dialects - "Them" as a plural definite article



Hey, teachers, leave them kids alone!



Intuitively "them" here sounds like it works like a plural "the".


Which varieties of English is this usage found in? When it occurs, does it encode a semantic difference (sort of a demonstrative, perhaps?), or is it just a drop-in replacement for the usual definite article?


I'm particularly interested in its occurrence (or lack of same) in Southern American dialects. To what extent would (American) listeners classify it as belonging to AAVE?



Answer



In British English, it's a nonstandard variant of the standard demonstrative determiner those.


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