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I'm from the states.
Because of this I don't know what an american accent "sounds like."
I suppose it is all relative, but could someone from the UK try to explain it.

Thanks,

-Jake.

i've been wondering the same thing. i mean when people from other seas(or from other areas of our country) come here, there is a noticable accent. We recently had a wonderful family from England move into our neigborhood. and the accent was hard to get over at first but ultimately they are nice people

Interesting one this - when a non-American hears an American accent, a little label saying, 'American', is applied, at which point they usually stop analysing the accent itself.

But ask us to explain what it sounds like, and you're suddenly faced with a multitude of options.

Let's face it - America is a BIG place.

And a New Jersey accent sounds nothing like a California accent, for example.

Just as, here in Blighty, a cockney accent is distinctly different to geordie (although many foreigners would just apply a simple label saying 'English' and leave it at that (even if the accent is Scots)).

So it's a complex question - a bit like asking what pizza tastes like.

Pete

Funny topic this, me and and a certain southen fairie were talking on the phone the other day and we both thought the other one had a strong accent, but both of us think we don't have an accent. I'm just on the outskirts of south yorkshire so to me someone from say Sheffield has a strong accent or go to North Yorkshire and that's strong to me.

did you know all our Uk accents were soften because of the bible?

when it was printed in english and given to the priests to go forth and read to the masses, all those priests were well spoken kings/queen's english...

so families would buy bibles, and try and mimic those accents...and it softened/changed all the local dialects...

american accent - loud and twangy, with variants of loudness, twanginess and warmth...

if ever you meet someone from england, please do not ask if they are australian...gggrrrr...

My best friend was Born in the USA, and moved over here when he was 16, so has a mix of both accents and as such in each differing country is either reffered to as the American by the brits.... or The Brit when over there .... purely because thats what his accent sounds like ....

Talk about giving someone a complex lol...

F x

There are, of course regional variations in American accents, but I'd say that it comes from a slightly wider mouth position than a British accent (a little bit like smiling while talking), with sounds produced more in the upper palate/nasal region (hence the 'twang').

An Australian accent has the nasal quality, but with narrower mouth.

We British (with the 'received pronunciation') tend not to open our mouths much when we speak. Sounds are made lower in the mouth/throat.

All massive generalisations for the purposes of illustration, of course.

And as an aside, if you think the person might be Irish or much less importantly Scottish, do not under any circumstances ask where in England they are from.

Never.
You may get hurt.
Badly.

Part-Timer wrote:There are, of course regional variations in American accents, but I'd say that it comes from a slightly wider mouth position than a British accent (a little bit like smiling while talking), with sounds produced more in the upper palate/nasal region (hence the 'twang').

An Australian accent has the nasal quality, but with narrower mouth.

We British (with the 'received pronunciation') tend not to open our mouths much when we speak. Sounds are made lower in the mouth/throat.

All massive generalisations for the purposes of illustration, of course.

^^ This. I think of American accents as being wider in the throat. Mimicry is a great way of understanding the differences - you get a physical feeling for the differences.

Never mind accents what about dialect lol I know that we have French and Latin in our language but alot of English come from the Vikings as we had to trade with them when the started to settle over here, where did they settle? in Yorkshire. So that means that the Yorkshire dialect is the true English dialect. Might be just me being a Yorkshire man with Viking blood in me lol

Well, let's see.

My accent is not New York...
not southern, not Californian.

I'm in Ohio actually.

?

-Jake

just record yourself speaking, onto your mobile phone and listen back....easy...

Mr_Grue wrote:Mimicry is a great way of understanding the differences - you get a physical feeling for the differences.

That was how I drew the conclusions I did!

Reverend Tristan wrote:Never mind accents what about dialect lol I know that we have French and Latin in our language but alot of English come from the Vikings as we had to trade with them when the started to settle over here, where did they settle? in Yorkshire. So that means that the Yorkshire dialect is the true English dialect. Might be just me being a Yorkshire man with Viking blood in me lol

How does the inclusion of Viking pronunciations and words mean that the Yorkshire dialect is the true English dialect?

(Incidentally, my fiancée is from that part of the country, and even has a Viking-influenced surname.)

I suspect that the Midlands is the best bet. This is because (so I am told), in the 18th century, English people (again, a generalisation ignoring regional accents) sounded a bit like Americans do noe. In the early 19th century, it was Australians. So, as the twangiest English accents are in the Midlands, I'd guess that's closest. Pure speculation on my part, however.

Haven't you seen Craig Browning's only online video. Imagine that without the Cracks in his voice. I think he said he had a cold.

-Jake

During the few times I've been to the US (California) I got the feeling that there's a very distincitve difference between "grown-ups" and "teen" talk.
Many young people used the phrases "like" or "kind of like" way too often within one senctence.

Example: "And I was like: Jason, I kind'a like your eyes, and he was like: wow, that like about the nicest thing I heared so far - like ever!"

Imagine this sentence spoken with a voice which gradually raises towards the end of the sentence (as if asking a question). I friend for the US told me this type of accent is called "valley girl talk". If you don't know what it sounds like, just watch ANY episode of MTV "Dismissed". Interestingly, this type of language stops at a certain age group, I've never heared anyone over 40 talking that way.

Does anyone know what I mean? Thanks for listening anyway.