# Tell me about English accents **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 10, 2007, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487 "2007-06-10T19:07:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![chowder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/977dab/32.png) [@chowder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chowder)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2007, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487/21 "2007-06-11T04:58:22Z")
[QUOTE=Quartz] The Irish have a brogue; the Scots have a **burr**. šŸ™‚ [/QUOTE] The Irish have a ā€œLiltā€ also ā€¦as in ā€œin the lilt of Irish laughter you can hear the angels singā€ ---
**Author:** ![Pjen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Pjen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pjen)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2007, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487/22 "2007-06-11T05:17:30Z")
[QUOTE=Struan] There isnā€™t a single Scottish one but itā€™s really hard to judge how well outsiders can distinguish accents from where you personally grew up but to me Scotland has a wide range of accents. The main groups are roughly (Iā€™m no linguist!): Dumfries and Galloway/Borders - canā€™t think of any examples unless you are into Rugby [/QUOTE] Try Ashley Jensen playing Christina McKinney in Ugly Betty. Every time she speaks it jars as I just hear a very local accent in a wrong place. ---
**Author:** ![Pjen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Pjen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pjen)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2007, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487/23 "2007-06-11T05:19:33Z")
[QUOTE=Struan] There isnā€™t a single Scottish one but itā€™s really hard to judge how well outsiders can distinguish accents from where you personally grew up but to me Scotland has a wide range of accents. The main groups are roughly (Iā€™m no linguist!): Aberdeen - this can be difficult for fellow Scots to understand. It has elements of a defunct language called Doric in it, apparently [/QUOTE] |I once nursed an elderly Aberdonian who was nearly ninety and had been deaf for over sixty years. Her un-ameliorated Aberdeen accent and dialect was as impenetrable as many foreign languages! ---
**Author:** ![Pjen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Pjen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pjen)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2007, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487/24 "2007-06-11T05:23:14Z")
[QUOTE=Clark K] This seems like a good place to ask a question thatā€™s been on my mind, although I realize it has no concrete answer: Why do some Brits not pronounce consonants in the middle of a word? Rather than pronounce ā€œlittleā€ as lit-tul or something similar, they say li-ul. ā€œMentalā€ becomes me-ul or perhaps men-ul. I can understand dropping sounds at the end of words, but it somehow strikes me as strange to do it in the middle of words, particularly on key sounds in short words. Weā€™re not talking about slurring ā€œworcestershireā€ into worster-sher. What is that accent, anyway? When I hear Lily Allen say ā€œme-ulā€ in a song, what does that say about her class, her location, etc.? [/QUOTE] This is called a glottal stop > **[Glottal stop](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glottal_stop)** > > A glottal stop or glottal plosive is a type of consonantal sound used in many spoken languages, produced by obstructing airflow in the vocal tract or, more precisely, the glottis. It is familiar to English-speakers as the catch in the middle of "uh-oh". The symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet that represents this sound is āŸØŹ”āŸ©. As a result of the action of the glottis, glottal vibration either stops or becomes irregular with a low rate and sudden drop in intensity. Features of a glottal ... It started off as a London affectation, but now covers most of southern and eastern England up into the Midlands and down into Somerset and Devon. Cornish Englis has always had a faint glottal stop- it used to be a sure fire way to distinguish Devon from Cornish English, but now no more! ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2007, 8:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487/25 "2007-06-11T08:06:47Z")
[QUOTE=RickJay] The traditional ā€œmedia useā€ American accent is Californian, not Midwestern. [/QUOTE] Actually I believe Ohio is considered the non-accent. Even IF the stranger doesnā€™t mention heā€™s from ā€˜caliā€™ within 5 seconds of talking (which has never happened), Iā€™d be able to tell quickly. ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2007, 8:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487/26 "2007-06-11T08:08:43Z")
[QUOTE=Pjen] Cornish Englis has always had a faint glottal stop- it used to be a sure fire way to distinguish Devon from Cornish English, but now no more! [/QUOTE] eye luv mi Coom-bine 'ahrvester! ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2007, 9:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487/27 "2007-06-11T09:32:15Z")
