The American Accent

I have two questions.

1) Why is that when an american has lived in australia or britain for a long while (say over 10 years), that person always manages to hold on to his american accent. Yet when an aussie goes to US, he picks up an american accent is less than a year?

2) Is it really true that every American city has its own accent. Is there such a thing as a Chicago accent, a Detroit accent, a Miami accent? How the hell would u tell the difference?

1. maybe because you only really notice the DIFFERENCES...
Americans also pick up on other accents, at least the ones I know.
only subtle differences. But we're susceptable like anyone else.
To me an Aussie, who's language may sound Americanized to you,
Well, they still sound Aussie to me..!

2. yes regional accents. I'm fairly good at picking those up..especially
after hearing the person say two words: WATER, and HOME..
there is also a universal (non regional) Redneck accent..

lol.....it gets more complicated than that.....there are sections of New Orleans that sound like they are a part of New York. It's all the irish/italians in the respective areas....

In the parish I live in, I can point out, sometimes, what street someone grew up on, just by the way they say one single word.


And, yes, some accents are easier to pick up than others....

I have the American Standard Dialect, pretty much.....that's the same as how the major newscasters like Dan Rather and Tom Brocaw talk. I spent many years around the northern midwest, (kind of like a cross between Redneck, ASD, and Cannadian English (the don'tcha know thing)). Living in Southern Louisiana, I've picked up on about 3 seperate cajun dialects in just my local area. As a result, I have 6 native accents, a couple of horrid foregion accents, and often will get stuck in one....especially the redneck one, and can't stop for some bloody reason.

When I lived in San Diego, people always guessed that I was from Chicago.

What?! I don't have no accent! Whatta youse talkin about?

I have trained myself to use neutral tones and words so's I sound more professional.

I know some people (from here) who lived in AU for years, they have AU accents now (of course they went there when young, also).

I can always spot NY accents, esp. the "Long Island" accent. Lots of Brits live in Chi too, they're easy to pick out. I can even tell the difference between Londoners and others, such as the 'Geordie' accent.

I think people's accents remain because it gets stuck in the mind.

Yes, we weird americans have accents depending on our area.....

Example, my bro's fiance has a boston accent so when she says "I parked the car in the parking lot" it sounds like "I pocked the ca in the pocking lot" (couldnt figure out how to spell it...)


just listen to some weird americans talk, they are very odd in they accents...


(this is comming from an american )

Maybe this'll help, maybe it won't, but here goes anyway:

I have a friend that went to England for only 2 years, and came back to America 4 years ago. He still has his accent!

I have an Aussie friend who lived here in the US for about 10 years, but he stil had his "accent" when he moved back home. Especially when he was loaded...

:w:

Originally posted by croatianguy
I have two questions.

1) Why is that when an american has lived in australia or britain for a long while (say over 10 years), that person always manages to hold on to his american accent. Yet when an aussie goes to US, he picks up an american accent is less than a year?

2) Is it really true that every American city has its own accent. Is there such a thing as a Chicago accent, a Detroit accent, a Miami accent? How the hell would u tell the difference?

1) answer- americans don't loose accents cause we are just that damn Thick headed , also if you speak with an accent in the U.S. you would be surprised how many times a day people will ask you the same questions about you, your accent and then you'll sit there even longer so they can share who they know in what town and have you ever been there. My guess foreigners loose the accent to keep from being pestered.

2)answer- depending on region will affect the way you speak out here, some of the accents are as vastly different as australian is to british is to irish. prime example a cowboy sounds different than a new yorker.

I'm dutch, but I am heavilly Americanized, I lived there for 1½ years and Dutch people think i'm from America and American people think i'm from...uhmmm...they don't know...lol...

The only obvious american accents I can pick up is a Boston accent, a Bronx accent and a southern accent. The rest I wouldnt have a clue how to differentiate between. I dont even know what an LA accent is - there is nothing obvious about it.

Worth mentioning that immigrants are more likely to associate with immigrants similar to themselves, as is everyone. I have friends who moved to America a decade ago, but still carry a heavy, heavy accent because they live with their parents.

The Brooklyn accent is a world in itself.

Sorry, I meant the Brooklyn accent, not Bronx.

I have often wondered what it would mean if one were to possess a random accent? (sometimes American, sometimes something else) The only thing that makes sense to me, would be that I was born in a military town and had lived there for 17 years, giving me an ample opportunity to hear many different accents from elsewhere.. When I stop randomizing for a while, I tend to revert back to Texhoman(TX/OK)

I haven't read all the replies and really have no inclination to....so if I repeat, I apologize.....No, every city does not have it's own accent! "Areas of the country have certain colloquial accents indicative of that area....there is a definite "northern", southern accent, also what is called a "New York" accent for that whole areas including New Jersey area........also about the south....there are the redneck accents, which can really be anywhere in the country, I guess and it is not to be confused with the southern accent! My family, though I lost most of mine years ago, have a true southern accent...it is musical and flows, sorta "rolls" the "r" sound...and is nothing like what people call a "hick" accent...too many people equate a "hick" accent as a "southern" accent and they are nowhere near the same thing! I understand the "hick/redneck" accent originally comes from the lower British accent from years ago...it is a lazy way of speech as it uses less muscles to move the mouth....aaaaaaaaaaaanyway....

Originally posted by croatianguy
I have two questions.


2) Is it really true that every American city has its own accent. Is there such a thing as a Chicago accent, a Detroit accent, a Miami accent? How the hell would u tell the difference?

Its more like the mid-west has its own, the east-coast, west-coast and south. After you live around the diffrent types you will clearly be able to tell.

Originally posted by SpittinCobra


Its more like the mid-west has its own, the east-coast, west-coast and south. After you live around the diffrent types you will clearly be able to tell.

Naw, I live on the east-coast (CT) and there are MANY different accents, Theres the Boston accent, the New York accents....and much more

Don't forget, Norfolk has it's own accent, too...

How you know about Norfolk, Susquehanna?

Lets not forget that we have the Southern, New England, MidWest, Californian, etc. types of slangs and accents. This is not limited to city talk...




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