Date: Sun, 8 May 1994 12:53:26 EDT

From: Larry Horn LHORN[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]YALEVM.CIS.YALE.EDU

Subject: Re: y'all



In response to Don Lance and Beth Lee Simon's citations of singular y'all, has

it been suggested by someone that at least in some quarters (no, not case

quarters) there's an incipient spreading of the plural 2d person pronoun to

the singular as a sign of formal politeness, exactly analogous to the "V"

forms in Romance (etc.) and presumably to "you" in earlier English? If

someone did mention this on this thread, sorry. --Larry