Are you picking up the local accent?

Last week, the plumber asked my (Liverpool born and bred) husband if he was American!  Who knew that moving to the UK would mean my British husband would pick up my Southern accent?

I grew up in the Deep South of Georgia hearing "poorly". But I confess I've never heard it said here in London. What can't slide off my lips so easily is "unwell", rather than sick. And I get into terrible trouble on the phone with the US saying "mad" (which, of course to them, means "angry").

What I resist like crazy is joining in on reversing my expressions of descriptions of events. Case in point here: a colleague dismissed for embezzlement can be said to have gotten himself into a "bit of bother" -- to me, a thoroughly innocuous sounding phrase that sounds like he stubbed his toe. While, missing the bus might be said to be "epic". It gives me the giggles!

I spent six years in London and moved back to the U.S. this summer (hello boring but sunny sunny Florida)- apart from occasionally slipping and calling a cell phone a mobile I don't seem to have changed my manner of speaking. Cheers!

I never really had a very strong Southern American accent to begin with so it's harder for some of my family to tell. My husband says I got a British accent about 3 months after I moved here. I still use Brit slang and a British accent, which my mother does notice and she tells me to speak 'American', which frustrates me sometimes.

I think mine comes and goes. At the nursery, I try really hard to speak with the "local accent", so that the children and co workers will understand what I'm talking about. Because when I speak "Southern Californian", I slur my words and talk really fast, and even DH gets confused. I won't ever say "ta" like my co workers do, though. And I always have the kids repeat "thank you", and not "ta". Makes my skin crawl, that phrase. We were at Sainbury's today, though, and for some reason, I just switched to my SoCal speak-I think it's cause I was frustrated-and I got plenty of looks from the other shoppers. 

I cannot pronounce my fiancee's brother's name for the life of me.  They all mainly go by their Gaelic names at home (that was their first language, ) and I can't seem to say Dohmnall correctly.  It always comes out doom-nahl, or some other butchered version.  So now, just to poke fun at me, my fiancee refers to his brother by the butchered version of the name I call him. 


Sure, I can say Coinneach, but I can't pronounce the Gaelic version of the name Donald to save my life.

I think mine comes and goes. At the nursery, I try really hard to speak with the "local accent", so that the children and co workers will understand what I'm talking about. Because when I speak "Southern Californian", I slur my words and talk really fast, and even DH gets confused. I won't ever say "ta" like my co workers do, though. And I always have the kids repeat "thank you", and not "ta". Makes my skin crawl, that phrase. We were at Sainbury's today, though, and for some reason, I just switched to my SoCal speak-I think it's cause I was frustrated-and I got plenty of looks from the other shoppers. 

This! This is where it alllll started for me. I wound up changing the way I spoke because my nursery and reception students couldn't understand my accent. Now my "teaching voice" has a lot of Britishisms. It doesn't help that I did my student teaching in London, so that's all I know of teaching primary. It slips into every day life, though. I went to visit my family, and felt my American accent was very strong from talking to everyone, but my cousin stopped me in the middle of our conversation to tell me I had a British accent! And our first day there, we went to Olive Garden, and the waiter said "I hear some accents, where are you guys from?" when only I had spoken. I was shocked!

I cannot pronounce my fiancee's brother's name for the life of me.  They all mainly go by their Gaelic names at home (that was their first language, ) and I can't seem to say Dohmnall correctly.  It always comes out doom-nahl, or some other butchered version.  So now, just to poke fun at me, my fiancee refers to his brother by the butchered version of the name I call him. 


Sure, I can say Coinneach, but I can't pronounce the Gaelic version of the name Donald to save my life.

Oh the Gaelic names are the worst for me, too!  My BF's son has a wee half-brother named Ruaridh.  It didn't help that for the longest time I thought his name was "Rudy" because that's what it sounded like with those dang rolled R's, but when I finally found out what his name was, I realized I'm just going to have to refer to him as "Kiddo's little brother" or "Your little brother".  I just can't say it properly! His mum's got another one on the way, and I really hope she names her something I can pronounce! 

Oh the Gaelic names are the worst for me, too!

I think the Scots Gaelic speakers do it just to mess with any non-Gaelic speakers!

It's REALLY frustrating for me not to be able to pronounce my fiancee's brother's name correctly, because I've studied 10 or so foreign languages, and thought I was pretty good at the whole accent thing.  

I'm learning Scots Gaelic, and it is the hardest language I've studied.  His mother giggles every time I say "Good Night" in Gaelic...I guess it just sounds funny. 

What I need to do is try teaching my fiancee some German, so I can make fun of him in return!!! 

II'm learning Scots Gaelic, and it is the hardest language I've studied.  His mother giggles every time I say "Good Night" in Gaelic...I guess it just sounds funny. 

I got some Teach-yourself-Irish type books and CD's but it seems well nigh impossible 

DH and I aren't picking up any accents as much as we are losing the "harshness" of our U.S. Midwestern ones. The flatness has definitely toned down quite a bit---I noticed that a lot when my parents were visiting us for Christmas.

My son, however, is picking up *some* sort of accent, but it's definitely not a Norfolk one. I have no idea what it is. I blame Peppa Pig.  He went from calling me Mama to "Muhmeh" literally overnight. It was a bit jarring, to be honest.

DH and I aren't picking up any accents as much as we are losing the "harshness" of our U.S. Midwestern ones. The flatness has definitely toned down quite a bit---I noticed that a lot when my parents were visiting us for Christmas.

My son, however, is picking up *some* sort of accent, but it's definitely not a Norfolk one. I have no idea what it is. I blame Peppa Pig.  He went from calling me Mama to "Muhmeh" literally overnight. It was a bit jarring, to be honest.

Peppa Pig's quite the celebrity at our nursery. So are the "In the Night Garden" crew. I've often thought I should watch an episode or two of those shows, to get a handle on the accent. But, I've also seen the books and toys associated with the shows. TBH, the "In the Night Garden" characters give me the willies.

DH is 51 and he loves "Peppa Pig".  For Christmas he got a talking PP keychain and a PP hot water bottle.  He was so happy.     LOL