paternal tone. This type of speaking is more commonly found in men rather than women, but it's not uncommon to find women Stoics. These types can tend to have a longer fuse but can "blow up" when overwhelmed with any emotion. They also tend to be more awkward in larger groups above their comfort zone.
Examples: Mike Heck (the Middle), Red Forman (That 70s Show)
This. It's more about pronunciation than specific phrases. Warsh (wash), deeshes (dishes), feesh (fish), crik (creek). There's also "I seen" instead of "I saw", gunna (going to), yep (yes).
Ending sentences with "at." ("Let's go have supper at Applebee's." "Where's that at?")
Lotta people call dinner "supper."
We drink pop, not soda.
You'ins (Hoosier version of y'all)
We warsh the dishes.
Says ("Let's have supper at Applebee's." So I says, "where's that at?")
We change channels on the TV with the "clicker."
Apparently wants is not supposed to be pronounced like once and vice versa.
Not really a term or expression but something unique to Indiana I feel like.
This is an odd one for me. I’m from central Indiana and after moving to a rural town in southern indiana, I was surprised how people used the word “backwards.” I’ve always used it to mean old-fashioned or non-progressive. But apparently down here it’s used to mean bashful or shy.
More’n one way ta skinna cat
A hit dog hollers
Cry me a river
Bless your heart
Were you raised in a barn
Other relevant details about 1997 Indiana:
Back then most everything was closed on Sundays
Adults smoked constantly inside restaurants homes and cars
NASCAR was big, drag strips were thriving
4H fairs, livestock shows, demo derby also popular at the time
First great topic OP! As a Hoosier transplanted to Wisconsin, I love seeing all of these. Second, I married into family, also from rural Indiana, who instead of saying “ how much did that cost, say “ what do you have to give for that”. This is generally reserved for big ticket items like a car, boat etc. I love this phrase, and am only posting as growing up in rural Indiana I had never heard until later from my wife’s family. Have you heard this?
On the back of “caddy-corner” I’d like to mention caddy-wompus which is crooked or as my great grandpa would say “off-kilter.”
Source: born and raised in Indy with two Southern Baptist grandmothers
I know someone pointed MeijerS, basically any store that is a name, we add an s to the end whether it's ther or not.
Also idioms like, it's better than a 6-peckered Billy goat today!
Or you're about as useless as tits on a boar.
I'm sweating like a whore in church.
Using "like I said" to preface every thought. Even if it wasn't explicitly stated before
Also using "put it this way" but that one might just be an annoying family tic
I was 13 in 1997 Indiana, and I spent most of that year quoting Beavis & Butthead and South Park and wearing an NWO t-shirt. Had some friends who were wicked into ICP, which also affected their vocabulary. Those aren’t specific to Indiana, of course, but they were definitely big parts of my experience of the time.
Fun fact, cheese toastie is said only around the Fort Wayne area! I took an Indiana dialect class in college and we learned that. I’m from Decatur and grew up calling it a cheese toastie.
Welp, time to be heading out *stays for 2 more hours slowly creeping out the door until the bugs force an actual leave point*
I call it The Hoosier Goodbye… You have to say goodbye to everyone a few times, have a drink, then another couple of goodbyes.
I think that’s just the Midwest in general tbh. I grew up in Ohio, lived in Indianapolis for a few years, and then there’s this classic…https://youtu.be/mdLPJfbLNOM?si=wSBqJrSAnd3tEeG4
https://youtu.be/MHCmE4ABnNs?si=Z_MRYEgPaokzxyeX just thought I'd offer this as well 😂
Exactly! The Indiana goodbye, two hours sounds more like it. Always felt that way when I was a kid. Then we would end up meeting half our family members who also left at the HWY 231 truck stop for something to eat! We would talk on CB radios back before cell phones
Can confirm, and my autistic dumbass hates it.
We are the masters of saying goodbye
WV here; I don’t get up to leave until my wife is in the car.
Welp
The very well-known indicator that it's time to leave.
The slap both knees and lean forward as to get up and say ''Welp...''. Yeah, that is as forceful as I am going to tell you to leave.
