Why do Canadians have such a think accent?

[nec207]

So I was checking out the accent tags on youtube and I'm shocked how think the Canadians accent is !! They sound like US southerner way over pronunciation of words and drawn out words.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hv2SI0aynEY


I was also reading that Canadians say about has aboot and also phenomenon called Canadian raising what is that?

The eh they say a lot.

Anyone got youtube clip of both people Canada and the US saying about has aboot that seems strange

[PaulInBHC]

Answer: Because Australia got all the convicts.

[mamamia88]

You've definitely never been to Boston then. When I was in Toronto last year didnt notice any different accents.

[Jakin]

As long as you can be easily understood in the language you try to convey speech in. I'd say she speaks quite proper.

[nec207]

As long as you can be easily understood in the language you try to convey speech in. I'd say she speaks quite proper.

Yes she is easy to understand and in no way I was saying accents are bad there are many accents in the US and many accents in Canada some sound like US and others that sound more like they are in Canada . Not all people in Canada say aboot for about I think that is in the west coast of Canada say that.

I was saying that she over pronunciation of words and draws out words that all , not saying it is bad has there are many accents no one accent is better than the other.

[KiwiNZ]

It's the differences that make people interesting.

[cariboo]

Yes she is easy to understand and in no way I was saying accents are bad there are many accents in the US and many accents in Canada some sound like US and others that sound more like they are in Canada . Not all people in Canada say aboot for about I think that is in the west coast of Canada say that.

I was saying that she over pronunciation of words and draws out words that all , not saying it is bad has there are many accents no one accent is better than the other.

Actually it's the people in Central Canada that pronounce about differently, on the West Coast, we have the same generic accent as the North-western states..

[Mikeb85]

Most Canadians in metropolitan cities (Vancouver, Edmonton, Toronto, Ottawa, Calgary, Victoria) have very weak accents, we don't say 'aboot', and generally speak pretty 'proper' English. Only Canadians from Manitoba, rural Ontario, and the east coast have 'funny' accents, and of course Quebecers speak a 'funny' dialect of French.

[Elfy]

What's a think accent?

or is that how you pronounce thick?

[sffvba[e0rt]

This is all I sink (www.youtube.com/watch?v=gmOTpIVxji8) about this subject.


404

[forrestcupp]

So I was checking out the accent tags on youtube and I'm shocked how think the Canadians accent is !! They sound like US southerner way over pronunciation of words and drawn out words.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hv2SI0aynEY


I was also reading that Canadians say about has aboot and also phenomenon called Canadian raising what is that?

The eh they say a lot.

Anyone got youtube clip of both people Canada and the US saying about has aboot that seems strangeWhy did you pick that video? She doesn't have a strong Canadian accent at all. She sounds more American to me than Canadian. And I didn't hear her say "aboot" once. If you turn on Nickelodeon, at least half of the kids on there sound just like her, only the audio recording is better.

There are a lot of better examples of Canadian accents than this girl. Did you link the wrong video?


What's a think accent?

or is that how you pronounce thick?Lol. Nice one.

[ibjsb4]

I bet nec207 has seen "The Great White North"; what a hoser eh :)

[swoll1980]

Watch Fargo (great movie) if you want to hear thick accents. They're all from the states though I think. They all have that same accent you're talking about whatever the case.

[nec207]

Here is video of guy in Canada explaining this how people say aboot.

Guy is from Ottawa .
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jurJrV6lCE

And this person here has more of proper Canadian accent.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uS60w2vgAkM

I was reading that much of the Canadian accent like even much of the many US accent are disappearing among the youth and getting more of standard American accent because of Hollywood and the media.

[Jakin]

^ Really? it's "root" not route?

As i watched the video in the OP, i was thinking we sounded the same (me vs her) but then when repeating her list of words, i guess i don't sound like her afterall.

I rarely notice accents unless its really really strong.

for fun: http://ubuntuone.com/32rTg0By3jwsIqwKtiES4D

[KiwiNZ]

When one travels to many many places it is the words spoken that are important, accents just add colour.

