Cuz noun. (pronounced as cuhz}
Used primarily as an address form to a good friend, as in What’s up, cuz? Or I ain’t seen you in a long time, cuz. It is used much less frequently in reference to someone, as in that’s my cuz. Family relations are not a prerequisite for use. This term is used in other rural areas of North Carolina among friends to some extent, but is particularly prominent among the Lumbee Indians in Robeson County. Among the Lumbee, it is most frequently used among acquaintances who are fellow Lumbee Indians, and not typically used to non-Lumbees; it is also used much more by males than females. This year, at the 2025 State Fair, it will be one of our featured dialect words in honor of its use among the Lumbee tribe. Pick up a button from among the more than 20 dialect buttons in circulation and feel free to pick up missing buttons from our staff and students.
(Contributed by Dr. Walt Wolfram, Director of the North Carolina Language and Life Project)