When/why did people begin starting sentences with 'so?'

[jwatts]

I tend to pay attention to trends when it comes to language. I work for a pretty big global corporation. I've noticed similar things over the years that seem to start at the very top and work their way down the line. If our CEO uses a certain phrase or style in a video conference, it will slowly trickle down to local leadership and management. A trend 10 years ago was starting with "s-so". Kinda like starting with "so" but with a stutter. Our then CEO did it a few times in a video to the company, and I'll be damned if everyone from asset managers to HR reps to training coordinators didn't start doing it. There have been several others over the years, but for some reason that one stuck with me and has puzzled me ever since. Was it a conscious effort to emulate the head of the company? Was it something done to draw attention and make sure everyone was engaged? Was it subconscious? I can't figure out why a trend of simulating a speech impediment got kicked off.

 

[Billy Goat]

As my buddy told his ex-wife "feelings aren't facts".

So I fixed it for you.

 

[Tod osier]

I have noticed in the past few years it seems everyone is starting sentences with 'so.' Spoken AND written.

So I went on vacation..
So i:m looking for a new gun...
So i'm wondering...

This phenomenon seems to span a wide range of people as far as interest groups - but not really older people, so it must have something to do with the younger generations.

I am in the middle of editing a shitpile of stuff for a technology startup and while the team is very smart, every damn third sentence starts with 'so,' "So, to enable the code, you'll need to do XYZ." How about "To enable the code..."??

It's gotten to the point where I often just search and delete every 'so' in a document.

I am not sure of the source of 'so' at the beginning of sentences, but for the love of Pete, if you see one, delete it, if you say one, stop.

That is all...

Just to add to the discussion... this is not something I've ever seen from a college-level student paper and I've read, like, a million.

 

[eightyeight mag]

So I was working the late shift, when this hot mama...

 

[southLA]

SOooooo tell me what you want what you really really want


I WANNA I WANNA

 

[TxxAgg]

My company made me take a Dale Carnegie class about 12 years ago. It was stupid. Their schtick is to get people engaged by starting a sentence/story with "So, there I was...." and then go on to elaborate on the place and events.

Maybe that has something to do with it.

 

[rtkbowhunter]

So... when did we start to use "run" instead of use "x" equipment.

 

[Billy Goat]

My company made me take a Dale Carnegie class about 12 years ago. It was stupid. Their schtick is to get people engaged by starting a sentence/story with "So, there I was...." and then go on to elaborate on the place and events.

Maybe that has something to do with it.

I always started with:

So there I was, naked in a convent....

 

[Poser]

from the article: "Starting sentences with "so" isn't a trend or a thing. However it may strike you, people aren't doing it any more frequently than they were 50 or 100 years ago.

Bullshit. I literally (and I mean that literally) just deleted seven "so"s out of a 588-word tech doc - all started a sentence.

They are as useless as tits on a boar hog...

It also goes into detail with the use of the particular use of the word in tech circles.


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[Poser]

So... when did we start to use "run" instead of use "x" equipment.

So, what kind of hat are you running for DIY OTC public Land archery elk hunting in unit 12, second week of September?

 

[Billy Goat]

So, what kind of hat are you running for DIY OTC public Land archery elk hunting in unit 12, second week of September?

Cause solids the new camo

 

[cnelk]

So what?

Sew buttons on your underwear

 

[GSPHUNTER]

I think it's used as a starter to first get their attention. I like to use, listen up asshole.

 

[rtkbowhunter]

So, what kind of hat are you running for DIY OTC public Land archery elk hunting in unit 12, second week of September?

So, I'll be running my Core4Element hat, and running some Wrangler Outdoor Flex cargos, along with running some First Lite base layers, and I'll actually be running (or walking) in my Lowa Camino's. And yes I understand it's heretical to run differnt brands of outdoor clothing.

 

[Roger17]

OP, without having read the tech part of your post, I would have guessed English teacher or engineer.
A former colleague of mine criticized kids if they described themselves with any word other than "well." I tell them how sad of a world is it where, with all the beautiful adjectives we have in the English language, well is the only one we can use to describe the human condition. Our other English teachers don't subscribe to the "well" theory and, gasp, one of them frequently starts sentences with "so", although I highly doubt she does so when writing.
Language is fluid and you will find differing opinions in academia of what is correct/incorrect. Most are firmly convinced, as yourself, about the correctness of their opinion.
However, I do get it. Expository technical writing is a different beast altogether, with it's own required style.

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[AK_Skeeter]

I have noticed in the past few years it seems everyone is starting sentences with 'so.' Spoken AND written.

So I went on vacation..
So i:m looking for a new gun...
So i'm wondering...

This phenomenon seems to span a wide range of people as far as interest groups - but not really older people, so it must have something to do with the younger generations.

I am in the middle of editing a shitpile of stuff for a technology startup and while the team is very smart, every damn third sentence starts with 'so,' "So, to enable the code, you'll need to do XYZ." How about "To enable the code..."??

It's gotten to the point where I often just search and delete every 'so' in a document.

I am not sure of the source of 'so' at the beginning of sentences, but for the love of Pete, if you see one, delete it, if you say one, stop.

That is all...

In Toastmasters, there is a Ah-Counter is to note any overused words or filler sounds used as a crutch by anyone who speaks during the meeting. The Ah-Counter reports back to the speaker filler sounds like ah and um and empty words like so and well, as well as excessive use of and and but.
The top three are so, um, ah.

 

[Btaylor]

Knew a guy that started nearly every sentence in conversation with "now then"..."Now then we really need to start gettin them crops out." Does that mean today or next week???

 

[fngTony]

Just be glad you’re not transcribing what’s said in the construction yard

 

[LLRJ17]

As a life-long stutterer I can tell you that it can be helpful to get things moving along.

Now, I want to know, where all those T's are going...?

impor-ant
moun-ain

 

[JJJ]

Post modernism. There is no truth or hard absolutes. It’s whatever you feel - that’s what the truth is now - for these people.
It’s pure trash, and regular folk know it.