Edited by Azizi Powell
Latest revision- Oct. 5, 2023
This pancocojams post focuses of the contemporary* use by African Americans and others of the word "ayee", "aaa", "ayy", and similarly spelled words,The Addendum of this post provides some information and comments about the 2014-2017 viral internet meme "ayy lmao", with particular focus on the "tyrone ayy lmao" meme.
The content of this post is presented for linguistic and socio-cultural purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.
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*In the context of this post, "contemporary" means "the 2000s".
This pancocojams post replaces a 2017 post on this subject. I made considerable revisions of that post before I decided to delete it and publish a new post. This 2023 post includes the comments from the discussion thread of that deleted post. I wrote most of those comments.
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Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2017/07/similarities-differences-between-yoruba.html for the pancocojams post: Similarities & Differences Between The Yoruba Word "Aiye" And The American Word "Ayee"
Also, click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2023/10/five-youtube-video-examples-of-ghanaian.html for the pancocojams post entitled "Five YouTube Video Examples Of The Ghanaian Worship Song "Aye" with explanations about the meaning of Ghanaian word "Aye" & other comments.
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PANCOCOJAMS EDITOR'S NOTE
I also use "contemporary African American word" to differentiate "Ayee" from the Mexican phrase "ay yai yai" (also written as "ay yi yi"). That phrase is variation of "ay", an interjection used in Spanish to convey a range of emotions, from pain to surprise to excitement. (https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-underlying-meaning-behind-saying-aye-yi-yi-and-where-did-this-expression-come-from)
In addition, the contemporary African American word "Ayee" has a different pronunciation and meaning than the Ghanaian word "Aye" that comes the Akan *Twi) word "Ayeyi). The Ghanaian word "Aye" is pronounced the same as the Yoruba word "Aye". (eye+yeah).
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The contemporary African American exclamation "Ayee" is pronounced like an elongated letter "a" (which is the way that letter sounds in the words "day", "say", "bay" etc.)
This pronunciation is different than the much older English words "Aye" and "Aye Aye" which mean "Yes" and are largely associated with sailors. Also, the contemporary African American exclamation "Ayee" is pronounced differently and has a different meaning than the Mexican saying "Ay yi yi". Like the English word "Aye" given immediately above, the Mexican (Spanish) word "Ay" is pronounced the same as the English letter "i" and the English word "eye".
Furthermore, the contemporary African American exclamation "Ayee" is pronounced differently than the Nigerian (Yoruba language) word "Aiye" (which is sometimes written as "Aye"). The Yoruba word "aiye" is pronounced like the letter "i" and the English word "yeah". Furthermore, the Yoruba word "aiye" means "world"/ "earth" which is an entirely different meaning than the contemporary African American exclamation "ayee".
("Aye" is the name of a 2014 hit record by Nigerian/American Afrobeats artist Davido. Click https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZ-_HIoEBE8 for the official video of that song).
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I don't know when the African American Exclamation "Ayee" was first used. However, the earliest online example that I found is from 2004:
"The ish
The joint; tight off the chains...really good
Ay young dem shoes is the ish!
by MickeyT March 17, 2004"
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Here are two examples of the word "Ayee" from 2006:
From https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=ayee
WARNING- Some other entries on this page contain sexually explicit content.
These numbers are given for referencing purposes only
1."ayeeee
An exclamation of happiness and excitement shouted in and
around Nelson, BC made famous by Rease.
"Dude, check out that sunset....ayeeee!!"
by Shane_in_BC June 7, 2006
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2. "ayee
When someone who is very popular walks into a room at school or at a party ayee means Heyyy look justins here.
(bunch of people) Ayeeeee Ayeeeeeee *claps*
#ayee#xthar#party#hey#clapps"
by Xtharr December 12, 2006
Although examples of the contemporary African American Exclamation "Ayee" ("Ayy!" etc) can be found before 2016, it appears from the titles of Hip Hop records and from internet comments that 2016 was the year that "Ayee" became popular.
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The contemporary African American word "Ayee"; "Ayy", "Aaaa" can be found at the beginning of a sentence,but is most often used alone as an exclamation.