[QUOTE=Pjen] It started off as a London affectationā€¦ [/QUOTE] I dispute that itā€™s solely of London origin. As you indicate, thereā€™s also indigenous glottal stops (oh, the irony of the Ts in the middle of that word ā€˜glottalā€™) in other regional accents. I should know šŸ™‚ ---
**Author:** ![chowder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/977dab/32.png) [@chowder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chowder)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2007, 9:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487/28 "2007-06-11T09:50:26Z")
[QUOTE=Sitnam] eye luv mi Coom-bine 'ahrvester! [/QUOTE] Disna nit ken itā€™s ā€œ'aaaaaaaaaarvisterā€ Innit ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2007, 10:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487/29 "2007-06-11T10:10:29Z")
Gloā€™al stops are all over the place, but one of the weirder regional variations is the Bristol ā€œlā€. Itā€™s really hard for a Bristolian to pronounce a word ending in a weak vowel - they donā€™t seem able to stop without the lingual creeping in. Thus Iā€™ve heard a lorry driver explaining on TV that he carries a fire extinguisher ā€œfor engine fires, et ceteralā€, and a Bristolian who knew his geography could tell you that Miami is in Floridal. The bass line in a brass band would be carried by a tubal (I suppose you might hear a Wagner tubal played at the operal). The average income might be Ā£23,500 _per capital_. And so on. ---
**Author:** ![Ximenean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/aca169/32.png) [@Ximenean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ximenean)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2007, 10:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487/30 "2007-06-11T10:37:09Z")
And Bristol itself was originally called Brigstowe. They just canā€™t help it šŸ™‚ ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2007, 10:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487/31 "2007-06-11T10:44:00Z")
Frylock writes: \> The origin (and continued place of habitation) of the ā€œaccentlessā€ accent is \> around Ohio. Sitnam writes: \> Actually I believe Ohio is considered the non-accent. The interesting thing is that the Wikipedia link that Frylock gives claims that the accent is found most closely in an oval stretching from eastern Nebraska to northwest Illinois. This entry in Wikipedia: > **[North American English regional phonology](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_English_regional_differences)** > > North American English regional phonology is the study of variations in the pronunciation of spoken North American English (English of the United States and Canada)ā€”what are commonly known simply as "regional accents". Though studies of regional dialects can be based on multiple characteristics, often including characteristics that are phonemic (sound-based, focusing on major word-differentiating patterns and structures in speech), phonetic (sound-based, focusing on any more exact and specific de... claims that it can be heard in California. As I said in my previous post, I think that the closest youā€™ll find to it is in rural northwest Ohio. I emphasize itā€™s only the rural part of northwest Ohio, because Toledo and its suburbs are part of the Northern Cities vowel shift: > **[Inland Northern American English](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_cities_vowel_shift)** > > Inland Northern (American) English, also known in American linguistics as the Inland North or Great Lakes dialect, is an American English dialect spoken primarily by White Americans in a geographic band reaching from the major urban areas of Upstate New York westward along the Erie Canal and through much of the U.S. Great Lakes region. The most distinctive Inland Northern accents are spoken in Chicago, Milwaukee, Detroit, Cleveland, Buffalo, Rochester, and Syracuse. The dialect can be he The ea... Of course, I may be prejudiced because I grew up there. Indeed, I sometimes make the joke that linguistic surveyors came around to my parentā€™s farm in northwest Ohio and planted a marker on it that declared ā€œOn the exact spot is spoken standard American English.ā€ But, seriously, Iā€™m not even sure that standard American English is spoken anywhere exactly. It may be purely a composite. ---
**Author:** ![Pjen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Pjen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pjen)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2007, 10:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487/32 "2007-06-11T10:57:02Z")
[QUOTE=Malacandra] Gloā€™al stops are all over the place, but one of the weirder regional variations is the Bristol ā€œlā€. Itā€™s really hard for a Bristolian to pronounce a word ending in a weak vowel - they donā€™t seem able to stop without the lingual creeping in. Thus Iā€™ve heard a lorry driver explaining on TV that he carries a fire extinguisher ā€œfor engine fires, et ceteralā€, and a Bristolian who knew his geography could tell you that Miami is in Floridal. The bass line in a brass band would be carried by a tubal (I suppose you might hear a Wagner tubal played at the operal). The average income might be Ā£23,500 _per capital_. And so on. [/QUOTE] In the sixties and seventies, Bristolians drove Cortinals šŸ˜‰ ---