[kaldor]

Newfoundlander reporting in.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqLuIXwsLDw

(Maybe we tinks it's you b'ys that talks funny ;) )

[nec207]

Newfoundlander reporting in.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqLuIXwsLDw

(Maybe we tinks it's you b'ys that talks funny ;) )

Wow :p this guy is french speaking and they have strong accent that different than the non french .They talk way too fast . If you thought you can't understand some one in the north east part of the US because they talk way too fast you will not understand the french .

[kaldor]

Wow :p this guy is french speaking and they have strong accent that different than the non french .They talk way too fast . If you thought you can't understand some one in the north east part of the US because they talk way too fast you will not understand the french .

We have a lot of weird dialects, and it largely stems from the people (Irish/Scottish/French/English) that originally settled here and became isolated.

The younger generations here sound pretty indistinguishable from most Canadians, though. But, if you speak to someone over the age of 80 you're bound to have trouble understanding them if you're not used to it.

Edit: Not getting the French reference you're making. The dialect is entirely English.

[nec207]

We have a lot of weird dialects, and it largely stems from the people (Irish/Scottish/French/English) that originally settled here and became isolated.

The younger generations here sound pretty indistinguishable from most Canadians, though. But, if you speak to someone over the age of 80 you're bound to have trouble understanding them if you're not used to it.

Edit: Not getting the French reference you're making. The dialect is entirely English.

He kinda did sound like he had some Irish ,Scottish and French mix in.

The phenomena of Canadians losing accent is not just in Canada but even the US .

These people are in south and they don't have accent of the south.

Accent Tag (Texas)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSXnhu59NQ0

Accent Tag- Texas
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6Nh8wSQUs4

Accent Challenge: Kansas/Georgia - (1.19.12)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnbNgQI49M8

They have the Hollywood accent that many other people in the US and Canada among the youth are getting.

[kaldor]

The phenomena of Canadians losing accent is not just in Canada but even the US .

It's pretty cool, really. Accents and dialects form due to groups being cut off from one another. These days, accents are changing a lot due to travel, media, communicating, etc.

I've spoken to Europeans (UK, and non-English) on voice chat quite a lot, and even they tend to have the typical North American accents.

[darrenn]

Guess your not aware that we have two offical languages. English and French, which we have many millions of speakers. Not unusual to encounter someone whos second language is English. Which means they do have a heavy accent. French is taught across Canada starting at grade 1 and becomes optional at grade 9. Or it used to be anyway.

[cariboo]

The only real difference between the generic American accent, and the Western Canadian accent is the difference in the way roof is pronounced. :)

[zombifier25]

I have a book "An Introduction to Language", which touches the accent aspect of languages, specifically English very well. So I just want to ask:

Do Australians (and New Zealanders) really pronounce "torches" the same as "tortures"?

[Swagman]

Good grief I cringed at some of the pronounciations in those youtube clips.

Some are obvious differentiations like

aluminum <--- We (England and Australia) say Alu-min-ium
(Shopping) Cart = Shopping Trolley
Route is pronounced Root (root is Root...That's puggled you aint it)
Gym shoes = Trainers (or pumps)
Grandparents = Grandmother/ma or Grandad


Carnt (can't) remember ennymoor from the youtube clips

[Swagman]

I have a book "An Introduction to Language", which touches the accent aspect of languages, specifically English very well. So I just want to ask:

Do Australians (and New Zealanders) really pronounce "torches" the same as "tortures"?


Nope

Torch-ez

[KiwiNZ]

I have a book "An Introduction to Language", which touches the accent aspect of languages, specifically English very well. So I just want to ask:

Do Australians (and New Zealanders) really pronounce "torches" the same as "tortures"?

I have not come across that.

[Swagman]

Nope (for aussies)

Torch-ez

But Kiwis do sound (to us) like they're saying Fush & chups instead of Fish & chips

[forrestcupp]

aluminum <--- We (England and Australia) say Alu-min-ium

We had a whole thread about that a while back.

