Everyone has an accent....

[David In Indy]

I was mean about David Beckham too ... does that mean I get a spanking??!!  

Susie 

Yup. You bet it does! Both you and Kerry have been very naughty!

[souxi]

What are Brummie and Scousers? 

It tickles me when companies in the US use "someone with a British accent" on their answering service recordings because it "sounds elegant" when the specific accent they're using is very low-rent — cockney or something (I don't know the term; maybe that's Brummie or Scousers?).    


There are all kinds of different Southern accents.  People from coastal Virginia sound very "old-world" — the closest you'll find in the US to the Scottish accents from which they sprang.  And Alabama, Louisiana, Georgia and Texas accents sound very different from each other.  A friend of mine (who was from New Hampshire) said that when I left my native Tennessee and lived in the Florida panhandle for a while, my accent changed.

The most beautiful accent I ever heard was on this guy from Louisiana.  Somewhat similar to New Orleans but purer . . .  prettier.  OMG — just made mah lil' heart go pitty-pat . . .   

Hi Laura.

A Brummie is someone from Birmingham, and a scouser is someone from Liverpool. Both accents are absolutly dreadful. You can,t understand a word they say, it,s awful. I never used to watch Brookside for that reason, I couldn,t understand what they were saying. (That was a soap set in Liverpool).
That made me laugh about some US companies using someone with a British accent on an answering machine because we sound "posh". Good job they didn,t use someone from the east end then lol. That aint NO way posh lol.

[serious crayons]

The most beautiful accent I ever heard was on this guy from Louisiana.  Somewhat similar to New Orleans but purer . . .  prettier.  OMG — just made mah lil' heart go pitty-pat . . .   

Upper class New Orleanians have that soft lulling Southern accent. But middle- and working-class New Orleanians sounds a lot like they're from Brooklyn! When I first moved there, I assumed all those people were from Brooklyn. I'd meet someone new and think, OK, all those other people were from New Orleans but this person really has to be from New York. No.

Apparently the immigration patterns were similar.

And then of course Cajuns have a whole other accent altogether.

[Kerry]

Can I ask you Aussies something on what's kind of a sensitive and sad topic but one I've always been curious about? Heath's accent. To me, his accent never sounded quite like what I think of as an Australian accent. If anything, it sounded a bit ... well, almost more British. At least, he didn't (sorry, I hate using past tense) sound quite like the Australians I've known in real life -- a boss and a guy I very briefly dated years ago -- or on TV or whatever.

Was it a matter of the part of Australia he came from? Or are there class differences in accents there? Or was his accent trained for acting? Or am I just hearing wrong with my uneducated ears?

I know that in the U.S., accents can vary not only by region but often by state or even, in some cases, what part of a city people are from. So maybe it's as simple as that. In any case, I've always wondered and I hope it's not too touch a subject for someone to address.

Good question!

Just my opinion and I'm sure every Australian you ask will have an opinion of his/her own . . . . . .

In Australia, we don't have "accents" as one would see them so dramatically displayed in such places as England or America. An Australian accent is an Australian accent.

However, having said that, I personally believe there are three distinct ways in which an Australian can deliver his/her mode of speech:

* High Australian - As spoken by Heath. Spoken by intellectuals, the affluent and upper-crust.

* Middle Australian - As spoken my the vast majority of Australians.

* Low Australian - As spoken by the uneducated Australian, usually referred to as "ockers" or "yobs."

Heath did not come from a background of the great unwashed masses. He was born to wealth and privilege. He comes from a family of intellectuals and he himself (as did his sister Kate) went to exclusive schools.

Heath's father, grandfather and great grandfather were all university educated (unlike America, a university education is not common in Oz).

Heath's great grandfather was a Knight of the Realm, bestowed by the reigning Monarch, which is a great honour in any British Commonwealth country and would have immediately set the entire family apart and above their peers.

Added to Heath's High Australian "accent " is the fact that he worked professionally as an actor and would have trained his voice accordingly. And then there was also the naturally deep, resonant timbre of Heath's voice, which made it so sexy and enjoyable to listen to - in any accent!

