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Rotary Club of Highlands Entertained by Stacy Guffey’s Mountain Talk
Issue: Whats News
Macon County native Stacy Guffey recently entertained Rotary Club of Highlands members as he explored the dialects we speak in the US, especially “Appalachian English” or Smokey Mountain English”. Guffey assured his audience that our “Mountain Talk” is a real dialect with its own accent and grammar.
L to R: Dave O’Harra, President, Rotary Club of Highlands; Stacy Guffey, Speaker and Ryan Hanchett, Rotarian and Host.
Challenging third and fourth generation Highlanders in his audience, Guffey gave a series of quizzes that highlighted some words, patterns and euphemisms that brought out the mountain folk in many listeners. One quiz included a series of pictures that helped to identify “maters, taters, a tar, a far, okre, and warsh”!
Guffey studies languages as a hobby and works on projects to promote and preserve mountain culture. He helped establish and run the Arts and Heritage Center at the old Cowee School and founded a consultancy practice to help with economic development and planning projects throughout Western North Carolina. From 2004-2009 he served as Macon County’s planner and currently serves as a Franklin Town Councilor.
