Wednesday, Jun 13, 2007
I wasjustsurfing around on Digg.com and saw this test on the frontpage:
"What American accent do you have?" -> Link
Since I'm German, I thought it would be interesting to find out what accent the German accent is most similar to and apparently, it's the Midland accent:
("Midland" is not necessarily the same thing as "Midwest") The default, lowest-common-denominator American accent that newscasters try to imitate. Since it's a neutral accent, just because you have a Midland accent doesn't mean you're from the Midland.
Comments
Page
1
« prev
|
next »
Posted Jun 13, 2007 3:43 pm PT
Posted Jun 14, 2007 8:31 am PT
I think there are more people of German ancestry in the Midwest, particularly the upper Midwest, but also in Pennsylvania and western New York state.
Many people in the Midwest claim that they don't have an accent but that's not really true. Famous Midwesterners like Bob Dole and Walter Cronkite had a discernible accent that differs from "Standard American English" (SAE). There are some different pronunciations and phrases used in parts of the Midwest that wouldn't be considered part of SAE.
It's true, however, that the Midwestern dialect is closer to SAE than the highly distinctive New York accent, the Boston accent or the many Southern accents. (A side note about Southern accents: There is no single Southern accent. People in East Texas sound different from people in Georgia. Both may sound different from people in Tennessee or in SW Virginia. Many Northerners, Midwesterners and West Coast people can't always distinguish between the various Southern accents though.)
The regional accents have become less pronounced in many big cities, particularly in the larger cities in the South. Atlantans in particular tend to have very mild accents compared to people in other parts of Georgia. Florida is a strange mix linguistically. Many of the upper areas and rural areas are more traditionally Southern, while South Florida has a lot of transplants from the Northeast, especially retirees from the New York City area, so you'll here some New York-influenced accents there. And then there's Miami. The majority of the people in Miami are of Hispanic background. The largest group is from Cuba. Spanish accents predominate in and around Miami.
In certain industries, many people move around the country, so you'll see a greater mix of accents. And in the Washington, D.C., area, you will find many people from other parts of the country, all bringing their various accents. Washington, D.C., has the lowest percentage of Americans who were born in that jurisdiction. (D.C. isn't a state.) I think the last number I saw was something like 15-20% of Washingtonians were born in D.C. The rest came from other parts of the country or from foreign countries. (Pennsylvania has the highest percentage of residents who were born in the state, somewhere around 70 to 80 percent.)
Many people in the Midwest claim that they don't have an accent but that's not really true. Famous Midwesterners like Bob Dole and Walter Cronkite had a discernible accent that differs from "Standard American English" (SAE). There are some different pronunciations and phrases used in parts of the Midwest that wouldn't be considered part of SAE.
It's true, however, that the Midwestern dialect is closer to SAE than the highly distinctive New York accent, the Boston accent or the many Southern accents. (A side note about Southern accents: There is no single Southern accent. People in East Texas sound different from people in Georgia. Both may sound different from people in Tennessee or in SW Virginia. Many Northerners, Midwesterners and West Coast people can't always distinguish between the various Southern accents though.)
The regional accents have become less pronounced in many big cities, particularly in the larger cities in the South. Atlantans in particular tend to have very mild accents compared to people in other parts of Georgia. Florida is a strange mix linguistically. Many of the upper areas and rural areas are more traditionally Southern, while South Florida has a lot of transplants from the Northeast, especially retirees from the New York City area, so you'll here some New York-influenced accents there. And then there's Miami. The majority of the people in Miami are of Hispanic background. The largest group is from Cuba. Spanish accents predominate in and around Miami.
In certain industries, many people move around the country, so you'll see a greater mix of accents. And in the Washington, D.C., area, you will find many people from other parts of the country, all bringing their various accents. Washington, D.C., has the lowest percentage of Americans who were born in that jurisdiction. (D.C. isn't a state.) I think the last number I saw was something like 15-20% of Washingtonians were born in D.C. The rest came from other parts of the country or from foreign countries. (Pennsylvania has the highest percentage of residents who were born in the state, somewhere around 70 to 80 percent.)
Posted Jun 25, 2007 12:58 am PT
thx for the comment. Interesting read 
Posted Jun 25, 2007 1:49 am PT
Page
1
« prev
|
next »
Friends
My Friends
mvscali89
oh and do you want to be friends? I think it's SO cool you are from Germany because I have relatives that live in Germany and my family is from Lithuania and my Great Aunt said she used to live in Germany! lol yeah i kind of have a history with Europe, especially Lithuania & Germany!
XOXO
Maria