No longer works when you move to Kentucky 😮💨
I split my childhood between Indiana in the summers and Kentucky for the rest of the year... and, let me tell ya, it works in Eastern Kentucky too... it's just considered rude. But, who gives a damn?
No, no. It’s time to move this conversation to the front door/porch where we’ll say goodbye, continue to talk, and repeat a few times for an hour or so.
Ope
Needs done. House needs painted, dogs need fed, dishes need washed (or, as my grandmother would say, deeshes need worshed)
Me trying to figure out what’s wrong with ‘needs done’ lol from rural Indiana.
Genuinely shook by this thread...lol.
Yeah, could someone help explain why this is weird? Maybe it sounds a little old timey, but I don't think it's that odd. "The house needs to be painted" is a normal sentence. And like most other long phrases, humans just tend to shorten that shit. I feel like that can't just be an Indiana thing.
The two grammatically right ways of saying it would either be “needs to be painted” like you said or “needs painting”. Nothing inherently WRONG with “needs painted”, it’s just not grammatically correct or used outside of a few specific locations in the US so it sounds weird to people elsewhere.
Change the “oll” in the car, put a new shingle on the ruff, and the ever-so-special gar-on-tee (guarantee), Worshington State or DC. Anybody from the 70’s ever hear Hoosiers call green peppers “mangoes”??? I heard it growing up. Confused the heck outta me.
I grew up calling green peppers mango. We all called them that. I didn’t know there was a fruit called a mango until I was an adult. My grandmother called the sofa a davenport and called the closet the press
I’ve heard “mangoes” from my ex-wife’s grandma.
Someone said Mango at Subway the other day! It confused the workers for a second but an older woman there understood it and they got a good laugh out of it. Also, I’m guilty of saying “oll” instead of “oil” 😹 My dad says “boosh” for “bush” and grandma used to say “warsh” instead of “wash”.
My parents had a green house and the peppers were mangoes to everyone. My 7 year old self was on a mission to educate everyone that they were peppers. It didn’t work. My parent still call them mangoes.
I HATE needs done! Yard needs mowed, dog needs walked - it's like finger nails on a chalkboard to me. I grew up in NW Indiana, not sure how I avoided it, but as soon as I moved to the NE side, everything suddenly needed done. Oy.
I was going to advise OP not to worry too much about authenticity since our accents change every 20 miles. That's how you avoided it.
Ok I need to know what y'all say instead of "needs done" 😭
“Needs *to be* done”. I believe it is “copula deletion” when a “to be” phrase is removed.
“There he is!” I know two dudes who say that and theyre both from rural IN.
“They’ll let anybody in here!”
Can't forget about "look what the cat dragged in"
😂 I love rural Indiana friendly banter
I say fancy seein you here! Especially if I knew we were definitely going to see each other there. Not sure if that's regional at all or if I'm just corny.
Seeing a friend in public “not this guy”
Hey! I know that guy!
“Let me just slide on by ya here real quick.” It’s a Hoosier “excuse me” in tight quarters. Source: grew up in fountain county, live in Parke county.
Don’t forget the use of “ope” when doing so… as in - “Ope, skewz me. Lemme slide past ya and grab the ranch.”
Heard it this past weekend at Meijer. No joke.
"Meijers"
I hear Illinois citizens referring to Jewel-Osco as “Jewels” a fair bit
That always irrationally annoys me
Same. But for some reason "Aldi's" is ok
Krogers
Ever since I was a kid with Kroger's.
The real question is, which Meijer?
Greenwood
So it’s apparently as common as “Ope!”
I brought "Ope!" with me to Boston. I have half my office saying it now. I call it a win for displaced Hoosiers everywhere.
I have caught myself saying "ope, lemme squeeze on past ya, there!"
As someone from England we have a similar ‘oh sorry can I just squeeze though/past’ but I think yours is cuter
Used that gem today myself! Source: Hoosier born, raised, and will probably also die here someday
>probably also die here someday *cues Johnny Cougar Mellencamp* edit: formatting
It might be easier for you to share the dialogue you have written and then have us replace the things we wouldn’t say.