**Author:** ![Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cc9497/32.png) [@Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt.Ridley_s_Shooting_Party)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2007, 11:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487/33 "2007-06-11T11:21:20Z")
[QUOTE=Clark K] Rather than pronounce ā€œlittleā€ as lit-tul or something similar, they say li-ul. ā€œMentalā€ becomes me-ul or perhaps men-ul. [/QUOTE] Another variation of this exists around here. Kettle is pronounced ā€œkeckleā€, little ā€œlickleā€ etc. ---
**Author:** ![Martha\_Medea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/43a26b/32.png) [@Martha\_Medea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martha_Medea)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2007, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487/34 "2007-06-11T12:48:08Z")
[QUOTE=Pjen] In the sixties and seventies, Bristolians drove Cortinals šŸ˜‰ [/QUOTE] And named their daughters Normal and Evil\*ā€¦ I used to work on local radio there ā€œIā€™m calling from the Bedminster arealā€ā€¦ \*Norma and Eva ---
**Author:** ![Martha\_Medea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/43a26b/32.png) [@Martha\_Medea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martha_Medea)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2007, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487/35 "2007-06-11T12:49:18Z")
[QUOTE=Dominic Mulligan] Another variation of this exists around here. Kettle is pronounced ā€œkeckleā€, little ā€œlickleā€ etc. [/QUOTE] This is also common in West Indian patois. ---
**Author:** ![Ichbin\_Dubist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/51bf81/32.png) [@Ichbin\_Dubist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ichbin_Dubist)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2007, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487/36 "2007-06-11T13:39:19Z")
[QUOTE=Struan] Highlands and Islands - The nicest sounding English in the whole UK is spoken in and around Inverness - it has a slight sing-song quality. The further north and west you go the influence of Norn and Gaelic, respectively, increases. [/QUOTE] I was in Scotland 20 years ago ā€“ I had no problems in Edinburgh and Glasgow, but I found the folks in Inverness VERY hard to understand. Some people may as well hahve been speaking Norwegian. Note that I was born and raised in New Jersey and cast no frickinā€™ stones on the purity of anybodyā€™s English. Oh, and the idea that people from Ohio or Nebraska have ā€œno accentā€ is silly. There is no standard American accent, and the ā€œneutralā€ accent affected by TV newscasters is, like the ā€œmid-Atlanticā€ accent my mother got when she studied speech in 1955, a learned one. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2007, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487/37 "2007-06-11T14:17:52Z")
[QUOTE=Clark K] This seems like a good place to ask a question thatā€™s been on my mind, although I realize it has no concrete answer: Why do some Brits not pronounce consonants in the middle of a word? Rather than pronounce ā€œlittleā€ as lit-tul or something similar, they say li-ul. ā€œMentalā€ becomes me-ul or perhaps men-ul. I can understand dropping sounds at the end of words, but it somehow strikes me as strange to do it in the middle of words, particularly on key sounds in short words. Weā€™re not talking about slurring ā€œworcestershireā€ into worster-sher. What is that accent, anyway? When I hear Lily Allen say ā€œme-ulā€ in a song, what does that say about her class, her location, etc.? [/QUOTE] You ever been to New Hampshire? My first stay in the US was there. It took myself and my fellow Europeans (six of which were Brits) to figure out what the problem was. We said twenty. The locals said twinny. ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2007, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487/38 "2007-06-11T14:31:16Z")
[QUOTE=Nava] You ever been to New Hampshire? My first stay in the US was there. It took myself and my fellow Europeans (six of which were Brits) to figure out what the problem was. We said twenty. The locals said twinny. [/QUOTE] Iā€™m from Texas, and I say ā€œtwinnyā€ too. We also say ā€œpenā€ and ā€œpinā€ the same 'round 'bout these here parts. -FrL- ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2007, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487/39 "2007-06-11T14:48:56Z")
California, like Florida, grew so fast in the last half of the 20th century that any California accent is surely transplanted. ā€œLos Angelinos,ā€ says the song, ā€œall come from somewhere.ā€ In a Florida hardware store, I told the manager, ā€œIā€™m not from around here. I guess you could hear that in my voice.ā€ He laughed. ā€œEverybodyā€™s from out of state, here, son. Hardly anybody was born here.ā€ :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2007, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487/40 "2007-06-11T16:01:07Z")
[QUOTE=Struan] There isnā€™t a single Scottish onā€¦ [/QUOTE] So which one is Scotty on Star Trek? šŸ˜ƒ [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-english-accents/407487.md?page=3)