Accents

[Kazeko]

I honestly couldn't place my accent. *shrug* I've been told it's Boston, though.

[Quinney]

I live in South Yorkshire in England.

 

I cringe at my accent. It's coarse and idle. (not pronouncing words properly and dropping the H).

 

For instance:

 

'I don't know' comes out as 'Ah dunt no'.

 

'It hasn't' becomes 'It ant'

 

I guess it's not too bad when you're surrounded by others talking the same way but hearing someone speaking it on the television is terrible. I always think I'd choose my words carefully before opening my mouth.

 

This is where I get hung, drawn and quartered by Yorkshire folk who are proud of it!

 

 

 

 

[Gsea]

I'm from Florida, so I have what would be considered a "southern accent" but not a very heavy southern accent. I mean, obviously the way i talk is different from the rest of the world, but it sounds normal to me. Everyone i know talks about like me. My mom's side of the family is mostly from South Carolina, so they have some pretty southern accents. My dad's from Iowa, but i haven't met much of his family.

 

I can imitate British accents "ok" and french "ok" but I can't do Australian for the life of me. or Spanish/Mexican/south American. or anything Asian, at all.

Edited June 1, 2011 by glamoursea2

[7hippo7]

I have a Canadian accent I suppose....

 

 

Eh?

[lizardtail]

ehm, i dont believe i have an accent, though i think that is in the ears of the beholder, lol.

 

(finnish accents sound cool. no, im probably just obsessed with Lauri Yonen. oops.)

[dragoon1234]

I have what is called "The perfect accent." I'm not gloating about it, but have you ever watched the news? I can imagine everyone has, and have you ever noticed how the people talk? The clear, well pronounced words that are very much understood. That's my accent.

 

EDIT: Also I've noticed that on this page 3 or so people have said they don't have accents. Everyone has an accent.

Edited June 2, 2011 by dragoon1234

[Daydreamer09]

I have what is called "The perfect accent." I'm not gloating about it, but have you ever watched the news? I can imagine everyone has, and have you ever noticed how the people talk? The clear, well pronounced words that are very much understood. That's my accent.

Yeah, news channels in the US hire anchors based on that factor. They will try to find someone with that accent, or who can easily copy it because it is one of the easier accents to understand. I'm guessing by "Perfect accent" You mean Midwestern.

 

"The accents of the Midwest are often clearly different from the accents of the South and many urban areas of the American Northeast. The accent of most of the Midwest is thought by many to be "standard" American English. Many national radio and television shows in the U.S. like this accent more than many other accents. This may have started because many television show hosts — such as Walter Cronkite, Johnny Carson, David Letterman, Tom Brokaw and Casey Kasem — came from this area."

-source

[Tiki G]

Just took an American Accent Test and, apparently I have a 'Mid Atlantic' accent. Which is "Also known as a "Philadelphia accent" but also heard in south Jersey, Baltimore, and thereabouts."

 

Makes sense, since I grew up in South Jersey. Although I would say most people from Baltimore don't really have the same accent as people from South Jersey. They have a slightly different accent.

 

Although, I took that test a few years ago and it told me I had a Midland accent. I guess it has changed over the years.

 

 

I can mimic many different accents (some better than others) and I can usually tell where someone is from if I listen to their accent a bit.

[lizardtail]

EDIT: Also I've noticed that on this page 3 or so people have said they don't have accents. Everyone has an accent.

lol yep, sound like me, haha. you just cant tell hen youve lived with it all your life. it takes a foreigner to tell you lol. ill try that American Accent Test and edit in my answer.

 

here:

 

Neutral

 

You`re not Northern, Southern, or Western, you`re just plain -American-. Your national identity is more important than your local identity, because you don`t really have a local identity. You might be from the region in that map, which is defined by this kind of accent, but you could easily not be. Or maybe you just moved around a lot growing up.

 

hmm, im from california, the other side of the country. lol

Edited June 2, 2011 by lizardtail

[Daydreamer09]

hmm, im from california, the other side of the country. lol

That's interesting, I'm from that area, but I got "Western" as my result. Wanna trade?

My Results:

 

Western

 

Western is kind of neutral, but not quite since it`s still possible to tell where you`re from.  So you might not actually be from the West (but you probably are).  If you really want to sound "neutral," learn how to say "stock" and "stalk" differently.

 

Stooooock....staaaaaaalk... Psh, the difference is hard to hear when I say it.

 

 

[CYDA LUVA83]

Ohey, me too. I also try to keep the Southern-ey stuff down, just because it always sounded silly and makes me feel like the kind of person I'm not. ._.