When "Ayee" is found in the beginning of a sentence, it has the same meaning as the contemporary African American word "Yo" i.e "Hey".
When "Ayee" is used as an exclamation it conveys happiness, excitement, approval, agreement, and/or encouragement (i.e.to hype up someone or something).This African American word is rarely found at the end of a sentence.
Depending on the context, African American Vernacular English synonyms for the exclamation "Ayee" are "Get it!, "Work it!", "Do it!" (i.e. compliments and encouragement for something that was said or done, or someone who did/is doing something). In standard English, those synonyms for "ayee" are "Yay!", "Whoopee!", and "That's great!".
Based on some examples given below, the African American exclamation "Ayee" may have initially been spelled "Aaaa!".
Notice how most of the examples of the African American word "Ayee" that are compiled in this post represent the elongated pronunciation of that word by adding vowels and/or other letters toward the end of that word. That internet custom is discussed in this quote from https://www.quora.com/What-does-someone-mean-when-they-say-heyyy-instead-of-hey-on-IM
Akiko Kasagawa, Mar 1, 2012
"In my experience, adding multiples of a final letter is either a) a sign someone is drunk or high or b) excited!! Example:
Intoxicated: heyyyy whats upp :)
Excited (a crush texts you "hi"): heyyy!!
In my circle of friends, its just a phonetic way of extending the last sound of a word ((could also be hiii heeeey or whats uuuup)) for emphasis."
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In internet social media, if a word is elongated and/or if it is written with capitol letters, the feeling that word conveys is increased. Therefore, to social media writers, that style of writing may take the place of exclamation points.
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These comments refer to the word "ayee" and not the exclamation "Ayee!"
I don't agree with all of the comments that are given below.
1. "ayeee
word meaning hey or whats up.
ayeee brahh whats with u!
#a#aye#ay#ayee#brahh#bra#bit
by Kara a.k.a Karebear January 07, 2009
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2. "Ayeee doe!
That's cool/awesome!
b: BoHey man check out this new Madden game I just got for my Xbox.
Will: Ayeee doe! I saw the commercial for it yesterday!
by Hyphennn March 26, 2012
3. "Ayeee
V. To greet a good friend 2.To be surprised or shocked.
1. AYeeeeee wassup bro! 2. Aye! Chill wit all that
randy......
by Whats what February 18, 2021
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4. "Ayee
Its used to express happiness, usually to hype up something.
person1:look at what i have got for you!
person2:ayee! i like that.. thanks mate!
by whoo iss thiss December 20, 2022
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1. "Ayy
"Ayy" is an expression of greeting, most likely coming from the word "hey". It is mostly used in ghetto culture, or by people high on marijuana, and can also be used as an insult or mockery.
Ayy, Tyrone, grab me the remote will 'ya?
Ayy, Irvin, haven't seen you in a while!"...
by TheChudeDude June 06, 2016
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2. "ayee
is another word for yeaaa.but in a happyer cooler way...mostly used when something sexuall was said
tim: omg i went to the club and i got me 2 sexys
mike: ayeee
#yay#day#lay#say#slay"
by rubencito March 09, 2008
Here's information about Atlanta's nickname from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicknames_of_Atlanta
"Since [the first nicknames for Atlanta, Georgia were documented in 1859] , the city has known numerous nicknames. Today, The ATL, and The A are the most prevalent.
Contemporary nicknames of Atlanta include, in alphabetical order:
The A/da A: It is used in local media such as Only in the A, a video channel shown on MARTA rapid transit trains in Atlanta[2] and Straight from the A, a popular[3] Atlanta-based blog targeted at African Americans.[4] "The A" or "da A" is also used in hip hop and rap songs such as Ludacris and Lloyd's "How We Do It (in da A)", Lil Scrappy's "The A", and T.I.'s "In da A". Atlanta newspaper Creative Loafing listed as one of its "reasons to love Atlanta" that it's "the only city easily identified by just one letter".[5]
The Atlanta nickname "A" is sometimes written in an elongated form. Since that nickname and the social media word "aay" are pronounced the same, it's sometimes difficult to determine if those elongated examples are Atlanta's "A" nickname or the contemporary use of the word "ayee" ("ayy"). For instance, read #3 and #7 in the "Examples of Atlanta's "A" Nickname" section below.
