A-Z Challenge - H is for Hit and Holler

So, we live in a holler. Sometimes we holler in the holler. But mostly we're back in a holler. What's a holler? Well, I think the technical definition is a valley off of a main road that you have to wind to get to, often surrounded on three sides by natural boundaries, like mountains, or rivers, or creeks. When people ask, "Where do you live?", I actually describe the road, the turn-off, and then, for real, I say "Back in the holler on the river side."

Now hit. Hit's another story.

This is actually me, about age 2. Ain't hit sweet.

I had gone to see about some insurance. The place I went was a trailer on the main road in town. I waited on one side of a chipboard partition and finally the woman insurance salesperson could see me. We talked about insurance. I filled out forms and I commented on the photo of a toddler behind her desk.

Me: Is that your grandchild?

Insurance Lady: Why lord, yes. Ain't hit sweet.

Me: Hit?

Insurance Lady: Yes, hit's spoiled rotten, going on near five now, that sweet little thing we just love hit to death.

Now where I grew up, young children were Johnny or Becky or Suzie Q but never were they to be Hit. Here, it's a whole 'nother ball of wax.

In Wikipedia under the definition of Appalachian English (yes, there is such a heading) it says below the phonemic incidence heading:

H retention occurs at the beginning of certain words. It, in particular, is pronounced hit at the beginning of a sentence and also when emphasized. The word "ain't" is pronounced hain't.^[11]

There are so many things I love about this area, but I must admit, calling your children "Hit" is just one I've never gotten used to. 

So, do you "hit" your children or just call them by name?