Hoi Toiders

We're playing in Beaufort tonight out in the Outer Banks. The town is about a 30 minute drive, but less than 10 miles as the crow flies, from Harker's Island. Harker's is known for a dialect specific to this island and the areas immediately around it, this dialect is called "High Tider" or as it's pronounced in the dialect "Hoi Toider". This dialect is said to date back as far as Elizabethan times, and it existed in almost complete isolation in North Carolina for well over 2 centuries. The dialect survives today because of the regions dependence on traditional trades like fishing, but there's only a hundred or so speakers left. Highways and tourism have washed the dialect out of the region, more or less. Check out this short video to learn some more and to hear it, really fascinating stuff out here in the Old North State!

We're playing at the Backstreet Pub tonight in Beaufort. Hopefully it cools down a bit, Hit's so hot the blue crebs hev come up on the poyzer to git in the shade!

Peace and good music,

Ellis D