A-Town[6]
The ATL,[7] for its airport code”...
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I'm not sure when "A" was first used as a nickname for Atlanta, Georgia.
These examples are given in no particular order and are numbered regardless of their source for referencing purposes only
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TMk-SvdA0VA
T.I.- In Da A; Uploaded on Dec 18, 2007
1. Jay Dee, 2010
"Whatchaknowbout that!!! Southwest...East Point to be exact!!!
Remind me of spring/summer in the "A"...everybody out on the weekend living it up. Damn I miss GA..."
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2. D.J. Williams, 2010
"some of these places ain't da A. They're in the metro area."
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3. Money Dollars, 2010
"ay homes i need to get dis song from u i been lookin fo dis bit forever"
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"ay" may be a shortened form of "ayy" (or "ayee") or "ay" could be the "A" nickname for Atlanta.
"Homes" here is probably a shortened form of the referent "homie" (a person from your neighborhood or city")
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4. Jay Dab, 2013
"this was a str8 classic... i miss this... Tha real A fa show"
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5. Opal Wilson, 2016
"In Da AAAAAAA"
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From https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vi0eupHOp2g
Lloyd ft. Ludacris - How We Do It In The A - Lyrics *HD* , Published on Aug 27, 2010
''How We Do It (In the A)'... released on August 5th, 2008.
6.mike jones, 2010
"When u in da A... da king rep da city hard, since day 1 !! ... n still does to this day
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When you're in the A, the king represents this city hard, (and has) since day one... and still does to this day."
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7. Shanxta, 2016
“aaaaaaaaa”
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This may refer to Atlanta or may be the vocalization “ayy”.
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Update Oct,5, 2023- Read my comments in this post's discussion thread below about the Happy Days television sit-com character Fonzie's catch-phrase "aaa" and why I don't think that it is directly or indirectly the source of this contemporary "ayye" word or exclamation.
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WARNING: These records may include profanity, the n word, and other parent advisory content .
Dae Dae - "Wat U Mean (Aye, Aye, Aye)" [Official Video] published April 25, 2016
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Queen Key • Ayeee | [Official Video] Filmed By @RayyMoneyyy, published Sep 10, 2016
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Here are two comments from that video's discussion thread:
@Sticksonpoint, 2016
"nvrm thought it was fire till she started saying aye 😂😂😂"
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@cristinabruh5527, 2017
"ayyyyyeee👌😍"
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JUICE WRLD | AYE AYEEE | FIRST MUSIC VIDEO, published Jul 24, 2018
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Here's a comment from that video's discussion thead
@Lemon-hope, 2023
"its actually over 7 years old. He made it in early 2016"
D-Aye ft. OMB Peezy & Yung Bleu - Ayeee, published Feb 15, 2018
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Notice that the rapper's name includes the word "Aye" and the record's title is "Ayeee".
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Here's a comment from the discussion thread for that video:
@gamingwithdajuan6708, 2018
"Ayye ayye ahha ahh ganh"
MORE EXAMPLES OF "AYEE" ("AYY" OR OTHER SPELLINGS OF THAT WORD) FROM AFRICAN AMERICAN CENTERED YOUTUBE VIDEOS
The examples in this section are given in no particular order and are numbered regardless of their source for referencing purposes only. Brief explanatory comments are given for some of these examples.
From https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TMk-SvdA0VA T.I.- In Da A; Uploaded on Dec 18, 2007
1. We Were Once Kings, 2015
"Reppin Zone 4/ Campbellton Rd, Oakland City to Ben Hill hooee" aaayyee memories"
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From https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_IdEjJIbn4
Sh*t Atlanta People Say Published on Jan 24, 2012
Howard University GA Club
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This is the way this title is given on YouTube. The video was published by Howard University's (located in Washington, D.C.) Georgia club (whose members are Howard students from the state of Georgia).
