# Do y'all think southern accents are sexy? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 16, 2003, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915 "2003-07-16T16:35:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![October](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@October](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/October)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2003, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915/21 "2003-07-16T18:15:59Z")
autz: you’re completely right, of course. My own (admittedly inconsistent) drawl is of the West Texas variety. But I figured that, to simplify things for the Yanks, I wouldn’t get into the differences between drawls. Personally, if you grew up south of the Mason-Dixon line, I can probably tell you which state you’re from. But, as opposed to someone who posted earlier, I wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between accents from Pennsylvania and New York. They all sound the same to me. A side note: I think Jeff Foxworthy has given us a bad rap. There is a distinct difference between rednecks and southerners. Not all southerners, or native Texans, are rednecks. In fact, many bona fide Texans make fun of rednecks, even though they may themselves be labeled redneck by the uninitiated. ---
**Author:** ![mipiace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb9ed0/32.png) [@mipiace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mipiace)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2003, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915/22 "2003-07-16T18:32:30Z")
I’m from the south originally. I lost my accent when I moved around a lot but since I am back in Texas I have found myself losin’ “g” s and softening my "r"s. TH eword “honey” snuck right back in there too! Do I think it makes me sound stupid? Well, it depends on the context, my accent was never all that deep. But in a professional setting I am more apt to use less dialect and more formal English. I was more self- conscious about it when I was younger and less educated interestingly enough. Now that I am older and more confident I worry less. As for others, I do find it extremely sexy! ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2003, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915/23 "2003-07-16T18:33:33Z")
**October** , you make a good point about the Southerner vs. redneck thing. I love redneck jokes myself, and get plenty of them in email from fellow Southerners. As a general rule I appreciate them for their near-truth and for the to-hell-with-you attitude that they exhibit. Many (if not most) real Southerners are fully aware of the stigma placed on us by other regions of the country. The assumed ignorance and inbred aspects get big laughs. It’s sorta like the one about how do you compliment somebody from \? “Nice tooth!” It’s funny in a way, but could just as easily be applied to the lower income sections of any state. It just seems to be more funny if it’s a Southern state, right? All in all, I suspect there’s a resentment for the relatively slower paced lifestyle in these parts, although you couldn’t tell that from the traffic! ---
**Author:** ![bobkitty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c67d28/32.png) [@bobkitty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobkitty)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2003, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915/24 "2003-07-16T18:36:06Z")
It really, really depends on how thick the accent is. A hint of a drawl is fine, but unfortunately the typical Southerners I run into have what other posters seem to be referring to as a “redneck accent.” I’ve lived here since '95, and there are still more times than not that I can’t for the life of me understand what some people are saying. Of course I imagine people have the same complaint about me, though my native accent has declined significantly over the years (catch me drunk or really tired and it’s out full force) and I have managed to incorporate “y’all” into my lexicon. 😉 A man with an English/Scots/Irish/Australian accent, though- positively nummy. Doesn’t matter how thick it is. -BK ---
**Author:** ![Dogface](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@Dogface](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogface)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2003, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915/25 "2003-07-16T19:09:34Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by CrazyCatLady \* > \*\*Well, butter mah butt and call me a biscuit, but I don’t really see how a Southern accent is any less intelligent sounding than a Northern one. I mean, youse isn’t exactly a word that’s likely to impress me with someone’s language skills, you know? \*\* I can assure you with great vigor, madame, that “youse” is a considered quite vulgar in the vast majority of the North. Indeed, the accent of the educated American nationwide is essentially identical to the “Northern” accent found in upstate New York, northern Ohio, northern Indiana (if one does not count Rensseltucky and other outposts of the South), and northern Illinois. ---
**Author:** ![Davebear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bcef8e/32.png) [@Davebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Davebear)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2003, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915/26 "2003-07-16T19:13:31Z")
I’d have to second **Zanshin** ’s “damn near irresistable”, but with the proviso that it’s only certain southern accents of which this is true. Some are mildly annoying, some are neutral, and some make my knees buckle. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Doomtrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/0ea827/32.png) [@Doomtrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doomtrain)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2003, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915/27 "2003-07-16T19:26:23Z")
Speaking as a guy, I’ve found if you can pull off the Southern Gentleman kinda accent, or a nice-sounding regional one, the girls will love it. But I don’t think too many people like the Cletus The Slack-Jawed Yokel-style “hick” accent. ---
**Author:** ![October](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@October](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/October)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2003, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915/28 "2003-07-16T19:40:43Z")
Actually, Davebear, it was something in your OH MY FREAKING GOD!!! thread that got me thinking about all this. You made an offhand comment about the woman you just met being from the south, and that you were mildly disappointed that she didn’t have an accent. Anyway, that reminded me of the discrepancy between the attitudes toward my accent between my current boyfriend and my former one… ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2003, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915/29 "2003-07-16T20:26:28Z")
Well, I think _my_ Southern accent is sexy. Actually, I don’t have much of a Southern accent. Like a lot of other Southerners, I had a daddy in the service and during my formative years we weren’t in one place long enough for me to pick up a strong regional accent. But I can become “more Southern” at will, and it’s useful in those rare situations when I want people to think I’m more delicate, feminine, or ladylike than I actually am. I’m sure there are people who find delicate, feminine, ladylike women attractive. ---
