Let's Hear Your Accent

[nbp]

Ok, I have wanted to start a thread like this for a long time, so I hope people will play along, as I think it will be really fun and interesting.

I love hearing (and trying to replicate) accents from other parts of the world.

So, let's hear your accent. Please post a short video or sound file of your voice for us. If you want to look at the camera, you can, or just the voice and maybe a shot of your favorite flashlights or something would be fine. Tell us where you are from, what makes your accent special or different (if you're a native English speaker) or maybe where you learned English if it is a second or third language.

Remember, anything you say must still be within the rules of CPF, so no foul language of course. And while commenting on others accents or how they say certain things is fine, derogatory comments will not be tolerated.

Ok, so here is quick vid shot with my iPhone where I tell you about my 'accent' and a couple of my EDC lights. I sound terrible recorded like this.

http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/4...asobhlldid.mp4

Have fun!

[mvyrmnd]

Interesting. My accent is a bit of a dog's breakfast, being that my Dad was from the English midlands, my Mum from Glasgow, I grew up in North Queensland and now live in SE Australia.

I'll record something later

[nbp]

I'm especially interested in those from various parts of the UK and Australia. They're the most fun to try to replicate.

[mvyrmnd]

Well, I'd rather not put anyone through the stress of seeing my face, so I recorded me reading a bedtime story to my son.

http://db.tt/Ay3vwWqH

You can pick my "Australianness" by the fact that the protagonist is "Hecta" rather than "Hector" :P

[Norm]

Mmm sounds pretty normal to me Simon, you don't sound like you have an accent

Norm

[mvyrmnd]

I had contemplated recording myself trying to sound like Poida.

[nbp]

Nice! Good work Simon.

This is fun, I hope other's play too. Ill work on getting a "functional" recording today.

[nbp]

Ok, there is now a functional (albeit poor quality) video in the OP of a couple of my favorite EDC lights where you can hear a southeastern Wisconsin accent. Be nice.


Simon, is that an Australian Thomas the Train Engine book? I noticed words there that weren't common here, like 'biffed' and 'shunted'. If I could pick an accent it would definitely be either Aussie or the London cockney. They're definitely fun to imitate. You can still read me bedtime stories if you want though.

[mvyrmnd]

We have the true English versions of Thomas. Note that we use "The Fat Controller" rather than the PC American version which always uses his proper name "Sir Topam Hatt"

You talk about how you call things by different names - that's the big difference between America and most of the rest of the English speaking world; proper nouns.

Why did you have to go and change them all?

[nbp]

I dunno. Some things are nationally different, some are even regionally different. My examples of bubbler and soda are confined even to our part of the state. Other parts of Wisconsin and neighbor states don't use those words. Few other states eat certain foods that are traditional here like bratwurst, due to the strong German and Polish influences we have. I think that drives a lot of the unusual style of speech here: the incredible amount of different countries that are represented in our population, each with their own language and culture.

There's plenty of words in the deep south or other parts of the USA that we don't use and are practically foreign. And then there are lots of words from the UK that seem weird altogether; boot instead of trunk? bonnet instead of hood? trolley instead of shopping cart? Some of those are not immediately obvious what they even refer to if you don't already know.

[PhotonWrangler]

To my ears the Wisconsin accent sounds like a diluted Minnesota (Minnn-ah-soohh-tah) accent.

I don't have an accent as far as I can tell. I think I sound like a generic somewhere-in-the-middle-of-the-country american.

BTW I have a theory on where the Minnesota-Canada-Wisconsin accent comes from. I think it's from the cold weather. Here me out for a moment -

Whenever I'm in really cold weather, I noticed that the muscles in my face get stiffer and it affects the way that I pronounce some things, particularly some vowels. I've had cases where someone would ask me if I was Canadian because of my sudden "accent," and it would always happen when my face was feeling halfway frozen! For instance when my facial muscles are stuff from the cold, the word "about" comes out sounding vaguely like "aboot." In warmer temperatures I sound normal (relatively speaking).

What do you think?

[nbp]

Ahem, we'll be the judge of that! C'mon mate, let's hear it.

[nbp]

To my ears the Wisconsin accent sounds like a diluted Minnesota (Minnn-ah-soohh-tah) accent.

I don't have an accent as far as I can tell. I think I sound like a generic somewhere-in-the-middle-of-the-country american.

BTW I have a theory on where the Minnesota-Canada-Wisconsin accent comes from. I think it's from the cold weather. Here me out for a moment -

Whenever I'm in really cold weather, I noticed that the muscles in my face get stiffer and it affects the way that I pronounce some things, particularly some vowels. I've had cases where someone would ask me if I was Canadian because of my sudden "accent," and it would always happen when my face was feeling halfway frozen! For instance when my facial muscles are stuff from the cold, the word "about" comes out sounding vaguely like "aboot." In warmer temperatures I sound normal (relatively speaking).

What do you think?

Interesting theory. Could hold some water I suppose. Canadians do say things such as you describe, "oot" more than "out" and other vowel sounds. I notice that if I try to imitate a far north accent, I form words in the far back of my mouth and tongue and sounds that normally would be made with tongue and teeth are formed with my tongue and the roof of my mouth, giving vowels very different sounds. I suppose if your face and lips are frozen, you move the words the warmer back of your mouth out if necessity.

I don't really pronounce that that way, but there are plenty of Minnesota and Upper Peninsula phrases that make their way here as people move around. I do say "eh?" often. Also popular to ask "or no?" at the end of yes or no questions around here. Such as, "are you gonna eat that, or no?" From our northern friends we also get "Yah" in place of yes, and "dontcha know". Such as, "yah, the wolves are gettin' to be a real problem around here, dontcha know."

Lot's of view, not too many participants so far.

[Lucciola]

It is sadsch a pittiih sät ai can not partizzipäit. Bekoohs efribadi nohs zat ze Dschörmäns nohmällieh du not häf äni Äksent ät ohl!

[nbp]

Very clever!

How long did those outrageous spellings take to come up with? They're funny.

[orbital]

+

WI is renowned for their A's & O's, some people are really sloppy with it, kinda tavern speak.
daOwn by da laake der

Different to Minnesota & North Dakota's pronunciation,,,,ya know


almost forgot; no I don't talk like that...well, most the time

[Lucciola]

Very clever!

How long did those outrageous spellings take to come up with? They're funny.

Thanks! I can tell you it's hard work not to spell anything wrong if your intention is to spell *everything* wrong.

almost forgot; no I don't talk like that...well, most the time

Neither do I - well, hopefully

[HighlanderNorth]

I was born and raised in North Carolina til age 12, then we moved north...... My Dad worked for DuPont and took many transfers in order to get promotions, mainly because he had a bachelor's in "statistics"! That major certainly doesnt guarantee success. So we move up to Pa for the 2nd time when I was 12. We had moved up here for only 2 years when I was about 5-7 years old, then back to NC for 5 more years.

That meant I had one helluva southern accent. I'm here to tell y'all that a southern accent DOES NOT go over very well up north when you are starting 7th grade! I met this one girl in our new neighborhood who went to a private school, and she told me casually one day, "you are going to want to get rid of that accent before the school year starts". She was absolutely correct! I knew nobody in my new school at first, had zero friends, and a southern drawl! I got picked on for about 1.5 years while I made lots of friends, many who were older and bigger than the people giving me a hard time.

But in the mean time, I got rid of that accent as fast as humanly possible! It took about 2 years, but its long gone......... My Dad kept his though, and it seemed to actually help him at his job as a marketing guy. He's got that whole southern hospitality thing down to a tee....