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Accents and Dialects
Questions and answers related to different accents and dialects of the English language.
1,457 Questions
What role did religion play in the development and survival of English language?
id say protestant episcopalian and lutheran and catholic .. i mean think England
Why do English singers sing with an American accent?
I think you'll find most singers (English and American) sing in a neutral accent. It sounds slightly British and slightly American.
This is because:
1.) They want to make their music more marketable over the pond. Every British artist wants to make to big in America, and every American artist wants to make it big in the UK and Europe, so if they sing in a more neutral accent their voice may be better for radio, etc.
2.) The Beatles! The Beatles are from Liverpool, and whilst there is nothing wrong with the northern British accent, it has often been associated with folk music, which they obviously believed is "uncool", so they decided to develop a London/North American accent to sing in. Because the Beatles were so revolutionary, the trend to sing in a slightly North American accent caught on, and it became common.
BUT there are singers who sing in a full British accent, like Lily Allen, Ellie Goulding, Eliza Doolittle, Katy B, Sophie Ellis Bextor, The Wanted etc.
And nearly all British rappers rap in British accents - like Plan B, Tinie Tempah, Dizzee Rascal, Chipmunk, Tinchy Stryder, MIA and Aggro Santos.
Accents are also about the melody of the sentances as a whole as well as pitch and stuff. When a person sings it becomes harder to recognise the accent, since the melody and the pitch both become a more active components, but you still can.
A better question would be 'Why do English singers and American singers sound similar when they sing?' since both nationalities accents are affected when they sing, not just the English accent.
You're just more accustomed to the American voice so you believe the English are imitating it. It's like when you're a child and you think that other countries have an accent and yours doesn't, because it's what your used to.
Answer
On most of their songs, the Beatles sang with a quite plain Scouse accent (this is quite noticable in songs with the word "singing" in them- the word is pronounced "sing-ging" (with hard"g"). No "put on" American accents except perhaps in some of their early work (many of which were covers of American songs).
Modern British singers from the London area like Lily Allen have the quite noticable "Estuary" accent which derives in large part from Cockney (complete with dropped letters like the "tt" in "little").
It's refeshing to note Australian singers like Missy Higgins singing with an Australian accent, while C&W singer Keith Urban sounds excatly like an American due no doubt to his intended market.
There seems to be a latter-day trend towards vocalists performing with their own native accent rather than contrived "mid-Atlantic" accents although there will always be exceptions like Urban above (and lets face it, songs about yodelling tractors should be sung with an American accent).
Why does Sweetie Belle's accent differ from her sister Rarity's accent?
Because Sweetie Belle speak in a General American Accent.
What is a Regional dialect word for a hedgehog?
known as Tiggy Winkle or Tiggywinkle or Mrs. Tiggywinkle
hedgehog ?
?
im not suree someting slightly strange ;)
Where do southern accents come from?
I read in a book on the English language that southern accents are an off-shoot of African accents. When the slave owners kids would play with the slaves kids they would pick up their African accents. This eventually evolved into the southern accents that you uhear today.
How can you learn to speak with an American and English accent?
It would be best to get in touch with an Accent Coach or a Speech-Language Pathologist who is trained in evaluating speech sound differences and grammatical differences. After they assess your current speech, they can help you become aware of what you are doing and how to change it. This requires a lot of practice and motivation, but it is possible! I am a Speech-Language Pathologist, and I could talk to you more about it if you would like: nisha@brennanandburns.com.
~Nisha Malavia
How can a stone deaf person speak with a regional accent?
They follow the lip patterns of the person speaking to them by lip reading. Dialect is caused by lip patterns when speaking.
What is a dialect name for hedgehog?
Tiggy Winkle (or may be written as one word)
Urchin
or
Mrs Tiggiwinkle or Herichun
Can you give me a paragraph with this words culture ethnic group dialect democracy dictorship?
i know what culture is. i am studing ethnic groups. i don't know what dialect means. we have a democracy. Hitler was a dictatorship.
hope this helps!!!
How does education affect language?
Education gives you the ability to think and communicate clearly on all topics with other people. Now consider this: If you learn a spiritual language, how will this affect your language? This will give you the ability to think and communicate according to God's will and purpose. If this kind of language appeals to you, then read more at the link below. Just piece the link together by removing the underscores and follow it. ↓
jw.____org/en/library/magazines/w20151015/keep-meditating-on-spiritual-things/
Why do americans like the british accent?
Because it's different from theirs and beyond TV and movies they don't hear it often.
What is the difference between southern accent and western accent?
The southern accent has not changed much in the past few centuries, but the western has, so it depends on whether you refer to the current western accent, or the old western accent. After the States War ended in 1865, many southerners moved west in search of freedom, since it was still mostly untouched. As a result, much of the west adopted a southern twang often heard in old western movies. In many places, it was almost indistiguishable from it's original southern roots. Around the turn of the century, northerners began flocking to the west, thus diminishing the prevelance of the southern accent. Nowdays the western accent is fairly equalized with the rest of the country, except for some rural or otherwise isolated areas.
There is no "gay accent". Often times the more effeminate guys will exaggerate their femininity in which they will speak with a lisp or a high pitch voice. But it is very obvious that you have not been around the gay community for very long because you would find that there is no "gay accent".
Is Till a the seas gang dry my dear a dialect?
This is the Scots language. It means 'until all the seas go dry' i.e. until the ends of time.
Not to be a jerk, but--technically, no. "'Till all the seas gang dry" is of a dialect and not a distinct language in and of itself.
Strictly speaking, there's no such thing as the "Scots language." There's Lallans and Braid, but they're dialects of English, and there's Scots Gaelic, but that--obviously--is Gaelic and not English.
PS: Yes, there are other dialects too (Highland, Coastal, etc.), but you get the point.
Are British accents spelled The same as American accents?
The British accents are spelled the same as American accents. The New England accents are spelled different than American accents.
What does fowk aye mean in Scots?
FOWK AYE (family always). This not Scottish Gaelic but the Scottish dialect of English.
How do you speak with a German accent?
German Language is a Very Easiest Language for learning an foreign language or add on skills in & for your life.
German is not easy to learn only, it is easy in speaking also. Whether you learn this language so you getting enjoy the language whenever you speak this.
YES Germany is a institute in Delhi, who provide the Online and Offline Language Classes with the study material too and they will provide the customized classes too for the most understanding with the student, which is their Specialty.
I have heard it said that only the people who are native to Inverness in Scotland, pronounce English language words in the way that they were originally intended.
Dialects in Ireland vary by region, but many Irish people do say "mate" as a slang term for friend.
