The Talking Appalachian Podcast

By: Amy D. Clark
  • Summary

  • Talking Appalachian is a podcast about the Appalachian Mountain region's language or "voiceplaces," cultures, and communities. The podcast is hosted by Dr. Amy Clark, a Professor of Communication Studies and Director of the Center for Appalachian Studies at the University of Virginia's College at Wise. The podcast is based on her 2013 co-edited book Talking Appalachian: Voice, Identity, and Community. Her writing on Appalachia has appeared in the New York Times, Oxford American Magazine, Salon.com, on NPR, and Harvard University Press blog. She is also founder and director of the Appalachian Writing Project, which serves teachers, students, and the communities of the central Appalachian region.

    © 2024 The Talking Appalachian Podcast
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Episodes
  • What Do We Mean by 'Directly' and 'Needs Washed'?
    Nov 13 2024

    What did you think of this episode?

    This episode is about a word and a phrase that are still commonly used in the Appalachian region. First, I'll offer a little refresher on what makes up a dialect and how these words fit in. We'll talk about "directly" as in "I'll be there directly" and the phrase needs + a participle (like washed.) Who uses them and where? What's the history behind them? And how should teachers treat words and phrases like this if they appear in their students' writing?

    Sources for this episode: The Yale Grammatical Diversity Project, the Dictionary of American Regional English, and Talking Appalachian: Voice, Identity, and Community (Eds. Clark and Hayward, 2014).

    Ivy Attic Co
    Jewelry from coal, river glass, and discarded books handcrafted in the central Appalachian Mountains

    Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

    Support the show

    *Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts and review us (if you like it)!
    *Support the show by sharing links to episodes on social
    *Subscribe to support us on the Facebook Talking Appalachian page, or here at our Patreon page to get bonus content:
    Talking Appalachian Podcast | Covering the Appalachian Region from North to South | Patreon
    *Paypal to support the show: @amyclarkspain
    *Follow and message me on IG, FB, YouTube: @talkingappalachian
    *To sponsor an episode or collaborate: aclark@virginia.edu or message me at the link here or on social.

    Unless another artist is featured, acoustic music on most episodes: "Steam Train" written by Elizabeth Cotten and performed by Landon Spain

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    9 mins
  • Places and Spaces: Edgar Allen Poe's Baltimore Home and a Reading of "The Raven"
    Oct 31 2024

    What did you think of this episode?

    In this "Places and Spaces" episode, we'll mark the October anniversary of Edgar Allen Poe's mysterious death with a visit to Poe's house in Baltimore and the cemetery where he is buried.
    Then, listen to a haunting reading of "The Raven" (with audio by Brock Davidson.)

    Special thanks to Brock Davidson for lending his voice to The Raven. Contact: gbdavidson7@icloud.com.

    Support the show

    *Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts and review us (if you like it)!
    *Support the show by sharing links to episodes on social
    *Subscribe to support us on the Facebook Talking Appalachian page, or here at our Patreon page to get bonus content:
    Talking Appalachian Podcast | Covering the Appalachian Region from North to South | Patreon
    *Paypal to support the show: @amyclarkspain
    *Follow and message me on IG, FB, YouTube: @talkingappalachian
    *To sponsor an episode or collaborate: aclark@virginia.edu or message me at the link here or on social.

    Unless another artist is featured, acoustic music on most episodes: "Steam Train" written by Elizabeth Cotten and performed by Landon Spain

    Show more Show less
    13 mins
  • Grave Matters: Appalachian Death Lore, Burial, and Mourning Rituals
    Oct 29 2024

    What did you think of this episode?

    In this chilling episode (just in time for spooky week), SWVA Museum Education Specialist Burke Greear joins me to talk about pre-funeral industry Appalachian customs and superstitions surrounding premonitions, death and burial. We'll explore the roots of terms like "death watch," "sitting up with the dead," "pallbearer," "kick the bucket," "living room" and "funeral parlor." Later, we'll talk about memorialization in death photography, memory pieces made of the hair of the deceased, and gravestones. We'll cover the do's and don'ts of death lore involving entering and exiting a house, covering mirrors, stopping clocks, and heeding the warning of a bird flying into the house (many people still live by these). And there's more: I'll share with you an excerpt of my favorite short story, "The Corpse Bird" by Ron Rash (set on Halloween). Trust me, if you've never read it, you'll want to after hearing the first part!

    Special thanks to Burke Greear and the Southwest Virginia Museum and Historical State Park for the research and interview material.
    "Corpse Bird" excerpt is from the short story collection Burning Bright by Ron Rash

    Support the show

    *Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts and review us (if you like it)!
    *Support the show by sharing links to episodes on social
    *Subscribe to support us on the Facebook Talking Appalachian page, or here at our Patreon page to get bonus content:
    Talking Appalachian Podcast | Covering the Appalachian Region from North to South | Patreon
    *Paypal to support the show: @amyclarkspain
    *Follow and message me on IG, FB, YouTube: @talkingappalachian
    *To sponsor an episode or collaborate: aclark@virginia.edu or message me at the link here or on social.

    Unless another artist is featured, acoustic music on most episodes: "Steam Train" written by Elizabeth Cotten and performed by Landon Spain

    Show more Show less
    23 mins

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