Edited by Azizi Powell
This is Part I of a two part pancocojams series about the African American originated vernacular words, phrases and sayings "right?", "I know, right?", "I know that's right", and some related forms of those phrases/sayings .
This post presents online excerpts about the history and meanings of these phrases and sayings, including speculations about their earliest usages.
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2024/09/african-american-celebrities-steve.html for Part II of this pancocojams series. That post, entitled "African American Celebrities Steve Harvey And Saweetie & The African American Fictional Character Madea Saying "I Know That's Right", showcases four videos and presents some comments from the discussion threads of those showcase videos and another YouTube video.
The content of this post is presented for historical, linguistic, and cultural purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners. Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post. **** DISCLAIMER This post is not meant to be a complete etymological treatise on these phrases and sayings. I don't necessarily agree with everything that is quoted in this post. Additions and corrections (i.e. your opinions on this subject) are welcome. **** ONLINE EXCERPTS ABOUT THESE PHRASES, SAYINGS, AND THEIR ACRONYMSEXCERPT #1
https://www.quora.com/When-did-seemingly-everyone-started-saying-I-know-right-and-why-so-often "When did seemingly everyone started saying I know right and why so often?"
[Pancocojams Editor- This page also includes links and responses to related questions.]
1.Ben Shoemate, 2016
Degree in English, native speaker
[Question]
-"When did seemingly everyone started saying I know right and why so often""
Answer:
"Doing a quick search on Google Ingram seems to indicate that
both the phrase "I know" and the rhetorical question
"right?" both started to grow in popularity around 1980."….
**
2. Frank Dauenhauer, 2017
I love to know the history (etymology) of words and phrases
[Questions]
- "How did people start using “you know” as a filler phrase in spoken English?"
- "Where did "I know. Right?" come from? It seems like everyone is saying that now, but it must have had an origin."
Answer:
"It looks as if it started in earnest as a question tag in about 1980:
“You know?” "
**
3. Frank Dauenhauer, 2017
[Question]
- "When did seemingly everyone started saying "I know,
right?" and why so often?
Answer:
I don’t know exactly when this particular phrase came into being, but it seems
to have been within the past 10 years or so. The general intelligence level of
the public appears to be degrading rapidly with the use of online texting. The
word “right?” added at the end of a declarative sentence is called a question
tag, a device that has been around for hundreds of years.
In this type of sentence, the word or words immediately added, in questioning apposition to the foregoing declarative statement, is known as a question tag. It usually asks for confirmation of what has just been said. Its origin is lost in the mist of time.
[That commenter quoted this article excerpt]
Question Tags in English
Glossary of Grammatical and Rhetorical Terms
https://www.thoughtco.com/tag-question-grammar-1692523
by Richard Nordquist, Updated on June 11, 2019
A tag question is a question added to a declarative
sentence, usually at the end, to engage the listener, verify that something has
been understood, or confirm that an action has occurred. Also known as a
question tag.
Common tags include: won't you? wasn't it? don't you? haven't you? okay? and right?"
4.
[Question]
"How did people start using "you know" as a filler
phrase in spoken English?
Answer:
If you watch old films or read old novels, you’ll hear - at
both the end of a sentence or at the beginning - “"don't you know?”
“He's quite mad, don't you know.”
Don’t you know, I said the same thing only yesterday!”
**
5. Hilary, 2022
"How did people start using "you know" as a filler phrase in spoken English?
"When people say "You Know", what are they actually trying to convey with that phrase? What's the meaning of this phrase and why do we use it so often in our daily conversations?
Answer:
“You know” is similar to other words or phrases that we
insert into our conversations as a matter of habit. Such things can be annoying
to listeners. “You know,” “right?”, “You know what I mean?” and “like” are some
that come to mind. I believe “You know” is similar to saying “Right?” or “You
agree?"...
**
6. Assistant Bot, Jul 12, 2024[Question]
"When did seemingly everyone started saying "I know, right?" and why so often?
Answer
The phrase "I know, right?" became increasingly
popular and widespread in casual conversations starting around the mid-to-late
2010s. There are a few factors that likely contributed to its rise in
popularity:
Casual affirmation - The phrase allows the speaker to quickly agree with and affirm the other person's statement or opinion in a casual, conversational way. It conveys agreement and understanding without requiring a lengthier response.
Linguistic trend - Certain colloquial phrases and verbal
"tics" can become fashionable or adopted as part of common
vernacular, especially among younger generations. "I know, right?"
fit this pattern of trending linguistic expressions.
Social media influence - The widespread use of social media
platforms like Twitter, where short, reactive responses are common, may have
amplified the spread and normalization of concise affirmative phrases like
"I know, right?"
Verbal filler - For some speakers, "I know,
right?" may have served as a convenient verbal filler or transitional
phrase, similar to how "like" or "um" are sometimes used
casually in speech.
The ubiquity of the phrase likely stemmed from a combination
of its utility as a casual affirmation, the influence of linguistic trends, and
the conversational patterns facilitated by social media. As a widely-adopted
colloquialism, "I know, right?" became a common way for people to
quickly express agreement and understanding in everyday discourse"
****
EXCERPT #21. nozturk
What does "You
got that right." mean?
**
Reply
2. azimux
"Remember when you asked about "that's for sure" or
whatever it was? It means the same thing
as that. It simply states that you agree
(somewhat strongly) with what the other person just said."
December 17, 2010
**
3.
You got that right
=
you understand it
you did something
correctly
as you would say
" that's it, exactly."