[C.S.Cameron]

Eh?


http://www.tourcanada.com/comedy.htm


iz thiz waya mean?

[Fahim Abdun-Nur]

Hahaha; I'm Canadian too and I tend to pronounce the word 'router' (as in wifi router) as 'router' but I do have one work colleague who insists on saying 'rooter'. I get a chuckle every time.

Accents are awesome. So long as I understand the gist of what you're trying to say :P

[forrestcupp]

Hahaha; I'm Canadian too and I tend to pronounce the word 'router' (as in wifi router) as 'router' but I do have one work colleague who insists on saying 'rooter'. I get a chuckle every time.

Accents are awesome. So long as I understand the gist of what you're trying to say :P

I've never even thought of that pronunciation before I read your post. :)

[Elfy]

Is not 'rooter' the right way to pronounce that - or do you Johhny Foreigners say 'rowta' or something :)

[screaminj3sus]

Hahaha; I'm Canadian too and I tend to pronounce the word 'router' (as in wifi router) as 'router' but I do have one work colleague who insists on saying 'rooter'. I get a chuckle every time.

Accents are awesome. So long as I understand the gist of what you're trying to say :P

linkski rooter!

[coffeecat]

Is not 'rooter' the right way to pronounce that - or do you Johhny Foreigners say 'rowta' or something :)

Depends what type of router, I suppose. :)

I've always pronounced router (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Router_%28computing%29) as 'rooter' because it derives from the noun route, which is pronounced "root" in the UK. Whenever I hear an American pronouncing route as "rowt", for a moment I wonder why they're talking about a disorderly retreat (http://www.thefreedictionary.com/rout).

However, I pronounce router (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Router_%28woodworking%29) as 'rowta' because it derives from the verb rout (pronounced rowt) in the sense of "to hollow, scoop, or gouge out."

So do Canadians distinguish between the two types of router?

[cariboo]

We mostly pronounce route as root, and router using the American pronunciation, in my part of the country, but from the Manitoba/Ontario border east, pronunciation can be all over the place. :)

[mips]

Hahaha; I'm Canadian too and I tend to pronounce the word 'router' (as in wifi router) as 'router' but I do have one work colleague who insists on saying 'rooter'. I get a chuckle every time.

Accents are awesome. So long as I understand the gist of what you're trying to say :P


I've never even thought of that pronunciation before I read your post. :)

Most people I've heard over here (South Africa) refer to it as a 'rooter'.
The same goes for something like route 66, we will call that root 66. Path taken from location A to B is a 'root'

A "router" is something used for woodwork :tongue:

[forrestcupp]

Most people I've heard over here (South Africa) refer to it as a 'rooter'.
The same goes for something like route 66, we will call that root 66. Path taken from location A to B is a 'root'

A "router" is something used for woodwork :tongue:

For me, route is usually pronounced "rowt". But in the case of Route 66, it's "root" because that's how the name is famously pronounced. On the other hand, a long time ago, before they came out with the current rural mailing system in my state, they used to have what was called rural routes. In that case it was always pronounced rural "rowt", and I never once heard it pronounced "root" in that case. But other than famous proper names, I tend to always pronounce it "rowt". A root is something at the bottom of a tree or a stubborn weed. ;)

I've never once heard anyone pronounce router as "rooter". That reminds me of the Roto-Rooter drain cleaning service. :)

[TOMBSTONEV2]

Edmonton Alberta boy here (have been my whole life), and I am quite certain that I do not have any kind of an accent what so ever. However I am always getting bugged by my family and friends because I call traffic circles; round abouts. Sometimes I have been known to say "what are you on about?" or "aye"

[sffvba[e0rt]

Always been a "rooter" to me :p


404

[BlinkinCat]

However I am always getting bugged by my family and friends because I call traffic circles; round abouts. Sometimes I have been known to say "what are you on about?" or "aye"

In Australia we call them roundabouts too - :p

[mips]

For me, route is usually pronounced "rowt". But in the case of Route 66, it's "root" because that's how the name is famously pronounced. On the other hand, a long time ago, before they came out with the current rural mailing system in my state, they used to have what was called rural routes. In that case it was always pronounced rural "rowt"...

