I'm not sure I've ever heard 'our'n' before, but I've heard tell.
Pronunciation
[ARR-uhn] or [OWR-uhn]
Meaning & Usage
- Ours / Belonging to Us (pronoun)
Claiming ownership
Earl:
Is that garden spot their’n?
Mae:
No, that’s our’n, right past the fence.
Taking turns
Ruby:
It was their’n yesterday, but today it’s our’n.
variations: our’n, ourn, our one
★ Though less common than "his’n" or "your’n," "our’n" follows the same homespun grammar pattern. Knowing it rounds out the whole set of Appalachian possessives. ★
Origin
Built from "our" plus "one" - as in "that one is ours." Like the other -n forms, it reflects Scots-Irish influence and older English speech patterns in the Appalachians and South. It’s documented in dialect writing from the 1800s onward.
Notes
"Our’n" isn’t heard as often as "his’n" or "your’n," but it appears in older Appalachian stories, oral histories, and dialect-rich novels. Even if rare, it makes sense in the same family of words.
Say It Like a Southerner
Say "our" (either "are" or "ow-er" depending on your drawl), then tack on a quick "’n" like in "one." Together it sounds like "arr’n" or "owrn." It’s less common, but follows the same pattern as the others.
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Is that garden spot their’n?