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ELL Guide

A guide for ELL (English Language Learners) at the University of Maine at Augusta

A-aron: Meaning & Pop Culture Origin

Sometime people will refer to the name “Aaron” as “A-aron.”  This comes from a Key & Peele skit on Comedy Central called “The Substitute” where an African-American substitute teacher struggles to pronounce names in a classroom full of white students.  This comedy acts as social commentary where people often mispronounce African-American names or suggest they are unfamiliar or “different” from “mainstream” names.  By reversing the situation, this skit highlights the problematic dynamic of viewing certain names as “normal” while other names as not.   

 

Here is the skit if you wish to watch it yourself:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dd7FixvoKBw&t=44s    

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