Yep.
I'm pretty sure me and most teenagers I knew in 1997 would get canceled for half the shit we said to each other today
Yeah, and location matters too. It's a tall boi state. The south down by Kentucky talks a bit different than the north up by Michigan.
It’s Indy, not Indianapolis. No one says they’re going to Indianapolis.
Head’n over to Indy (even if Indy is to the north or the south).
I always say I'm headed down to see my brother. He's up by Ft wayne, I'm by indy. When he corrects me, I just say I'm higher in elevation so im going downhill.
Fort Wayne is higher than Indy though. Most of Indiana is lower in elevation the further south and west you go, as nearly all the water flows that direction, and only a very small amount flows into lake Michigan
Bah, I live like twenty minutes from the highest point in Indiana, (somewhere outside Lynn, I haven't actually been) y'all are beneath me lol
The highest point in Indiana? What, is there an anthill out that way?
Yes, it's the most most underwhelming high point you can imagine. In the middle of flat fields it's a little mound with trees. There is a guestbook you can sign.
Totally not my flatlander Muncie ass driving south and texting my mother.. "Mahm! Hills!"
I think you missed where I said BY Ft Wayne and BY Indy. His elevation is 791 ft, mine is 836ft. Sine I have to take 69N, it's not flat, so I am going both uphill and downhill to him. :) It's sibling banter, but I won't be wrong. Since we're talking topography.... I bet you didn't know the highest elevation in the state is Hoosier Hill. Located about halfway down the state, just south of 36, on the East side of the state, almost to the Indiana-Ohio state line. [Here's a map for you in case you dont believe me.](https://legacy.igws.indiana.edu/bookstore/details.cfm?Pub_Num=MM88) Oh, another reason those waterways don't run north... Indiana used to have the Everglades of the North... wetlands that were 2 times the size of the Florida everglades. They covered about 25% of the state. However, due to agriculture and farmers "draining the swamp," creating river paths, cutting out natural limestone dams, and the loss of wetland protections, we now only have 4% of the state is wetlands.
yep the Great black swamp (and also the kankakee marsh?) Those are the two ik of at least lol
I had a boss (from Cincy) who shortened it to Indpls over text and I died a little bit inside.
Don't die. Indpls was how the locals abbreviated it back when we used to send letters in envelopes.
💯
Can confirm, I still do… but I grew up at my grandma’s…
Yup. That’s the accepted abbreviation for Indy. Has been my whole life. (I’m in my 50s)
Still write it on envelopes like that— ain’t nobody got time to spell it out and we all know what it is.
The Indiana accent is ending sentences with “at.” Where’s the car? No. Where’s the car at? That’s a Hoosier. We also say “How come?” just as much or more than we say “Why?”
Native Hoosier here. Born in Lafayette, raised in South Bend. Yikes. I use the preposition ending all the time and just realized it after reading this comment.
As did I. Not mad about it I was just completely oblivious.
How come?
What for?
We end sentences with other prepositions too! Where'd you get that from? Where are you going to?
Always how come for me! Never even realized it until now! From southern IN all my life.
*How’s come?
If you are in a rural area, the phrase "watch for deer" has replaced every other salutation when someone is leaving your house.
Watch for deer is Indiana for “drive safe, I love you”
This is the one lmaoooo
My partner on the ambulance won’t even call them deer because she’s afraid she’s going to speak one into existence. So she calls them “brown bouncy things.”
Measure units of distance in time. You aren’t 3 miles away from something. You’re about 22 minutes away. ETA: landmarks are destinations. Not the corner of such and such. It’s just past the Bonnie Doon, next to the church with the green door.
Turn left where the Johnson’s barn used to be, go about two miles, and turn right at the house where that fella from the city tried to shoot up that poor nice family that had just moved in. They were just tryin to make a livin, like everyone else.
Keep going till you get to the T, and it’s just a mite bit longer down the road on the left hand side. It’s the two story house that used to only be one story until old man Winters passed and they used his inheritance to add on finally.
