Specifically I’m interested in hearing from our non-American Anglophone friends…English, Scots, Canadians, Australians, etc., whether this usage of the word yea is current in your country, or in your region.
I think in America it may be something of a regionalism, but nearly everyone understands it.
I’m in Scotland, and I have only ever heard it used by a friend who is originally from New York City, but lived for a while in Boston. I understand it, as the meaning is usually pretty clear in the context, but have not heard it used here by anyone else.
I’ve heard it. I’ve also used it, just as you describe.
But I’ve found, here in Canada anyway, that it’s not limited to yea. I’ve also heard so and yo used in place of yea.
“Yeah,” that phrase was in common use in rural PA when I was growing up there. It was usually accompanied by the appropriate hand gestures.
I’ve used it, but as a conscious appropriation of an Americanism.
I have heard this used sometimes with the appropriate hand gestures. I come form Yorkshire in the UK and I have heard it here for as long as I can remember. I always just thought it was a Yorkshirism.
Rick
Rare from my experience in Oz.
The folks tend to use it (English background) and I use it when I really can’t be bothered converting metric to imperial or otherwise and so it’s done with hand gestures.
It’s a loanword from Hindustani, in which the word yeh means ‘this’.
I understand that phrase, although i do not hear it used very often. It is often done with gesures, here, mostly to give you an idea of the size of something.
I use it, occasionally. Not where people can’t see my hands, though. It doesn’t really work without the gestures.
Jomo Mojo Is it? Wow - that really is interesting. Now I feel I learned something today, and can claim to have used the internet “for educational purposes” for once! Thank you.