December 17, 2010
****
https://www.songfacts.com/facts/lynyrd-skynyrd/you-got-that-right [information about the 1977 song "You Got That Right"
"You Got That Right
by Lynyrd Skynyrd
Street Survivors
Album: Street Survivors (1977)
"You were out drinking last night, weren't you?"
"You got that right." “
From
" "You Got That Right" is a song written by Ronnie
Van Zant and Steve Gaines, who also trade off vocals on the song. It was
recorded by the Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd for their last studio album
before the plane crash that killed both Van Zant and Gaines, Street
Survivors, and released as a single in 1978. The single peaked at No. 69 on
the Billboard Hot 100 during the week of April 29, 1978.[1]"...
-snip-
The Street Survivors were a (White American) Southern Rock musical group. The title of their song "You Got That Right" suggests to me that that AAVE saying had expanded to use by other populations in the American South at least by 1977, the date that the Street Survivor's album was released.
**** EXCERPT #4 https://forum.wordreference.com/threads/got-that-right.951831/ "You Got That Right"
magic88 Canada English - Canadian
Oct 19, 2008 "It depends on the way you say it. If you say "You got that right" in a particularly emphatic way, it means "You are correct; I totally agree with you." Sometimes it only means "You are correct."
"I got that right" only means "I am correct." "
**** EXCERPT #5 Pancocojams Editor- ubandictionary.com is a reader submitted dictionary. The first five entries that are given below are the top five definitions on the first page of four pages. I'm also sharing certain other examples from other urbandictionary.com pages for "I know that's right". The numbers that are assigned after #5 don't mean that urbandictionary.com's readers indicated that those definitions were the most correct of those entries they had read on that site.https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=I%20Know%20That%27s%20Right
1. "I Know That's Right
When you know exactly what someone is saying.
Man I'll be single forever, people play too much!
I know that's right, that's why I'm single too!
by Takeba Malik December 14, 2018
Term used mostly in the DC area to indicate agreement with
something somebody said.
Matt: Trenita, my French class was cancelled this afternoon
so I have the afternoon free.
Trenita: I know that's right."
by Mattthewz April 1, 2005 ** 3. "an' I KNOW thess right!
Phrase which blacks add to their own proclamations and with
which they respond to proclamations of others.
She said she gone be up in here at fo and here it is fo
fifteen and I be settin here awaitin. She a inconsiderate bi-ch* and a ho. An' I
KNOW thess right!"
by William O'Neil April 24, 2007
-snip-
*This word is fully spelled out in that comment.
It's complete agreement in what is being said.
That car is sick I know right
That movie scared the crap outta me
I know right"
by Cranberrybog something er other November 3, 2007
An affirmation that you agree with or can relate to the
preceding statement. It can be used whether the speaker actually knows or not,
but in the latter case it usually means that the speaker can attribute the
preceding statement to themselves as well.
"I got so drunk at the party that I puked when I got
home." "I know, right? I think I might have barfed up stuff from last
year."
"My parents are such trogs." "I know right?
Mine think my LJ is a literal notebook." "
by Kevin Fox April 30, 2008 ** https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=I%20Know%20That%27s%20Right&page=2
6. "I know, right?!
All of the other definitiions were missing one technicality
that made them wrong. This expression requires and exclamation mark following
the question. This statement is used when you are completely engaged in the
topic of converation and couldn't agree more. To denote the proper meaning, a
question mark should not be the last symbol -- this is not a direct quetstion
and is strickly rhetorical.
Party #1: Blah, blah, blah...see that over there -- I want that.
Party #2: Wow! Oh my gosh, it's perfect!
Party #1: I know, right?!
by Truth-Talker May 22, 2011
** https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=I%20Know%20That%27s%20Right&page=3
7, "i know, right?
Derivative of infamous Mean Girls quote, frequently used in parody of this film to indicate a mutual understanding.
Person 1| "That Katie girl is a right tramp"
Person 2| "I know, right?"
by creamcream May 16, 2006 ** 8. "i know, right?
expression of corroboration much cooler than "i told you so" or "yes"
Jon: Your fashion sense is so versatile!
Kayla: I know, right?
by jl121812 September 12, 2008
** https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=I%20Know%20That%27s%20Right&page=4
"i know, right?
this is big in atlanta, georgia, for whatever reason.
it's an expression of agreement.
"oh my god, that girl is such a slut."
"i know, right? i heard she hooked up with two guys in one night!"
by maria March 4, 2003
**** EXCERPT #6
https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=IKR%3F
1. "IKR?
acronym for "I know, right?" - the rhetorical response to any statement of undeniable truth. Used in IM or text based conversations (also, "IK,R?") and NEVER acceptable as spoken aloud (eye kay are.)
Hammer666: Wow, that other definition sucks.
Lizard420: IKR? I'm making a better one.
by poopking12223 August 11, 2011
-snip- This is the top entry for this page as of August 31, 2024. The numbers that are assigned to the other examples don't convey any rank as determined by that site's readers. ** https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=IKR%3F&page=2
"ikr
An extremely simple and convenient acronym for the most commonly used phrase "I know right", ikr varies with punctuation ikr! and ikr?
Joe: I hate these pop-up ads
Bill: I hate your face
Joe: ikr!
by lordgerbil August 4, 2009
** 3. "IKR
shorthand for "I Know, Right", having entered the popular vernacular in the movie Mean Girls, starring Lindsay Lohan
Oinky: she's such a dirty pirate hooker
MacGarnacle: IKR?
by Delicious Monster October 9, 2006
****
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