Howard University is a Historically Black College & University (HBCU).
Warning: This video's discussion thread contains language that I believe is inappropriate for children.
2. Cira Whitehead, 2016
"ayyyyeeeee he got the wolfpack pants. #woodland high"
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"wolfpack" is the mascot for Woodland High School. an Atlanta, Georgia area high school.
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3. Keitra Robinson, 2013
"Ayeeee! I see y'all taped this at FAMU doe that's what's up!"
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...I see you video taped this at the Florida Historically Black College & University that is known as FAMU. though. That's what's up. (That's great!).
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From https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-IskSOSc0Wg Atlanta Lingo Challenge (Compilation) | @HoodEdition
Hood Edition 2, Published on Mar 20, 2016
4. Brittany Humphrey, 2017
"Ayeeee mannnn 🤘🏾😂 I love my city"
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From https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfZ1z36fYfs
Sh*t Atlanta People Say Part 2, Published on Jan 31, 2012
Warning: This video's discussion thread contains language that I believe is inappropriate for children.
5. RK4LTV, 2014
"Ayyyyyy Bend Over #RK4L Ain't know Trading"
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"Bend Over" is the title of one of the songs that is featured as background music in this video. I don't know what the rest of that comment means.
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6. cheleski68, 2013
"AAAAAAAAA team natural!!
crazy!"
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"AAAAAAA" in this comment is an expression of hilarity.
“Team natural” is what one young man wearing a messed up, obvious wig in this purposely comedic video. The man was wearing a recognizable wig. Note: Men don't usually wear wigs. "Team natural" means a hypothetical club whose members are all Black people who wear their hair in natural styles. After the man in the video said "Team natural", he paused and said "Wait, is a lace front natural?". "Lace front" wigs are certain type of wigs. A number of people commented about how funny these comments were (using African American Vernacular English such as [writing the comments and then using the hashtag "dead" after it- meaning the comment made them "die laughing"]. Those comments are funny in part because of how the man looked, but also because no lace front wig, or any wig for that matter are naturals [hairstyles].
*KeAysha Triplett, 2011
"Wait, is a lacefront natural?
#DEAD"
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From https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7mbArIgGYrA
HOUSTON SLANG VS. MEMPHIS SLANG | COLLAB, Published on Apr 9, 2017
7.kallme paris, 2017
"ayyy live asf"
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This example is given to document the widely found letter phrase "af" as f--k" to refer to a superlative (something that is really very very good).
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"Live" here is also a high compliment, and means something which is "alive" and full of energy.
https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=live
"live
Jumping, full of people, exciting. Something was very enjoyable
That rave was live
The place was live
by bL@Z3N 0m3G@ April 30, 2003
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ADDENDUM - INFORMATION ABOUT THE MEME "AYY LMAO"
"About
“Ayy LMAO” is an expression and Tumblr hashtag which is almost always associated with pictures of aliens.
Origin
The image of the alien has circulated the web since as early as November 2012, appearing on a number of Portuguese and Spanish-language paranormal sites including Tempo Espaço[1], El Gurú[2] and El Rincon Paranormal.[3] Though it is unclear where the photo was first posted, it was referenced on Twitter on March 31st, 2013 in a conversation between two users."...
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The "ayy" in "ayy lmao" is usually pronounced like the English word "eye" while "ayye" (or similarly spelled words) are pronounced like an elongated English letter "a". And although it's not pertinent to this post, the familiar internet acronym "Lmao" (laughing my ass off" has different pronunciation - each letter may be pronounced separately or "lmao" may be pronounced as a complete word (which is usually given its Portuguese meaning of "lemon".)
Tyrone (or Big Man Tyrone) is one form of the "ayy lmao" meme. Although "Tyrone" has been labeled as an "African American" personal name, the Black man wearing a suit in these "ayy lmao" videos has a non-English (Portuguese?) accent.
