I was watching a documentary about the Troubles in Northern Ireland which included interviews with various Belfast residents. (would that be Belfasters?) When I was listening, I noticed that the people of Belfast, especially the Protestants, had accents that seemed to me, at least, similar to the “standard” American accent. Can anyone confirm this, or was I just hearing something that wasn’t there? If the similarity does exist, why does it? Is it just a case of large Scots-Irish immigration influencing our language?
I’ve always heard they sound like us in Glasgow, too.