**Author:** ![Duke\_of\_Rat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Duke\_of\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke_of_Rat)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2003, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915/30 "2003-07-16T20:41:20Z")
October, in general-ish terms, where 'bouts in West Texas are you from? I’m from the Amarillo-ish area. Texas accents?? Not rouncheer, I’d notice for sure! ---
**Author:** ![October](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@October](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/October)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2003, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915/31 "2003-07-16T20:58:40Z")
Duke: Did I say West Texas? I meant East Texas. I’m map-dyslexic, I guess. My family is spread from Houston and thereabouts to Dallas and thereabouts. However, my family speaks in the more central dialect, as opposed to the eastern. A blend of east and west, if you will. ---
**Author:** ![October](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@October](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/October)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2003, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915/32 "2003-07-16T21:02:03Z")
Duke: Did I say West Texas? I meant East Texas. I’m map-dyslexic, I guess. My family is spread from Houston and thereabouts to Dallas and thereabouts. However, my family speaks in the more central dialect, as opposed to the eastern. A blend of east and west, if you will. And Lamia, I know what you mean. There have been occasions when I’ve purposefully played up the accent to make people think I’m this lil’ ole delicate magnolia type–some people just eat that up, and I can usually recognize the susceptible type. It can come in handy. ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2003, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915/33 "2003-07-16T21:08:25Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by JuanitaTech \* > \*\*Southern accents are about as sexy as a bucket of ice down my pants. > > For the record, I’m not really turned on by a bucket of ice down my pants. \*\* Same here. Not at all sexy. In fact, the opposite of sexy. But then, most accents come with either neutral or negative connotations, for me. For geographic tracking purposes - west coast of the US, Washington and California. ---
**Author:** ![greck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7ab992/32.png) [@greck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/greck)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2003, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915/34 "2003-07-16T21:44:52Z")
Kim basinger’s -sexy Brittney Spears’s -sexy Most guests on Jerry springer - not sexy The accent usually intensifies a person’s sexiness or not sexiness as the case may be. BTW I think this goes for all accents. ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/22080_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2003, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915/35 "2003-07-16T21:50:04Z")
I enjoy all accents. What grates on me is language usage. Speak proper English and your accent is delightful. Spew out inarticulate regionalisms and sloppy pronunciations, and your credibility suffers. I try hard to give everyone the benefit of the doubt, but sometimes, it’s a real struggle. ---
**Author:** ![Zoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a4c791/32.png) [@Zoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoe)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2003, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915/36 "2003-07-16T22:02:17Z")
> [@](#): > > **dogface** : …Indeed, the accent of the educated American nationwide is essentially identical to the “Northern” accent found in upstate New York, northern Ohio, northern Indiana (if one does not count Rensseltucky and other outposts of the South), and northern Illinois… That might be true unless your ear is trained to notice differences. Also, you might want to consider that “the educated American” includes Southerners and we don’t sound at all like we are from upstate New York. Most people can easily distinguish a broad Boston accent. And Maine has an accent that has not spread much, if any, beyond its borders. I could go on and on with examples. When my on-line friends from the North and West hear me on the phone the first time, they either crack up laughing or tell me that I sound like Scarlett. What really annoys me is that when fictional Southerners are portrayed on television, they are so often made to sound both Southern and stupid. If any of you saw _Sex and the City_ Sunday, you might recall the woman from Macon, GA with the scrunchie in her hair. She may be a real Southerner for all I know, but she really spread it on thick. We have brought some of the misperception on ourselves by hamming it up for Northerners. I did it myself once just to be taped for _Good Morning America._ Shelby Foote has the sexiest voice that I have ever heard. He is originally from Mississippi, I’m told, but he lives in Memphis. And my late mother-in-law from the Deep South sounded as aristocratic as anyone I’ve known. As for the word _y’all_, it is convenient and friendly. It is as natural to Southerners as “wicked good” is to Maine. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2003, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915/37 "2003-07-16T23:44:46Z")
I’m so Southern (Texan, actually), even my boots have a drawl. When I lived in LA and Denver, everybody wanted to hear me talk. Even here in the OKC, I don’t sound like the surrounding folks. And the drunker, more tired, more excited I get, I sound more and more Southern. Not hick. Southern. I use (mostly) correct grammar and word/verb forms. It just sounds different when I say them. My last SO thought it was extremely sexy when I Southern Gentlemanned her. She loved the very relaxed sound of me pillow talking her. On my side of the ear, I love hearing a discernable accent. Whether Dixie, Texan, or foriegn, if it’s different from the Broadcast Standard™, I love it! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Cosmopolitan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/94ad74/32.png) [@Cosmopolitan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cosmopolitan)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2003, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915/38 "2003-07-17T00:57:47Z")
I like accents, generally speaking. I find them interesting. FTR: I was born & raised on Long Island, NY & I say “y’all”. I also say “Up shit’s creek without a paddle”. So there ya go, y’all. ---
**Author:** ![Cosmopolitan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/94ad74/32.png) [@Cosmopolitan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cosmopolitan)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2003, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915/39 "2003-07-17T01:06:25Z")
FTR, I do have a bit of a Long Island accent. Not horrible, but noticeable - I do sometimes turn “ah” sounds into “aw” sounds (i.e. “talk” becomes “tawk”). I’ve mostly been told that it’s cute, probably because it’s not excessive. ---
**Author:** ![Nvme77](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c89c15/32.png) [@Nvme77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nvme77)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2003, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915/40 "2003-07-17T01:12:50Z")
Love the accents. Especially from TX! My representative at work is from TX, and one of my vendors is from Tx. Dagnabit if I don’t pick up a stitch er two from talkin to those folks. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-yall-think-southern-accents-are-sexy/188915.md?page=3)