1:15 - Behind The Meme directs viewers to urbandictionary.com for meanings for "ayy!". He cited two meanings for that word stating that it could be "a friendly type of greeting or used to express anger. – it all depends on the type of tone that you use."
Here are two time stamped quotes from that video:
1:29 - "Ayy! is heavily used in urban culture and is believed to have evolved from the word “Hey” (The on screen spelling of this word is “Heyyy!”)
1:34 - "This type of informal, laid back greeting is also associated with marijuana culture. Because of this the aliens have been depicted smoking joints."
1:47 - The remainder of the video focuses on why ayy lmao is associated with depictions of aliens.
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Here's one urbandictionary.com entry for "ayy lmao":
From https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Ayy+lmao&page=2
"ayy lmao
A phrase that began on Tumblr as a caption for any picture of an extraterrestrial, ostensibly because that is the only thing an extraterrestrial ever says. Since its Tumblr beginnings it has come to be used when referencing any unattractive female, particularly one so hideous as to resemble an extraterrestrial herself.
Rupert: Did you see the girl I was with last night?
Dave: Ayy lmao!
Rupert: Dude, she wasn't that ugly."
#ayy lmao #ugly #alien #extraterrestrial #tumblr
by Levontaun February 11, 2015
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The word "that" in the example given above was given in italics.
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Daniel Fernandes, May 7. 2016
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Notice that the phrase "ayy lmao" the word "ayy" appears to usually be pronounced like the English word “eye” and not the English letter “a” elongated (stretched out). The "lmao" ("laughing my ass off") internet acronym is pronounced like "lah-mahoh"
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COMMENTS FROM THE DELETED 2017 PANCOCOJAMS POST ON THIS SUBJECT
Regarding the possible influence of Atlanta, Georgia regarding the use of the term "ayee" ("ayy"), the only first hand experience that I have with this, occurred recently during a "Drum Line" concert in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
ReplyDelete
A Black woman and her three teenage daughters sat behind my daughter, my granddaughter, and me and cheerfully shouted "Aaaaaa!" throughout the performance. During intermission, my daughter and I chatted with the women and learned that they had moved to Pittsburgh from Atlanta a few months before this. My daughter asked them why did they shout "Aaaaaa" and they said that's an Atlanta custom when you like a performance.
I should mention that "aaaaa" wasn't pronounced as a high pitched squeal like the Winston-Salem State University cheerleader yelp (or the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. signature call. Instead, it sounds just like or very similar to the signature word that the Fonz is known for in the 1974-1984 Happy Days television show.
I'd love to hear more first hand experiences of the use of "aaaaa" ("ayee"; ayy") outside of the internet or telephone texting.I'm re-reading this comment more that six years later and want to clarify that the "Aaaa" exclamation (which I think is spelled "Ayeee" or similar ways) is pronounced like the letter "a" (in the words "day", "say", "bay" etc; i.e. the letter a rhymes with those words.
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What may make what I wrote in 2017 somewhat confusing is that I've found that in informal settings, most African American people pronounce the word "a" as "ah". For instance, the rhyme, "A one and a two and you know what to do", is pronounced as "Ah one and ah two and you know what to do".
However, what I meant to convey in my 2017 comment is that the woman and her daughters from Atlanta, Georgia were shouting an elongated form of the letter "a".Here's a link to a 2010 YouTube video of a clip of Fonzie (from the television series Happy Days saying his signature exclamation which that video titles "eyy":
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yyzK6e6py9A
Here's a comment from that video's discussion thread:
@LogoAttitude, 2012
"I wonder if ABC ever ran a commercial where the Fonz says something along the lines of: "catch Happy Days this Tuesday Night on ayyyyyyyyy-BC"
My daughter teaches line dancing at an African American summer school program for middle school students in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
ReplyDelete
She just shared with me that during a portion of one of her groups students were tasked with creating their own line dance using Hip Hop dance steps. When each girl or boy danced alone in the middle, the other students shouted in support "Aaaaa!", "Aaaaa!" (pronounced like the letter "a" elonged).