Weird that you guys pronounce it differently even though the meaning (& spelling) is identical.
Would you also call Route 75 "root 75" or would you call it "rowt 75"?

[lisati]

But Kiwis do sound (to us) like they're saying Fush & chups instead of Fish & chips

To me, Australians sometimes sound like they're saying "feesh and cheeps" :D

I have noticed some New Zealanders pronouncing saw a bit like sore.

Speaking of my own accent, I've been told that I sound British; there's a strong polynesian influence in the area I currently live, and I wonder how I sound to people from the area I grew up in, which, at the time, was mostly British and European.

[forrestcupp]

Weird that you guys pronounce it differently even though the meaning (& spelling) is identical.
Would you also call Route 75 "root 75" or would you call it "rowt 75"?

It's not really that. Where I'm from, some people say "rowt" and some people say "root". But the song Route 66 pronounces it "root", so that's what we all just say, even if we pronounce the word "rowt" every other time.

Also, where I'm from, we have interstates, state roads, county roads, etc. We don't have any roads around here called "Route" something, so I don't know what I would call a road like that. Probably "root", even though I really pronounce the word "rowt". If I'm talking about the GPS device calculating a route, I pronounce it "rowt". But every once in a while, you'll run across people here who pronounce it "root".

What gets me is when people pronounce "data" with a short 'a' sound, and "status" with a long 'a' sound.

[mips]

What gets me is when people pronounce "data" with a short 'a' sound, and "status" with a long 'a' sound.

We do status with a long 'a' sound, same goes for data, like Data in STNG.

Thing that annoys me is a lot of people from the US seem to pronounce 'herbs' as 'erbs' including that guy fieri dude I saw on tv earlier today.

[forrestcupp]

Thing that annoys me is a lot of people from the US seem to pronounce 'herbs' as 'erbs' including that guy fieri dude I saw on tv earlier today.

Herb is a guy's name. "Herbs" is pronounced "erbs". I suppose you probably pronounce "humble" like "umble", don't you? :)

[geogur]

so im in ann aurbour ordering food the girly looks at me and says you talk funny . its true we have accents !

[TOMBSTONEV2]

No matter route is "rowt" for me, same with router is "rowter"

[QIII]

If ya ain't from Montana ya ain't able to talk proper anyhow, so who cares?

Now where'd I put my can o' Copenhagen?

[PhilGil]

Ooh, a language and accent thread - what fun!

To the OP...
I didn't notice any Canadianisms in the young lady's speech, she sounded standard North American English to me.

Grew up in Southern California. For me, Route 75 is “Root 75”, but a network router is a “rowter”.

Also, “erb” for herb is standard American English.

[KiwiNZ]

Even though I was born in New Zealand people say I have a Danish accent. My family is from Hillerod Denmark. I do not believe I have an accent.

[aykoola]

Haha, similar when one viewer told Hugh Laurie he laughs in an English accent as dr House.

[Swagman]

lol

There's a "H" in Huddersfield.

Any Rord, as a truckie I get to hear lots of regional dialects and I love them. It's what makes the job all the more interesting.

I do however, often ask people to repeat what they've just said as I haven't grasped the meaning.

ie: Just doon twizzle (Just down the alleyway)

On one occasion I embarassingly had to ask them to spell what they were saying before I grasped it (twas a drunk Irishman !!)

[forrestcupp]

To the OP...
I didn't notice any Canadianisms in the young lady's speech, she sounded standard North American English to me.I'm from Indiana, and I thought the same thing.


Even though I was born in New Zealand people say I have a Danish accent. My family is from Hillerod Denmark. I do not believe I have an accent.No one believes they have an accent, except British people who are proud of their accent. I think in the U.K. there is a different accent for every street.

