Miss Pearl

      Since this is a slow news day I thought I would write about something of interest to me,  regional differences in English usage.

    I started hearing a few clients refer to me as Mr. Charles when I was in my 40s. This usage was not unfamiliar to me. I particularly remember a woman in my neighborhood growing up in Winston-Salem who was always referred to as Miss Pearl but she was not the only one who received this honorific, and, yes, it was intended as an honorific. I always understood this usage as one denoting increasing age, respect and affection. Miss Pearl qualified in every way. I was not completely happy being referred to as Mr. Charles since it indicated I was getting older but I knew I was being referred to with affection and respect so I couldn’t complain. I have no problem with it now.

     I’ve always thought of this as a Southern thing and particularly common among African Americans but I’ve never known for sure. I do know it’s less common than it used to be but that may be because I now live in Raleigh, a community that has received a huge influx of people from other parts of the country and the world. As an example, Raleigh’s largest suburb is Cary. The joke locally is that Cary is an acronym standing for Containment Area for Relocated Yankees! The last person who called me Mr. Charles was a young woman wearing a hijab.

     Anyway, I’d be interested in knowing if this is a usage you’re familiar with. Who uses it? How is it used? Is it as common as it used to be?