along (’long)
In Southern and Appalachian speech, along often appears as the contraction ’long, especially in storytelling phrases like "’long about that time" (meaning "around then"). You’ll also hear it in place-talk ("’long the creek" = "along the creek").
Some words, like '’long about 'midnight, I had no idea there was another way of saying it. Pronunciation
Meaning & Usage
- Dialectal contraction of "along" → "’long" (form/phonology)
Where’d y’all walk?’Long the creek bank to the old bridge.- "’Long about" = "around; approximately (then)" (time phrase)
When’d the storm roll in?’Long about sundown, sky turned near black.Origin
Older English reductions and a-prefix patterns have lingered in Southern/Appalachian speech. Dictionaries of regional English note ’long about as especially common in the South/South Midland, particularly among older speakers and in oral storytelling.
Notes
Use ’long in informal writing or quoted speech to capture dialect flavor. In formal prose, keep the full form along. Time phrases ("’long about," "’long towards") are classic in reminiscences and porch-talk narratives.
Say It Like a Southerner
Say it natural: drop the initial "a-" in relaxed speech → ’long. In time phrases, "about" often softens to "’bout": ’long ’bout daylight.