Just my personal opinion.

[Katie77]

Can I ask you Aussies something on what's kind of a sensitive and sad topic but one I've always been curious about? Heath's accent. To me, his accent never sounded quite like what I think of as an Australian accent. If anything, it sounded a bit ... well, almost more British. At least, he didn't (sorry, I hate using past tense) sound quite like the Australians I've known in real life -- a boss and a guy I very briefly dated years ago -- or on TV or whatever.

Was it a matter of the part of Australia he came from? Or are there class differences in accents there? Or was his accent trained for acting? Or am I just hearing wrong with my uneducated ears?

I know that in the U.S., accents can vary not only by region but often by state or even, in some cases, what part of a city people are from. So maybe it's as simple as that. In any case, I've always wondered and I hope it's not too touch a subject for someone to address.

You are right about Heath's accent.....when I heard him speak, I did not think his accent was very Australian at all, it was very sophisticated for an Aussie, maybe because of his private schooling or maybe because of voice coaching. His father's accent is more Aussie.

I dont think the Aussie accent changes much from one end of the country to the other, although some say, the further north one comes from, the slower the accent. I think that is because the northern states have more small country towns and country folk just seem to talk  a bit slower.

We have a term "ocker" which refers to an accent like Paul Hogan and Steve Irwin.....I would say that most working class Aussies sound like them...I would put myself in that category and most of my friends. Actors like Hugh Jackeman and Russell Crowe have similar accents. Most Aussies I associate with use the greeting "gidday, ow ya goin"...."fair dinkum".....and use "bloody" as an adjective in most conversations. It is a humourous accent, sometimes lazy, we drop of letters at the beginning of a lot of words, some say we talk too fast.

I think people who have come from more privilged backgrounds or have had private schooling, develop a more sophisticated type of accent, the fact that we have a lot of British migrants and descendents can also influence how their children's accents develop.

Obviously, living amongst it, I dont notice the accent in everyday life....but I do notice it, when an Aussie is talking on American TV or is playing the part of an Aussie in an overseas movie.

Hopefully Kerry will give his insight too into this...... its hard to explain when you live with it, and it seems so normal.

[Katie77]

Hahahahhaa.....I see Kerry was writing his post at the same time as I was.......

Well, Kerry, we both agree where Heath got his accent from........but.........I had to have a giggle at you putting us "ockers" down in the uneducated unwashed masses.......fair dinkum mate......isn't "working class" a better way to put it.

[serious crayons]

Thanks, mates! You've helped solve a mystery I've wondered about off and on for two years. 

[Kerry]

Hahahahhaa.....I see Kerry was writing his post at the same time as I was.......

Well, Kerry, we both agree where Heath got his accent from........but.........I had to have a giggle at you putting us "ockers" down in the uneducated unwashed masses.......fair dinkum mate......isn't "working class" a better way to put it.

Great minds think alike, Sue. There's much there that we agree on. However, I would disagree with you about the vast majority of Australians speaking like Steve Irwin!  Yikes! In my experience, the majority appear to be in the middle category; i.e., not intellectuals, but not ockers, either.

Personally, I rarely say "G'Day" when greeting someone. In fact, I've probably used it here at BetterMost more than at any other time in my life, mainly because I've noticed that Americans are fond of Australianism, and also sending myself up. I have NEVER used the word "Crikey!" EVER . . . . until I came to BetterMost, for the same reasons.

I'm no intellectual, but I'm not a yob either. Just an average, everyday, garden-variety citizen of the Land of Oz!

[Katie77]

I'm no intellectual, but I'm not a yob either. Just an average, everyday, garden-variety citizen of the Land of Oz!

Just goes to show, just how many varieties there are in this Beautiful garden.....eh Kerry !!!

[Kerry]

Just goes to show, just how many varieties there are in this Beautiful garden.....eh Kerry !!!

God's own country, Sue! God's own country! I love Australia with a passion and give thanks every day that I was born in this beautiful country.