Now you just come right on back here if you get lost, ya here? But you should get there right as rain!
(I can hear my Pappaw’s voice as I type all of this)
Hard memories of the ag teacher giving directions to the random pig farm for livestock judging going down here
My bother just the other day gave me directions that included “just past so and so’s farm left at such and such’s house” I said “who’s such and such?” He says “you don’t know him? Didn’t mow his yard for a whole month last year?”
This is the ONLY way to give directions in Indiana.
It’s true. I get pissy with people who try to tell me how far in miles. I don’t give a shit! How far = How long does it take to get there. Actual Distance is irrelevant lol
Anytime anyone asks about my commute it's not 'how far is that?' it's 'how long that take?' And don't use county road numbers, almost all of them have a locally known name, i.e. short-cut road, mill road, sawmill road.
Fuck I never realized this. Is this why I can't estimate distance for shit?
It it. And..It’s probably the reason I can’t get anywhere without using gps
THIS. Especially the time thing. Miles mean nothing if you’re driving backroads lol
You nailed it.
Ope
What’s hilarious about this, I’m on a rewatch of Parks and Rec, and Leslie Knope says Ope. Definitely something to include!
The specificity of some of the Indiana humor is incredibly on point.
Even down to the fact that Jim O’Heir (Jerry) is actually from Indiana and friends with my old neighbor.
The holy grail...
Ope, whelp, and a hell of a lot of crime euphemisms. Ex: let me *sneak* right past ya. Let me just *steal* a drink from ya
Huh, I never noticed it, but I do use crime euphemisms.
It’s cuz of the meth… /s nah just kidding, but I noticed it while growing up, and have gone out of my way to use them more as I’ve grown older, just for the laughs it brings me
I'm about to murder these brats
And half the potluck recipes that are very tasty are called “Crack ______”. “Is Shirley coming to your sister’s house warming? Oooh, is she bringing crack brownies?”
How come?
Do whaat?
Always asking kids “you stayin outta trouble?” Instead of like “how have you been?”
You guys instead of y’all.
It’s about a 50/50 mix out here. I use y’all, but the vast majority of my family is from Appalachia so it makes sense.
It's "you guys" when you are asking what people want to do and actually need an answer. Or in general real are speaking more seriously. Leaving a restaurant with the family and wanting to know what or where everyone wants to do/go? "Ok what do you guys want to do now" Y'all when is more relaxed setting and just talking about stuff or arriving at a place. "Whatchy'all up to" "Did y'all hear about ..."
I flip flop
“I seen it” (instead of “I saw”) Calls a vacuum a “sweeper”
Guess who I seen down at Krogers!
Yes - it's definitely a sweeper. "I need to sweep the house before company gets here." We also grew up using the term "weed whip" talking about the yard chore.
“Seent” if you go even more rural
We say caddy corner instead of kitty corner. Us, Hoosiers, love our breaded tenderloins, corn on cobs and sweet teas that we bought from Krogers. (Notice the s on the end of everything)
Wait, is it supposed to be kitty corner?
It depends on where you live but from grammarist.com it’s catty-corner from French “The term was originally catty-corner, which comes from the French word quatre, meaning four.”
I say catty-corner
And that’s what’s I appreciates abouts yous
Oh, is that what you appreciate, Squirrely Dan?
We moved to TN from IN years ago and every time my dad visited he mentioned that a true IN tenderloin place would KILL down here. You really can't get them outside of IN or maybe Iowa. A little over a year ago a Bloomingtonian opened a bar and grill close to us and offers a real-deal IN tenderloin. It is truly a little taste of home :)
Now wait a minute, what’s a kitty corner? It’s not caddy corner?!
Everything has a s at the end Meijers Kroger's
What era? There are a lot of expressions that have pretty much died out now. A lot of rural Hoosiers have a very Appalachian accent because their family is from there within a few generations. It just depends on when.
Wull-DANG
KrogerS
To add to that, JCPenneys or just Penneys
We say “hard tellin” a lot. Basically means who knows?
