# Canadian announcements at Texas Ikea stores: same thing elsewhere? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 1, 2009, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-announcements-at-texas-ikea-stores-same-thing-elsewhere/498372 "2009-06-01T17:15:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2009, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-announcements-at-texas-ikea-stores-same-thing-elsewhere/498372/1 "2009-06-01T17:15:50Z")
I don’t know if this is the norm elsewhere in the United States, but the voice of the announcer in the Ikea store in Round Rock, Texas has a very strong Canadian accent. We’re talking about so Canadian, the guy’s name is probably Gordon McKenzie, and he hails from some quintessentially Canadian burgh like … oh, Guelph or Barrie. The Ikea in Pittsburgh didn’t have the Canadian-voiced announcements. ---
**Author:** ![Shamozzle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shamozzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shamozzle)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2009, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-announcements-at-texas-ikea-stores-same-thing-elsewhere/498372/2 "2009-06-01T17:52:22Z")
Bjorks are $3 off, eh? ---
**Author:** ![Gorsnak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gorsnak/32/7587_2.png) [@Gorsnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorsnak)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2009, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-announcements-at-texas-ikea-stores-same-thing-elsewhere/498372/3 "2009-06-01T18:22:00Z")
What are you talking about? Canadians don’t have accents! 'cept for Quebeckers and Newfies of course 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Myrrajh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/87869e/32.png) [@Myrrajh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Myrrajh)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2009, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-announcements-at-texas-ikea-stores-same-thing-elsewhere/498372/4 "2009-06-01T18:36:15Z")
Yes, I’m curious to know what accent most (meaning not from Newfoundland or Cape Breton, or Francophone Quebec) Canadians have. I’ve spoken with lots of people from all over the western states and they sounded just like me. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2009, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-announcements-at-texas-ikea-stores-same-thing-elsewhere/498372/5 "2009-06-01T18:45:21Z")
The general Canadian English accent (i.e. from the Ottawa River west, more or less) is reasonably similar to the American Great Lakes/general midwestern area accent – a population group from which many announcers/voice-over artists are pulled. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2009, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-announcements-at-texas-ikea-stores-same-thing-elsewhere/498372/6 "2009-06-01T22:10:15Z")
åre yöu sure it’s nöt a Swedish åccent? I’ve often thought that there are similarities between the lilting tones of Canadian accents and Swedish-accented (but well spoken) English. Must be all that pine. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2009, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-announcements-at-texas-ikea-stores-same-thing-elsewhere/498372/7 "2009-06-01T22:33:54Z")
Gordon McKenzie That would be Scottish. ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2009, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-announcements-at-texas-ikea-stores-same-thing-elsewhere/498372/8 "2009-06-02T02:56:13Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > åre yöu sure it’s nöt a Swedish åccent? It’s absolutely Canadian. After hearing aboat 50 announcements, and growing up on the border, I can say withoat a doat it’s Canadian. The accent sounds like generic “Newscaster American”, but there’s a happy lilt that is common to Canadian English, and some key words that really jump out. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-announcements-at-texas-ikea-stores-same-thing-elsewhere/498372/9 "2009-06-03T00:09:49Z")
Fair enough - I thought it was probably a long shot. Oddly enough, though, _Newscaster American with a happy lilt_ is how I would begin to describe the kind of Swedish accent I had in mind. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-announcements-at-texas-ikea-stores-same-thing-elsewhere/498372/10 "2009-06-03T00:16:24Z")
There was a thread a year or two ago one of our Dopers started for people to demonstrate their voices. The OP had an unmistakable Canadian accent, in case anyone doubts there is one. Can’t remember the name, Sun-something. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-announcements-at-texas-ikea-stores-same-thing-elsewhere/498372/11 "2009-06-03T01:07:10Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > There was a thread a year or two ago one of our Dopers started for people to demonstrate their voices. The OP had an unmistakable Canadian accent, in case anyone doubts there is one. Can’t remember the name, Sun-something. Hi, eh? 🙂 [Vocal samples thread: how do _you_ say it?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=445112) [Vocal samples thread #2: the Accent Whisperer](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=467688) Canadian English has a lilt? I’ve read of Swedish having an almost tonal structure, unlike other Scandinavian languages, so that might be interpreted as a lilt, but I don;t know how true that is. I’ve heard French and Scottish accents and, apart from making me melt, they have something that I would describe as a lilt. Especially the French–one summer there was an intern from France where I used to work, and she had the cube next to mine, and it was exquisite pleasure and torture to hear her answering the phone, because I had more of a chance of flying to the moon than I did with her, but… er, what was I saying? Oh yeah. As far as I can tell, the regualr central Canadian accent doesn’t have a lilt. ---
**Author:** ![VunderBob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/839c29/32.png) [@VunderBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VunderBob)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-announcements-at-texas-ikea-stores-same-thing-elsewhere/498372/12 "2009-06-03T01:15:22Z")
> [@Gorsnak](#): > > What are you talking about? Canadians don’t have accents! > > 'cept for Quebeckers and Newfies of course > > 😛 How can you tell if a Newfie even has an accent when they’re drinking all that screech? :dubious: 😉