It's kind of hard to explain... I guess I just don't want to be associated with the "country girl" stereotype or something, and my accent adds to that association?

Heh, odd. I live in Tennessee and I love my country accent. Although it only sounds like a distint accent when I'm around other country folk.

Edited June 2, 2011 by CYDA LUVA83

[dragoon1234]

Yeah, news channels in the US hire anchors based on that factor. They will try to find someone with that accent, or who can easily copy it because it is one of the easier accents to understand. I'm guessing by "Perfect accent" You mean Midwestern.

 

Actually I'm talking about neutral.

[TikindiDragon]

Just took an American Accent Test and, apparently I have a 'Mid Atlantic' accent. Which is "Also known as a "Philadelphia accent" but also heard in south Jersey, Baltimore, and thereabouts."

That's really funny. I took this expecting to get, Y'know, Boston or New England or somesuch (having been told that's closest to my natural English accent) But no....

My Results:

 

Southern

 

People used to hate Southern accents but now everyone wants one.

 

Now I can't stop chuckling to myself.

 

[Tiki G]

Well I wouldn't expect it to say you have a Boston accent if you have an English accent. I don't think the two sound the same at all. But that could just be me.

 

I guess Southern would sound a *little* similar to an English accent. Not the way they sound, but the way some of the words are pronounced.

 

 

But I could just be spewing nonsense because I'm exhausted and have barely eaten anything the past week soo......

[7Deadly$ins]

What? When people say stalk and stock it's supposed to sound the same?

[Zovesta]

I have a midwestern American accent. Of course I can't tell though. As far as I know, it's not very distinguishable from the majority of the country.

=| Unless you have a REALLY heavy accent like I do.

 

I took that test, and it said I was neutral: You're not Northern, Southern, or Western, you`re just plain -American-. Your national identity is more important than your local identity, because you don`t really have a local identity. You might be from the region in that map, which is defined by this kind of accent, but you could easily not be. Or maybe you just moved around a lot growing up.

 

 

... And yet I have such an insanely thick accent that even I can't understand myself a lot. My family gets really tired of me when I talk because I have to repeat the same thing about three times.

 

So, yeah. Instead of saying: I have no idea what you are talking about. What do you want with me?

 

I say: Unna whassha talkin' arou'. Whuddyu wanwi' 'e?

 

I pity everyone that has to listen to me. Slowing down is hard! =/

 

@7Deadly$ins: I say it almost the same, but not the same. I didn't know anyway said it the same.

[TikindiDragon]

What? When people say stalk and stock it's supposed to sound the same?

Certainly not in the part of the world I'm from. That'd the cloer to St-Aulk for Stalk and St-Ochk for Stock.

[7Deadly$ins]

Certainly not in the part of the world I'm from. That'd the cloer to St-Aulk for Stalk and St-Ochk for Stock.

That's like it is for me too.

[GiratinaOF]

I speak northern american English according to the test.

[Sesshomaru]

I have a California accent, but due to hanging around my father, who's from New Jersey, I've picked up several of his inflections and other speech variations. My accent's kind of a cross between both coasts of America.

[Daydreamer09]

Actually I'm talking about neutral.

Midwestern, or I guess it's called a Midland accent actually, according to that quiz site, is the generally accepted "neutral" accent. Western accent is close to neutral also.

 

Here's another accent quiz. It has a few different questions than the other, plus it takes into account age and gender I think. I think it's more accurate and you can see your other linguistic influences.

 

http://www.gotoquiz.com/what_american_accent_do_you_have

Edited June 2, 2011 by Daydreamer09

[earwig]

Yeah...I have an Australian accent. It's funny because I think I don't have an accent (because everyone else here has the same accent) but when I talk to someone from a different country they are all like "OMG!"

 

I don't understand why they exist though.

[Crisis]

Heh, odd. I live in Tennessee and I love my country accent. Although it only sounds like a distint accent when I'm around other country folk.

I'm from Tennessee too

 

 

I know everyone has an accent, but I hate it when people expect everyone in the south to south like they're from Gone With the Wind or something. We don't have that "Oh lawdy lawdy! I do delcare!" thing going on (granted, some people do).

[Quinney]

I have what is called "The perfect accent." I'm not gloating about it, but have you ever watched the news? I can imagine everyone has, and have you ever noticed how the people talk? The clear, well pronounced words that are very much understood. That's my accent.

 

I am so envious of you!

[Zovesta]

... Everyone has an accent. o__O It's just the way you say things. Even saying it "perfectly" means ya got an accent, 'cause that'd be yer way o' speakin', boi.