Accents

What sort of accent do you have ? Does it place you as belonging to a particular area ? Does it place you as belonging to a particular group ? To a particular time ?

Thank you .

I sound just like the American newscasters. I've a Midwestern accent--which is like having no accent at all! :)

A touch of grey in my sideburns; the girls like it.

I can believe that , Pangloss . A touch of salt and pepper always accentuates the taste .

I've posted this before. I am fairly accentless overall, in that people can rarely place my roots from my accent. However, I tend to take on the accent of the person I'm talking to. I grew up in the Smoky Mountains of GA, so have a deep southern base which only shows itself when talking to another southerner. I spent quite a few years overseas working and living with the British and other Europeans as well as Middle Easterners. This has also affected how I speak.

Stormieweather wrote:

However, I tend to take on the accent of the person I'm talking to.

My husband does this! At first, I thought he was 'making fun' of the person he was talking to but then I realized he doesn't even KNOW when he is doing it! He would speak with a Swedish accent when talking with Gunnar (from Sweden) and when we moved to the South, I've caught him speaking with Southerners in a Southern accent.
I was born in FL but raised in CA. I don't think I have any accent, but NYers have been able to tell I was from CA.

Something odd...
I had maxilofacial surgery when I was in High School to correct a very large overbite from a lower jaw that did not grow properly. When my broken jaw was unwired, I found that I spoke with an English accent for several weeks until my mouth (tongue) learned the new territory and how to form the sounds.
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Your husband has empathy Hoof Hearted .

What you say about maxilofacial surgery is extremely interesting . I always tell my students to change their faces when attempting to speak unfamiliar languages . I tell them to keep their upper lip immobile when speaking Spanish for example , or to pout their lips when speaking French . For a reasonable R.P. British accent , they have to imagine their mouth is full of marbles . The list goes on .

Language is about sounds , after all .

On a somewhat related note, I overheard this today:
"...have a mouth full of ethnicity, and I can't understand a word you say."

During graduate school I eliminated most of my local accent. A New York Italian accent doesn't make you sound well educated. I defended my PhD in perfect "newscaster" standard american english. I didn't actively decide to change my speech, just tried hard to fit in.

I slip back into local accent when I'm on the phone with my sister still in NY.

Language has many aspects, but for us search engineers it's just statistics.

I'm from the midwest, and as Brianna said it's like having no accent at all...until you end up way on the outskirts of the east coast and you use the phrase "I'm gonna go put on some pants" and everyone thinks you said "paints".

Everyone? How many people are you pantsless around, usually? :eyebrow:

LOL...I usually try and flash people between 7-10 times a day :D

I am New Mexico born and raised. I, according to the newsfolk and the accent surveyors, have no accent.

The weird thing is that, when I'm tired, I talk with that Fargo/Minnesota accent, eh. I've spent all of like 5 days in that part of the country in my 36 plus years.

I was born around Pittsburgh so didn't develop the deep Yinzer accent, but I tend to slip into it with some specific words. I have had people tell me that I don't have an accent in Pittsburgh, but when I moved south, I was told I had an accent. That and I talked really fast. If they think that I talk fast on my own, they should hear me when I am with old friends!

Whenever I visit ABQ, since moving away about 20 years ago, everyone there sounds to me like they have a slight Spanish accent. I bet you do too, Ferret--just other Albuquerqueans can't tell.

I've lived in central New Jersey since I was two. I've been told my baud rate is too high. That and I say wadder funny.

bbro wrote:

I was born around Pittsburgh so didn't develop the deep Yinzer accent ...

Cool. I love Pittsburgh. I lived in New York until 25, then Oregon 2 years, and the 'Burgh for 15 years, before Silicon Valley.

That Yinzer accent is so distinctive, yet so unknown outside of the area.

"I'm going DahnTahn to eat some Chipped Ham at Isaly's then go to the Stillers game. My car needs warshed, but that Navy Blue caalor is great."

My brother and his wife will be flying into town for the Steelers at Oakland game. I got season tix to the Raiders this year primarily to get extra tix to that game.