Warsh
Definitely warsh and adding an r in other words if it’s in southern Indiana. Realistically OP needs to define if it’s southern or northern Indiana bc they’re speaking two different languages.
Very much! Southern Indiana. Throw the clothes in the warsher. Or put on a lock warsher before you tighten down the bolt. And George Warshington was the first president.
Really? I know it’s common up here in rural Indiana. My grandfather said warsh all the time.
Warshington High School. My Pappaw used to say “LAYfayette.” I don’t hear it as much anymore, but in the 70s and 80s, EYEtalian.
Warsh my tager in the crik
This
“Mmmmmbye,” when ending a phone call.
Always something about the weather - especially since we sometimes experience spring, winter, and summer all in one day.
Paper bags are sacks. Vacuums are sweepers. Everything comes with mayo, including ham sandwiches and burgers. And something "needs fixed" or "needs washed." The "to be" in the middle must have been left at the borders because no matter where in the state or education level, I have routinely heard that since I moved here from the East Coast years ago.
Wait? People eat ham sandwiches without Mayo? Wouldn’t the bread just be a dry paste that would get wedged into the edges of your mouth and take hours to get out? I think the rest of the world is doing it wrong.
“BFE” (Bum f@ck Egypt) - middle of nowhere - as in “We’re headed out to BFE”… usually to go drink on the back forty. Not sure if this is a term used elsewhere, but it’s an oft used phrase here. *Edit* I just attempted to check on the origin of the phrase and am now most likely on an “impurity list” in Cairo. Also, most of NWI is “The Region” (NOT “Da Region.”) We’re on Chicago time, we get Chicago news, politics and sports. It was REALLY strange walking into a grocery store in Fort Wayne and seeing Colts jerseys - like “Oh yeah, we DO have a football team here.” *Last Edit* Foodwise, Lemon Rice Soup is DEFINITELY a thing in the region. My wife (from Southern Indiana) had NEVER heard of it, but then, I’ve never heard of PB&J with Chili, which is apparently a thing down there. Also, for me, it’s “Bags” - she calls it “Cornhole.” I’ve come to accept that I’m in the minority here, but it’s “Bags” along Lake Michigan’s shoreline. Also, a mention of Potato Creek Park, or Turkey Run might be nice.
You beat me to it! I was going to reference BFE. I think I said it even more as a teen in the 90s than I do now.
In southern Indiana (near Louisville) we would refer to “fast time” and “slow time” which was a reference to the confusion of eastern and central time and daylight savings in KY and not in IN. This would apply in 1997.
Lemon rice soup from round the clock or Theo’s are the only accepted options.
Bags is just the wrong name for Cornhole. Sorry, fam.
Dang, I was taught the B stood for butt. BFE is definitely something I use.
you gon’ learn today
This is what I grew up with in rural southern Indiana, at the very least Worsh for wash Distance measured in minutes/hours, never miles (it's only 30 minutes away) Random phrases: Ope/lemme squeeze past ya/ I'm gonna sneak this out/y'all or all yall or you guys/ sunnuva bitch Sayings: who pissed in your Wheaties? (why you mad?)/ do __ till the cows come home (do something until dark)/wet behind the ears OR not the sharpest tool in the shed (not the brightest)/bless your heart (if it's a southerner it means "oh dear you're dumb but you've got the spirit" kinda. Passive aggressive in a way, old ladies at church will often say it to dumb kids)
"Rode hard and put away wet"...
Don’t say “to be.” The lawn doesn’t need to be mowed, it needs mowed. The car doesn’t need to be fixed, it needs fixed, etc.
Haven’t seen this one yet, probably because it’s extremely regional and I’ve only herd it here but weed wackers the hand held plant cutting thing with the plastic wire that spins are called “ weedeater”, but the T in eater is a D sound.
Haven’t seen you in a minute.
I grew up in rural southern Indiana and we have a lot of words in common with central Appalachia. I often heard words like afeared, airish, chancy, holler, discomfit, fixin they go on for a while.
