What is Received English? Is it the same as the “Queen’s English” How did Received English get the name? Is it an accent, grammar style, whaaaaaaaaaaaa?
It’s the proper way.
I’ve always understood it to mean the way English is supposed to be spoken, so I guess it impacts both accent and grammar. Watch the news on the BBC sometime, that’s probably the most accessible format in which to hear ‘received pronunciation’ (although these days, the BBC lets in all manner of regional accents, would you believe it).
RP (Received Pronunciation) is one* dialect of British English. As it’s name should indicate, it is primarily about pronunciation. Proper grammar is another concern entirely.
More info: Received Pronunciation - Wikipedia
From the linked article:
- Or three, depending on which linguistics professor you studied with.
A dialect is concerned with both pronunciation and grammar. An accent is concerned only with pronunciation.
“Received English” was considered the standard and most prestigious way to pronounce words in the UK. It used to be the same as BBC English. First the BBC began to relax a little more and now even court English is not as strict. (All of this is based on the Wiki article that was linked to.)
The Wiki article on Southern dialects in the USA is not very good in my opinion, so I can’t vouch for the accuracy of “Received English.”