[mips]

Just to add the US is the only country where I have seen them add subtitles to programs/shows involving people from other english speaking countries so you guys should really not be judging others wrt accents. Your language came from across the pond for starters...

I'm quite easy with understanding people from ireland, scotland, england, wales, NZ, Oz, zimbabwe, kenya etc don't really understand the need for subtitles.

[Macintosh Sauce]

I'm originally from Winnipeg, and I don't think I have an accent. Who knew! LOL

[kaldor]

Even though I was born in New Zealand people say I have a Danish accent. My family is from Hillerod Denmark. I do not believe I have an accent.

You probably do when you say "Rødgrød med fløde" ;)

[aykoola]

Laudrup

[fontis]

Why do Canadians have such a think accent?

Because they like to think? :)

[DuckHook]

Why do Canadians have such a think accent?

Our mouths are numb from the cold.

[Herman]

+1 Yes, it's true, the poster above seems to be exactly right from my experience. I'm originally from Nova Scotia but I have lived in Australia for many years and still have a remnant of a Canadian accent.

I worked for years in the Australian fishing industry back in its heyday. Working down in a -30 degree freezer hold in a trawler or a mothership used to bring my Canadian accent back completely every time I stayed down there long enough for my cheeks and lips to start getting a little frozen.

[GrouchyGaijin]

I live in Sweden, but am from the US, so my first language is English. My wife is from Japan, so her first language is Japanese. Our kids have been in Sweden most of their lives so Swedish has become their dominant language. They are both five and can speak English pretty well, except aside from talking with me, they don't really use English much. I got a bunch of DVDs for them to watch in English; one is from Canada. It's about a little turtle family - anyway my kids have now started saying sOrry (pronounced with a strong O) as opposed to the way I say the word which is more like ah.

Interesting how we all have variations isn't it?

[GrouchyGaijin]

If ya ain't from Montana ya ain't able to talk proper anyhow, so who cares?

Now where'd I put my can o' Copenhagen?
HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAA
I'd say that pretty much ends the whole discussion. :)

[uc50_ic4more]

Who has an accent, eh? Is there a "base" English or any other language against which other dialects or "accents" are juxtaposed?

[Irihapeti]

Who has an accent, eh? Is there a "base" English or any other language against which other dialects or "accents" are juxtaposed?

Yes -- it's the one that the person doing the assessment happens to speak. :lol:

So I think that e.g. North Americans have an accent, and North Americans think that I have one. Fortunately, my keyboard is accent-neutral. :)

[deadflowr]

Accents are like food. If you eat the same exact thing everyday, it just becomes a bland mush.
If you listen to the same people around all day, that too becomes a bland mush.

[Zukaro]

I didn't notice any accent. ;^;
But I'm Canadian.
But some people think I have a British accent (actually a lot of people apparently).

*doesn't know*

[Ace.....]

Who has an accent, eh? Is there a "base" English or any other language against which other dialects or "accents" are juxtaposed?

I would suggest that the typical standard of old, has been RP (received pronunciation).
Search on RP and top result is the wiki article.

It doesn't have anything to do with RP being better (though if you speak using RP then you may well think so), but is a specific form of pronunciation that is, or can be taught.

Typically described as "speaking posh", and learned in private schools.

Whereas most accents are simply acquired from those around you.
My missus is French, yet she lived in Hull for 15 years, so most Brits think that she's a Hull lass.

Interesting though, how the accents have changed, say in Oz, where the population arrived from the UK (prior to opening the borders).

[layers]

no no no. I always hear about aboot, but i've lived like a decade in Canada, and I've never heard it from a person in a conversation.
But we do "sorry" more than others.

and my British friend says that she speaks the "proper" English - I have to agree, isn't it there that it originates, as "English"?

Also, to OP, I don't know how you "found" the video, be careful, that's not legal in Canada.[-X[-X