In a nutshell, it has a lot to do with phonetics, the pace at which they sing and speak, and the air pressure from one’s vocal chords. … As far as why “American” and not some other accent, it’s simply because the generic “American” accent is fairly neutral.Aug 9, 2013
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Can an American develop a British accent?
“What we advise Americans to do is not try to give up their American accent, but stick with it,” he says. The trouble for adult Americans in Britain, language experts say, is that because of changes in the brain, only young children can fully master a new accent.
Why does American and British English sound different?
An important reason why American English and British English sound different is rhotacism, the change of a particular sound in a language. … At first, English speakers in the colonies and England used a rhotic accent.
How do the British say hello?
Which state has the strongest accent?
Another 16% say the Southern coast has the strongest regional accent, while New York and Texas were tied, with 13% saying these states had the strongest accents. Although Boston has the strongest accent of any place in the US, it’s generally not the one Americans say they find the most attractive.
How did Americans lose the British accent?
All of these languages influenced American English, as did the English-speaking colonists’ origins in different parts of England, Wales and Scotland. Later, as metropolitan centers such as Boston and New York City had more contact with England, they adopted the then-trendy r-less accent of the English upper class.
Why did America drop the U in Colour?
American spelling was invented as a form of protest
He dropped the letter u from words like colour and honour – which had developed from the French influence in England – to make them color and honor instead.
How do you say goodbye in England?
How do British people say water?
Water = BBC America’s Mind the Gap polled our expat readers and a lot chimed in saying “water” is really hard for Americans to understand when said in a British accent. They don’t even know why! It comes across as “WAH-ta” vs. our “wodder.”
What is the most attractive accent in America?
Southern accent
Apparently, if you’re looking for the perfect way to position your marketing campaign, you should head to the South because once again, people found the Southern accent to be the most attractive accent to have.
What is the most normal accent?
Almost a century later, there’s still no “normal” accent, but the term has survived to describe what is considered the most correct, or the unmarked, American accent. The word “unmarked” is pretty loaded when referring to accents, though.
Did George Washington have a British accent?
His English accent was inspired by Kahn’s study of Washington in preparation for the role. On the choice to do the accent, Kahn said he took his inspiration from the assumption that the General would have sounded a bit like an English officer because, as a young man, Washington was frequently around English officers.
Is there a California accent?
The California accent. In pop culture, it’s one of a few things: The long, slow drawl of the surfer, or how a valley girl ends her sentences, or the slang of East L.A. But c’mon, Californians don’t really have an accent or dialect. … It’s for a project called Voices of California.
Do Americans have an accent?
Every single American has an accent. For those who have lived in one part of the country and then moved somewhere else only to be told “You have an accent!” this is great news.
Why do we speak English in America?
The use of English in the United States is a result of British colonization of the Americas. The first wave of English-speaking settlers arrived in North America during the 17th century, followed by further migrations in the 18th and 19th centuries.
What words are Spelt differently in America?
Most words ending in an unstressed -our in British English (e.g., colour, flavour, behaviour, harbour, honour, humour, labour, neighbour, rumour, splendour) end in -or in American English (color, flavor, behavior, harbor, honor, humor, labor, neighbor, rumor, splendor).
When did English spelling become standardized?
1755
Samuel Johnson, poet, wit, essayist, biographer, critic and eccentric, broadly credited with the standardisation of English spelling into its pre-current form in his Dictionary of the English Language (1755).
What is the oldest English accent?
Geordie. As the oldest English dialect still spoken, Geordie normally refers to both the people and dialect of Newcastle-Upon-Tyne in Northeast England. Don’t worry if you find this accent difficult to understand at first, as many other Brits also struggle!
Are the English Celtic?
Historians teach that they are mostly descended from different peoples: the Irish from the Celts, and the English from the Anglo-Saxons who invaded from northern Europe and drove the Celts to the country’s western and northern fringes.
Where did America originate from?
America is named after Amerigo Vespucci, the Italian explorer who set forth the then revolutionary concept that the lands that Christopher Columbus sailed to in 1492 were part of a separate continent.
How do you say goodbye 2020?
Experts say it’s important for people to say farewell to 2020 in a healthy way. They say it’s OK to acknowledge all the challenges and sorrow, but it’s also important to move on. They recommend people shift their perspective, unplug when they can, and be kind to themselves as 2021 approaches.
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