So you're doing a research paper about the Western Pennsylvania dialect, you went to your favorite search engine and typed "Pittsburghese," and you wound up here, huh? Bad idea! We will be the first to admit that this site is not intended to be a scholarly dissertation about our region's unique dialect. In fact, we're not even close!

The Pittsburghese.com Website is purely intended to be fun. We know that some of the phrases used in the glossary may be used elsewhere in the country, and that some of the entries may be a bit of a stretch to say the least. You could say that we're just jaggin' around.

Fortunately, there is a much better source for authoritative Pittsburghese information, suitable for use in a research paper, or framing in your living room. Barbara Johnstone (pictured at the right) is a Professor of Rhetoric and Linguistics in the English Department at Carnegie Mellon University. She has done extensive research on the origins and influences of the dialect, and she has posted a Website with valuable, honest-to-goodness research on the subject. Johnstone's research is arguably the most-extensive study into the language of our region.

If you're trying to find some real information about our region's dialect, we won't feel too ashamed if you check out her book: Speaking Pittsburghese.

Of course, you're more than welcome to come back and see us when you need a laugh!