What did you think of this episode?
Appalachians call the process of making molasses a 'stir-off.' The word 'molasses' becomes 'lasses' or 'molassey' in the local dialect, a vernacular blend resulting from English, German, and Scotch-Irish migrants who flooded the Appalachian mountains in the 18th and 19th centuries. Kentucky writer Jesse Stuart was among the first to put 'molassey' to print in his 1938 memoir Beyond Dark Hills. Whether they are talking about several jars or just a teaspoonful, 'molasses' is referenced by central Appalachians in the plural, a southern grammar pattern recorded as early as 1895, according to the Dictionary of American Regional English.
Molasses-making was an annual event in my family for years, so I'm sharing the process of a molasses 'run' and why we count it among our favorite memories.
Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts and review us!
Support the show by sharing links to episodes on social or here at our Patreon page:
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
Acoustic music on most episodes: "Steam Train" written by Elizabeth Cotten and performed by Landon Spain
What did you think of this episode?
Appalachians call the process of making molasses a 'stir-off.' The word 'molasses' becomes 'lasses' or 'molassey' in the local dialect, a vernacular blend resulting from English, German, and Scotch-Irish migrants who flooded the Appalachian mountains in the 18th and 19th centuries. Kentucky writer Jesse Stuart was among the first to put 'molassey' to print in his 1938 memoir Beyond Dark Hills. Whether they are talking about several jars or just a teaspoonful, 'molasses' is referenced by central Appalachians in the plural, a southern grammar pattern recorded as early as 1895, according to the Dictionary of American Regional English.
Molasses-making was an annual event in my family for years, so I'm sharing the process of a molasses 'run' and why we count it among our favorite memories.
Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts and review us!
Support the show by sharing links to episodes on social or here at our Patreon page:
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
Acoustic music on most episodes: "Steam Train" written by Elizabeth Cotten and performed by Landon Spain