A Vanishing Dialect

North Carolina is home to a variety of interesting dialects, but none is quite so unique as the one found along the Outer Banks. Sometimes called the Ocracoke Brogue, the dialect is often mistaken for British, and it is rapidly declining as tourism inundates the area with a more diverse array of speakers. Walt Wolfram, North Carolina State University English professor and Director of the North Carolina Language and Life Project, has been studying the Outer Banks dialect for almost 20 years.