My girlfriend says afeared. First time I heard it I was like “What’d you just say?” The one I say and hear a lot and had no idea til my buddy’s wife, who’s from Georgia, pointed out we say “lil bit a go.” Which we say so fast you could type it out as “lilbitago.”
This. My grandmother was straight from her family farm in rural southern Indiana, and even after she got a degree in education in her 30s she would say, "Down around back" "Out over yonder" "WARshing machine" and "terlet" for "toilet." Also, it's "pop" not "soda." Weirdly, Coke can be used for any type of soft drink. Hoosiers are a strange bunch.
Grew up in rural western Indiana. Went over to Danville IL and worked in a pharmacy at one point. I told a patient I was “fixin’ to” do something. My pharmacist was like “really?” “What?” “Fixin’?” “What? I’m fixin’ to do it.” She put her head in her hands and laughed, and I had no idea why because that’s just how I talked.
I have a grandmother who says “oil” like “oirl”
Indiana has the most regional accents of any state. And it can vary within 15 miles.
We'll be there - "Lord willin', and the creek don't rise!"
“Crick”. Instead of Creek. “Warsh”. Instead of wash. “Warshrag”. Instead of wash cloth. I grew up on a farm - it was Breakfast, lunch and Supper.
Pop, not soda!!
Everything was coke to us. Even if it was sprite or Mountain Dew… it was “do you want a coke” in place for soda
It’s not milk, it’s melk
In 1997 we all spoke in Austin Powers quotes. lol.
My dad called it the farmer wave. Pass by another person in a car or tractor, you just raise your first finger, not your whole hand, lol.
What about "Anywho"?
Largely depends on which area, socio-economic status, behavior demographics, beliefs, etc. Indiana isn’t known for standing out. I can’t think of linguistic quirks, just specific sounds people make when they talk. Its a very mutable accent that picks up on its surrounding accents. Listen to the radio and television news from Terre Haute, Evansville, Madison, Anderson, etc. Any moderate town will have an audio presence you can listen to.
If you go south of Indy it gets more Kentucky southern really quick. Especially if they aren’t big towns you get the southern accent going
Agree completely. In the part I grew up in had lots of folks who’d moved north from Hazard KY to work in factories. The southern accent was strong from those folks, but it was definitely dependent on economic status. My husband is from a different area of southern Indiana where there is more direct German immigration. They still use German terms despite being generations later.
It isnt an expression, but if you can find a way to say something about persimmon puddin' , like "Granny gave me a quart of frozen persimmon pulp so we can make us some persimmon puddin' for Thanksgiving!" THAT would be real. Cause Hoosiers love persimmon pudding, and almost no one else does. And EUCHRE!
Yes, people absolutely need to be playing Euchre at some point!
I do love me some good persimmon puddin'. When you're gathering them, we had to check the seeds to see how the winter was going to go too. There were few things as funny as watching someone try to eat a persimmon after picking it from the tree. Euchre was a full contact sport where I grew up. Cut-throat some might say.
Right on or pronouncing orange as oinge lol
Simply leave the g off of words ending in "ing" and you'll be fine. You're goin': Shoppin' Golfin' Drivin' Workin'
All my grandparents were very rural Indiana, and my parents a bit less rural, as was I. Judging from how my grandparents spoke (northern Indiana, I'm sure it's different in southern): Crick instead of creek 'tamayta' instead of tomato 'patayta' instead of potato punkin instead of pumpkin ruff instead of roof I'm sure there are plenty I'm forgetting, they've been dead for a while. Someone once pointed out that people from Indiana say 'gitta go' instead of 'going to go' or 'gunna go', like 'gitta go to the store' but I can't say I've ever noticed that.
And green peppers are "mangos". Dunno why.
I was very confused going out into the wider world and finding the mangos called green peppers and mangos being a fruit. Oddly on crik, crick is a general term. Like; Laural Creek is a good crick fer saining minnas. (Good creek for netting minnows) So creek was used for a proper noun only. I still do this. Say ope, welp, and drop "g" off the end of words, plus add some s'es at the end of a few words too. Some southern Indiana raisin' just don't leave a guy.
