Mark Albrighton Posted February 4, 2021 VT Supporter Share Posted February 4, 2021 17 minutes ago, mjmooney said: New York/New Jersey Boston Minnesota/Wisconsin 'The south' Texas California That's it for me. California I was going to say, but it’s a stereotype Valley Girl “Like, Oh my God, Totally!” voice I imagine. I’m not sure I can discern a male Californian accent in quite the same way. So I wasn’t certain that I’m just hearing a generic US teenage girl. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wainy316 Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 I have a few friends from California, both the south and bay areas and to me they just sound like Americans. Same with my friends from Montana and Arizona. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AVFC_Hitz Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 I was in my usual haunt in Istanbul a few years ago and across from our table was a group of Brummie tourists. Young lads, around mid twenties. Now, I have this weird skill where I could probably guess which part of Birmingham you're from. So anyway, I said to mate 'I can tell you exactly in Birmingham those boys are from'. So I introduced myself and said to them 'You've just missed the number 1 to Acocks Green'. They all looked at me dumbfounded as 4/5 of the group were from Acocks Green and one from Moseley. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjmooney Posted February 4, 2021 Author VT Supporter Share Posted February 4, 2021 26 minutes ago, Mark Albrighton said: California I was going to say, but it’s a stereotype Valley Girl “Like, Oh my God, Totally!” voice I imagine. I’m not sure I can discern a male Californian accent in quite the same way. So I wasn’t certain that I’m just hearing a generic US teenage girl. Think Clint Eastwood. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HanoiVillan Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 11 hours ago, il_serpente said: I'm a bit late to the party here, but another myth about badgers is that they're good at football: this is the only national anthem I recognise Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjmooney Posted February 4, 2021 Author VT Supporter Share Posted February 4, 2021 12 hours ago, il_serpente said: I'm a bit late to the party here, but another myth about badgers is that they're good at football: They didn't even qualify for the SIFF WC finals. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xela Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 7 hours ago, Mark Albrighton said: To add to your list of US accents, I think that there’s a New Jersey accent I might be able to pick out. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
il_serpente Posted February 4, 2021 VT Supporter Share Posted February 4, 2021 7 hours ago, Wainy316 said: Conversely to my ear there is only 4 US accents. New York, Boston, Deep South, then everything else is just American. I'm sure there's major differences throughout though. Probably not too far off if we're generalizing, though I would rename "Deep South" as "Southern", as it's definitely not exclusive to the Deep South. Though perhaps not as heavily accented, I knew plenty of people in Kansas who most of you would probably assume were from the South if you heard them speak. It's probably as much a south/Midwest rural vs. urban thing rather than strictly geographic. You could perhaps argue there's a rural Midwest accent distinct from Southern. There are definitely regional accents associated with other areas, but in most cases you're just as likely to find people there who just sound "American." I'd count Minnesota and Chicago among those. I lived in Minneapolis for a couple of years as a kid and don't remember anyone with an accent like those in "Fargo." I'd be curious if @maqroll considers "Mainer" to be a distinct accent/dialect. I live in California now and notice little difference from many people in Kansas City, though a lot of people in KC will have a hint of southern twang in comparison. In general, the Midwest was always considered to be the place with no accent. News and other hosts on national TV networks used to always be from the Midwest because their accents wouldn't turn anyone off. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xela Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 8 hours ago, villa4europe said: what we dont do is write the way we talk so i think a lot of the slang and colloquialisms might come as a shock, especially those of us that lean towards the black country i watched grealish yesterday in an england video with declan rice, he talks in a way that i dont, both in terms in which side of the city he originates from and his age and therefore slang I don't sound anything like Grealish and i think I have quite a soft Brummie accent, but when I was in a bar (remember those) a couple of years back, on the other side of the world, the barmaid, who was English, tried to guess where I was from based on my accent. She said Wolverhampton Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seat68 Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 I can spot a Baltimore accent in addition to those already mentioned. Its an odd one. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
il_serpente Posted February 4, 2021 VT Supporter Share Posted February 4, 2021 Just now, Seat68 said: I can spot a Baltimore accent in addition to those already mentioned. Its an odd one. Balmer? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seat68 Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 4 minutes ago, il_serpente said: Balmer? Thats it. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maqroll Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 19 minutes ago, il_serpente said: I'd be curious if @maqroll considers "Mainer" to be a distinct accent/dialect. What's left of it definitely is. Most people here under the age of 50 and who live southwest of Augusta won't have much of a trace of it at all. The Boston accent is more common here than the old Maine accent. As for other American regional accents, I can usually detect the following: Rhode Island (cross between Boston and NY) NY/NJ Eastern Pennsylvania/Delaware Baltimore North Carolina Louisiana Texas S. Cal N. Cal Chicago Minn/Wisc/Mich But give it another 50 years and we will all sound the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maqroll Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 (edited) Whatever became of this guy? Edited February 4, 2021 by maqroll Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xela Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 7 minutes ago, maqroll said: Whatever became of this guy? I think he owns an old book shop? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyh29 Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 5 minutes ago, maqroll said: Whatever became of this guy? I go out on the hoy in petersfield sometimes ( pre covid at least) with an old school friend ... used to see him there quite a lot as he runs a bookshop there , believe it or not Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjmooney Posted February 4, 2021 Author VT Supporter Share Posted February 4, 2021 (edited) I was paying the bill in a restaurant in Virginia, and the waitress noticed my accent and asked where I was from. "England", I replied. She then lowered her voice, looked shiftily around, and whispered "Don't you think that the people round here are weird?" A bit nonplussed, I gave a noncommital answer, and asked where she was from. "Ohio", she said. Edited February 4, 2021 by mjmooney 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maqroll Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 24 minutes ago, mjmooney said: I was paying the bill in a restaurant in Virginia, and the waitress noticed my accent and asked where I was from. "England", I replied. She then lowered her voice, looked shiftily around, and whispered "Don't you think that the people round here are weird?" A bit nonplussed, I gave a noncommital answer, and asked where she was from. "Ohio", she said. Maybe Virginia is too liberal for her! Those states have sort of "switched sides" politically. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjmooney Posted February 4, 2021 Author VT Supporter Share Posted February 4, 2021 4 minutes ago, maqroll said: Maybe Virginia is too liberal for her! Those states have sort of "switched sides" politically. This was in 1989. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidcow Posted February 4, 2021 VT Supporter Share Posted February 4, 2021 18 hours ago, il_serpente said: What would my reaction be if I actually heard posters on VT speak? I think when I read posts I generally hear them in my mind as though they were being spoken by an American using British idiom. I suspect my overall mental picture of people on here would be different. Perhaps I'll try reading posts out loud using a poor attempt at a Brum accent to see. Or I'll just imagine it's Grealish saying it. Would that be accurate? We're all from the shires with country piles so think Downton Abbey. But seriously Jack Grealish would sound like many on here, or if you are a fan of Peaky Blinders I think Arthur Shelby does a great Brummie accent compared to most who tend to fluctuate towards scouse. If you like your guitars listen to an interview with Geezer Butler. After that lot you should pretty well have it. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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