What is the history and geographic area of the word "finna?"

In St. Louis, I learned of the word, "finna." I know it is slang/contraction for "fixing to." By asking dozens of people, I've learned that it is used by people of many different races and cultural backgrounds. I've also learned that many who use this word have been using it all their lives (for some, that means at least 50 years).

What I want to know is:

1. When did "finna" first start being used?

2. Where did it originally came from?

3. How far geographically has the usage of this word spread from its original location?

Solution 1:

This is more of a side note, but when I first saw someone use the word 'finna', I though they had made a typo and meant to write 'gonna'!

F is next to G on the Qwerty keyboard.
I is next to O on the Qwerty keyboard.
N            N
N            N
A            A

Solution 2:

Here are some details of the word "finna" (it is a contraction of fixing to):

Taken from a website:

"Fixin' to" is Southern English, also used by Black folks who have moved to other parts of the country. It certainly did not have its origin in the relatively recent movement to have the vernacular Black English dialect be the language of instruction for Black students who speak it.

Wikipedia seems to back this up, listing it as one of the ebonical peculiarities.

The Online Slang Dictionary states:

this is a phonetic spelling of one common pronunciation of the southern United States colloquialism

It started round about 1917, and was due to the pronunciation techniques of the American-Africans in the South. Since then, due to increasing travel opportunities, it has spread to the North and Midwest as well.