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Regional accents, can other people place you?

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    Regional accents, can other people place you?

    I'm not talking about general regions but more specifically a smaller area. For example I grew up just outside of Glasgow but other Scottish people can't place my accent, it's vaguely west of Scotland and has been described as 'posh'. I put this down to growing up in a mixed accent household (my father had a soft Donegal accent), and spending many years away from here which I believe does change your accent, perhaps slightly anglicised and deliberatley changed to make myself more understandable to Europeans.

    Having said that I can just about place other Scottish people to a particular town or city and dare I say it social class. In Donegal where I visit as I have family there the accent can change in the distance of a mile or two and within a twenty mile radius there there may be twenty different accents.

    I can also most of the time tell who has been in the military (any branch), since there seems to be an almost generic accent peculiar to them.
    Me, me, me...

    #2
    Originally posted by Cliphead View Post
    I'm not talking about general regions but more specifically a smaller area. For example I grew up just outside of Glasgow but other Scottish people can't place my accent, it's vaguely west of Scotland and has been described as 'posh'. I put this down to growing up in a mixed accent household (my father had a soft Donegal accent), and spending many years away from here which I believe does change your accent, perhaps slightly anglicised and deliberatley changed to make myself more understandable to Europeans.

    Having said that I can just about place other Scottish people to a particular town or city and dare I say it social class. In Donegal where I visit as I have family there the accent can change in the distance of a mile or two and within a twenty mile radius there there may be twenty different accents.

    I can also most of the time tell who has been in the military (any branch), since there seems to be an almost generic accent peculiar to them.
    I don't even know what my accent is. Parents are Scottish (and I was born in Edinburgh), have lived in Penicuik, Kent, Cape Town, Kent again, Surrey and Hampshire.

    Working now with lots of Saffers and I've noticed my flat vowels are coming out again.

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      #3
      Originally posted by mudskipper View Post
      I don't even know what my accent is. Parents are Scottish (and I was born in Edinburgh), have lived in Penicuik, Kent, Cape Town, Kent again, Surrey and Hampshire.

      Working now with lots of Saffers and I've noticed my flat vowels are coming out again.
      Sounds posh to me, I've heard you speak of course
      Me, me, me...

      Comment


        #4
        Originally posted by Cliphead View Post
        Sounds posh to me, I've heard you speak of course
        I think I tend to clip my words slightly in the SA manner, which probably gives the impression of being classier than I am

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          #5
          Well, I am a professional phonetician (currently ensuring that speech recognition systems cope better with 'exotic' regional accents). As my background is in forensic phonetics (speaker profiling is a big part of that) I can place most people with relative ease.

          I on the other hand am impossible to place. I've been speaking English all my life (so I'm not really a non-native speaker as such, despite the family being German), but I've moved around so much (Ireland, US, Scotland, Yorkshire, Home Counties, Midlands...) that I ended up with a really silly hybrid accent (mostly alternating between Aberdonian and something generic South-Eastern though). I code-switch and mirror liberally depending on who I'm speaking to.

          Comment


            #6
            Originally posted by mudskipper View Post
            I don't even know what my accent is. Parents are Scottish (and I was born in Edinburgh), have lived in Penicuik, Kent, Cape Town, Kent again, Surrey and Hampshire.

            Working now with lots of Saffers and I've noticed my flat vowels are coming out again.
            Ah, that explains the /h/ in wh- words, then.

            Comment


              #7
              Another obervation. The further south of the border the more the accent grates on me till we get to London which I really dislike, think Eastenders and the more recent trend for a lot of youngsters emulating a generic black accent alongside phrases and pronounciation which would only be heard withing the black community. Perhaps this is just a natural blending of accents belonging to people living in close proximity to each other. I've also noticed this with white singers consciously or otherwise trying to sound black. Nothing wrong with this but no white singer is ever going to sound like Aretha or any other accomplished black singer.
              Me, me, me...

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                #8
                Billy Connolly clearly modified his voice from poor Finnieston to posh Kelvingridge.

                Comment


                  #9
                  Originally posted by formant View Post
                  Well, I am a professional phonetician (currently ensuring that speech recognition systems cope better with 'exotic' regional accents). As my background is in forensic phonetics (speaker profiling is a big part of that) I can place most people with relative ease.

                  I on the other hand am impossible to place. I've been speaking English all my life (so I'm not really a non-native speaker as such, despite the family being German), but I've moved around so much (Ireland, US, Scotland, Yorkshire, Home Counties, Midlands...) that I ended up with a really silly hybrid accent (mostly alternating between Aberdonian and something generic South-Eastern though). I code-switch and mirror liberally depending on who I'm speaking to.
                  That's very interesting. How far does that ability extend to regions and languages outside of the UK (and within of course as well)?
                  Me, me, me...

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Originally posted by minestrone View Post
                    Billy Connolly clearly modified his voice from poor Finnieston to posh Kelvingridge.
                    Yes he did on camera but in person sounds like Partick.
                    Me, me, me...

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