# Austrailian vs. English accent question... **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 22, 2003, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/austrailian-vs-english-accent-question/196835 "2003-08-22T01:48:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![fortytwo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f9ae1b/32.png) [@fortytwo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fortytwo)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2003, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/austrailian-vs-english-accent-question/196835/21 "2003-08-22T22:28:21Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Necromancer \* > \*\* Generally though, I’d say the main difference between the accents is that a lot of us Aussies have a habit of tacking on a raised tone to the end of sentences, as if we’re asking a question. \*\* As a Welshman speaking English with an impeccable accent may I say how irritating I find that “raised tone”. It’s called, I believe, the Australian Questioning Intonation. It seems to catching on here in the UK too. Why oh why does nearly every sentence have to sound like a question. 😕 V ---
**Author:** ![TheLoadedDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheLoadedDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheLoadedDog)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2003, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/austrailian-vs-english-accent-question/196835/22 "2003-08-22T22:36:03Z")
You wanna go to the [sup]Pit[/sup]? 😃 Seriously, I find it irritating too, but only when overly-emphasised in that screeching schoolgirl way you see on _Neighbours_. Most Aussies don’t do it like that. In fact, it might even be dying out due to the heavy Mediterranean/Asian influence here. If it’s catching on there, well… heh. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2003, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/austrailian-vs-english-accent-question/196835/23 "2003-08-22T22:59:53Z")
My impression of a Kiwi: “feesh and cheps”. But I do have to say… everyone? I’ve ever met? From Oz? Has that intonation? But not only that? The Kiwis I’ve met hev it too? I guess you antiodeans have like got rid of it? Or maybe you don’t realise you’re doing it? ---
**Author:** ![SanibelMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@SanibelMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanibelMan)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2003, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/austrailian-vs-english-accent-question/196835/24 "2003-08-22T23:30:49Z")
Ah, so Australia was settled by Valley Girls, then. :: d&r :: ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2003, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/austrailian-vs-english-accent-question/196835/25 "2003-08-23T04:37:10Z")
**Sani** has it aright, the voice raising at the end of a sentence is an old and honored Californian tradition? So everything sounds like a question? Hee hee? In 1998, I spent a couple weeks in Britain, and my first night in London, my aunt and I ran into some drunk dudes on the Underground. I was _dead certain_ they were Australian. My aunt (who’s an American, but lived in London for many years), told me nope, definitely a London accent. After a couple weeks of being exposed to a dizzying variety of British accents (including more than one person I _could not understand at all_), I don’t think I would make that mistake again. In fact, a few years ago in Mexico, my family was waiting in line for a ferry behind a British family. My dad whispered to me, “I bet they’re Australian.” I whispered back, “No, they’re British.” We had a whispered argument until my dad finally struck up a conversation and determined that they were, in fact, British. Naturally. When am I wrong? I once stayed in a hostel with a New Zealander girl and an Australian guy. I made the terrible, terrible error of commenting on how I couldn’t tell their accents apart. Never again shall I do this! But seriously, I’m pretty sure I can tell them apart now, thanks to years of careful listening to BBC Sport commentary on cricket. I realize this won’t make sense, but the Australian accent sounds harder to me, the New Zealand accent softer. P.S. Americans and Canadians often have difficulty telling each others’ accents apart too. Europeans shouldn’t feel any kind of embarrassment over that, in my mind the stereotypical “Canadian” accent is just one of a myriad of North American accents, and I expect a Briton or Australian is about as likely to recognize it as they are a specifically Michigan or California accent (both of which definitely exist!). ---
**Author:** ![Silentgoldfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@Silentgoldfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silentgoldfish)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2003, 7:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/austrailian-vs-english-accent-question/196835/26 "2003-08-23T07:33:24Z")
Strangely it seems that quite a few Aussies can’t tell the difference between a Canadian and Irish accent. I’ve had significant (30+) number of people guess Irish or Scottish about my accent. ---
**Author:** ![gex\_gex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/94ad74/32.png) [@gex\_gex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gex_gex)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2003, 11:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/austrailian-vs-english-accent-question/196835/27 "2003-08-23T11:54:58Z")
> [@](#): > > _originally posted by The Loaded Dog_ > > For the Aussie / Kiwi thing, I know a lot of folks on both sides of “The Ditch” will cringe at what I’m going to say, but the cliched “fish and chips” is a good way to tell, usually. If the vowels seem shortened or even missing altogether, you’ve got yourself a real, live Kiwi. If they are strangely lengthened, it’s an Aussie you’re talking to. Granted, the phrase is not likely to come up in the first few seconds of conversation, but any short word with an ‘i’ in it will do. Other vowels also get similar, if less obvious, treatment. Kiwis live in “Nzlnd”, and Aussies in" Austraaaaaaylia". I’m not cringing. This is pretty accurate as far as I’m concerned. > [@](#): > > _originally posted by jjimm_ > When in doubt, I always go for the more obscure country (Kiwis/Canadians will be delighted and grateful, and Aussies/Yanks won’t care; doesn’t work the other way round. ;)) I’d be pretty offended (for about a minute or so) if someone said I souded like a kiwi. No offence to the NZlners, but they do sound pretty silly. ---
**Author:** ![calm\_kiwi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9fc348/32.png) [@calm\_kiwi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/calm_kiwi)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2003, 12:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/austrailian-vs-english-accent-question/196835/28 "2003-08-23T12:11:16Z")
We don’t sound sully, not even a wee but…take that back! We dispensed of vowels because we noticed it took an absolute age for an Aussie to finish a sentence “Heeeeeeeeeey maaaaaaaaaate hows eeeeeeeeeeeeeet goiiiiiiiiiiiin?” Being the more efficient Antipodean nation we decided to do it better 😃 Oh and **Jimm** your “feesh and cheeps” impression of a Kiwi was an Aussie…we would be the ones saying “fush and chups” ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2003, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/austrailian-vs-english-accent-question/196835/29 "2003-08-23T14:45:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by calm kiwi \* > \*\*Oh and **Jimm** your “feesh and cheeps” impression of a Kiwi was an Aussie…we would be the ones saying “fush and chups” \*\* Balls. See? It’s tough. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/austrailian-vs-english-accent-question/196835.md?page=1)