My daughter said this is like how people used to say "I see you!", "Get it!" or "You betta work it!". She also said that the "Aaaaa!, Aaaaaa!" exclamations were made for every dancer and not only were used to applaud good dancing, but also served the purpose of cheering dancers on and "pump them up", encouraging them to dance even better.For the record, my daughter also shared that the students who were singing "Aaaaa!" on the sidelines while one person was dancing in the middle of the circle were standing in place but also doing some currently "in" contemporary Hip Hop dance move as they sang/cheered the middle dancer on. However, she doesn't know the name of that dance.
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I always wondered if theres a connection between the congolese lingala language "yo" meaning you and the african american "yo" mostly used to get someone's attention. But from my research, apparently people from the congo were not significant in north america
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment, unknown August 8, 2017.
Delete
The word "Yo" is found in other traditional languages besides Lingala.
For example, here's a link to the 2017 pancocojams post "The Word "Yo" In The West African Languages Temne (Sierra Leone) & Twi (Ghana)" https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2017/04/the-word-yo-in-west-african-languages.html.
However, I don't know if any traditional African language influenced African American's use of the word "Yo".
Also, I don't agree that "people from the Congo were not significant in North America". Here's a quote from
https://familysearch.org/wiki/en/African_American_Place_of_Origin
"Place of Origin
80+ percent of all slaves arriving in North America came directly from Africa
Senegambia—13 percent (coast between present day Senegal and Gambia)
Gold Coast—16 percent (most of present day Ghana)
Bight of Biafra—23 percent (most of present day Nigeria and Cameroon))
Windward Coast—11 percent (present day Liberia and Ivory Coast)
Region between Angola and Congo—25 percent (present day Congo, Zaire, Angola, Namibia)
Ports of Arrival
As popular as DNA is in providing clues to ancestral origins, learning the likely port of entry for one’s African American ancestry will give important clues to their place of origin in Africa. Below are distributions of African origins based upon entry into the U.S. in South Carolina, Virginia, and New Orleans.
South Carolina
40 percent of all Africans arrived through Charleston, SC from the following areas:
Angola/Congo represented 40 percent
Senegambia represented 19 percent
Windward Coast represented 16 percent
Gold Coast represented 13 percent
etc."
And, of course there's the historically documented and culturally important image of Congo Square in New Orleans.
So yes, more people of African descent who were enslaved in the United States were from West Africa, but that doesn't mean that people from the Congolese region weren't historically significant in the USA (if not Canada) in numbers of enslaved people and in turns of cultural influence.
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The 2022 song "Ayee Ayee" by Jindi was sung at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar, although it wasn't the anthem song for that event. That song was Nigerian produced. The word "Ayee" is pronounced like the English word "eye" with an "ee" ending.
ReplyDeleteAs noted in this pancocojams post, this word's meaning and its pronunciation is different from the African American word "ayee". Instead of being pronounced like the Nigerian word "ayee", the African American word is pronounced the same as the letter "a" in the words "day", "say", "bay" etc. and means excitement, approval, encouragement, agreement etc.
Click https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_h6mjirx6UE for a sound file of Jindi's song "Ayee Ayee".
The "aaa" catch phrase that the "Happy Days" television series character "Fonzie" is known for is pronounced the same as the contemporary African American "ayye" word and exclamation. However, I don't believe that that 1974-1984 catch phrase directly or indirectly influenced the creation and dissemination of what I refer to as the contemporary African American word & exclamation "ayye".I don't believe that because The "Happy Days" television show stopped airing on television in 1984 (except for scarcely shown re-runs) and the "ayye" word/exclamation appears to have started around the early 2000s. Therefore, it's unlikely that the population of young African Americans (who the contemporary word/exclamation "ayye" is mostly associated with) have even heard of Fonzie and his catch-phrase. Also, unlike Fonzie's "aaa" catch phrase, the contemporary "ayye" word and exclamation doesn't have any gesture that accompanies it.
ReplyDeleteI believe that it's just a coincidence that Fonzie's catch-phase (at least when he says "aaa" and not "heyye") sounds like or almost like the contemporary word/exclamation "ayye".