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> そんなトコで何{なん} **ば** しよる。

I'm reading a manga and from the context of the pictures I think this sentence
reads, "What are you doing up there," but I have no idea what part ば plays.
The character speaks in a dialect so my confusion could be a result of that,
but any help would be much appreciated.![enter image description
here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/KVEMy.jpg)
CC BY-SA 4.0
2017-04-21T04:36:29.217
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2021-09-23T12:55:58.850
2021-09-23T12:55:58.850
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question
meaning usage manga dialects word-usage
Why is ば in this sentence?
> そんなトコで何ばしよる。

ば is said in place of を.

The standard expression for the whole phrase is そのような場所｛ばしょ｝で何をしているのか.

It seems that the phrase is uttered by an old woman in Kyushu
九州｛きゅうしゅう｝Island.
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2017-04-21T06:30:53.137
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2017-04-21T06:30:53.137
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answer
[ば](https://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/leaf/dialect/3168/m1u/%E3%81%B0/) is the
accusative particle used in wide area of (northern, as I remember) Kyushu as
much as を in Standard Japanese. Etymologically it's from を + は contracted but
no longer ~~has~~ share the は sense in Standard Japanese, as we can see that
it's able to mark the question word ( _thanks to @user4092_ ).

> そんなトコで何ばしよる。

means

> そんなとこで何をしてる（んだ）。

or a bit more textbook-friendly,

> そんなところで何をしている（のだ）。
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2017-04-21T06:41:27.053
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2017-04-21T12:48:13.637
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answer