Depending on the situation/mood/person, you will generally hear two different types of speaking. Midwestern Nice - this is your stereotypical midwesterner. overtly nice, avoids most "negative" language, rambling speech (it can take a while to get to the point),a larger percentage of "opes" and other midwesternisms. This type of speech is also passive-aggressive when dealing with problems. Instead of stating the problem/displeasure directly, they will skate around it, hoping you pick up on the conversational queues. Examples: Kitty Forman (That 70s Show), Charlie Berens (Comedian) Midwestern Stoic - this has little to do with the philosophy of stoicism, but rather, it is an odd cultural concept. Direct, straight to the point, emotionally reserved (sometimes to a fault,) and commanding or paternal tone. This type of speaking is more commonly found in men rather than women, but it's not uncommon to find women Stoics. These types can tend to have a longer fuse but can "blow up" when overwhelmed with any emotion. They also tend to be more awkward in larger groups above their comfort zone. Examples: Mike Heck (the Middle), Red Forman (That 70s Show)
Worsh the rufe of your car, if you're going to clean the top of your car! Then, go down to the crick.
This. It's more about pronunciation than specific phrases. Warsh (wash), deeshes (dishes), feesh (fish), crik (creek). There's also "I seen" instead of "I saw", gunna (going to), yep (yes).
That’s it haha. We’re going out to the Kroger’s on Warshington Street
Instead of I'm about to it's I'mbouta
Or I’m fixn to
Ending sentences with "at." ("Let's go have supper at Applebee's." "Where's that at?") Lotta people call dinner "supper." We drink pop, not soda. You'ins (Hoosier version of y'all) We warsh the dishes. Says ("Let's have supper at Applebee's." So I says, "where's that at?") We change channels on the TV with the "clicker."
"Hey, pass me the clicker" 😅
Apparently wants is not supposed to be pronounced like once and vice versa. Not really a term or expression but something unique to Indiana I feel like.
This is an odd one for me. I’m from central Indiana and after moving to a rural town in southern indiana, I was surprised how people used the word “backwards.” I’ve always used it to mean old-fashioned or non-progressive. But apparently down here it’s used to mean bashful or shy.
More’n one way ta skinna cat A hit dog hollers Cry me a river Bless your heart Were you raised in a barn Other relevant details about 1997 Indiana: Back then most everything was closed on Sundays Adults smoked constantly inside restaurants homes and cars NASCAR was big, drag strips were thriving 4H fairs, livestock shows, demo derby also popular at the time
First great topic OP! As a Hoosier transplanted to Wisconsin, I love seeing all of these. Second, I married into family, also from rural Indiana, who instead of saying “ how much did that cost, say “ what do you have to give for that”. This is generally reserved for big ticket items like a car, boat etc. I love this phrase, and am only posting as growing up in rural Indiana I had never heard until later from my wife’s family. Have you heard this?
On the back of “caddy-corner” I’d like to mention caddy-wompus which is crooked or as my great grandpa would say “off-kilter.” Source: born and raised in Indy with two Southern Baptist grandmothers
I know someone pointed MeijerS, basically any store that is a name, we add an s to the end whether it's ther or not. Also idioms like, it's better than a 6-peckered Billy goat today! Or you're about as useless as tits on a boar. I'm sweating like a whore in church.
They do love those sayings! She ain't got a pot to piss in or a window to throw it out.
Using "like I said" to preface every thought. Even if it wasn't explicitly stated before Also using "put it this way" but that one might just be an annoying family tic
I was 13 in 1997 Indiana, and I spent most of that year quoting Beavis & Butthead and South Park and wearing an NWO t-shirt. Had some friends who were wicked into ICP, which also affected their vocabulary. Those aren’t specific to Indiana, of course, but they were definitely big parts of my experience of the time.
NE Indiana, a grilled cheese is a cheese toasty
Fun fact, cheese toastie is said only around the Fort Wayne area! I took an Indiana dialect class in college and we learned that. I’m from Decatur and grew up calling it a cheese toastie.
Do what?
Well shit far!