SPEAK IT, WITH ACCENTS AND SINGING HINNIES

Salud, Kids!

Grab those binoculars and cast your gaze across the pond to the United Kingdom as British Brian speaks-the-speak. Better yet, get to reading it, but be careful how you speak it!

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BY, Brian Wilson

Thoughts from across the pond – 1/11

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USA and UK – let the differences flourish – Skons or Skohnes!

Is there a standard english language?
If you think that the main differences are between the US and the UK – think again
English – and variants of english - can be found across the world.

All to often I hear writers from the UK deriding USA pronunciation and vice versa – but hang on - is this not a case of the “pot calling the kettle black”?
If you think there is one accent for each country – think again.
The UK is still a collection of differing accents – and the US encompasses even more ways of pronouncing the same word - just compare the New York accents and those found in the deep south – to mention just a few.

In the UK, we often pronounce the same word in differing ways – it depends upon your accent – where you come from.

My wife Mo comes from the South of England, whilst I come from the North of England and our accents differ.

My wife’s accent is often thought of as “standard english”

Take the word bath (both the bathroom item and the city)
My wife says “baahth” (with a long “a”) and I say “bath” (with a short “a”).
The same goes for “grass” – my wife says “graahss” (long “a”) – I say grass (short “a”).

Which one is correct?

No family quarrels please!

Then we come to “scones” (the small bread type cake eaten at teatime).
There 2 main ways of pronouncing this word - “skon” to rhyme with “con”, or “skohn” to rhyme with “cone”, “skon” is more prevalent in the North of England and Scotland (where you may even come across words like "Fat Rascals," and "Singing Hinnies")!!
All this makes life more exciting!

Does it matter how we pronounce words – as long as we can understand each other? – I hope not.

It would be boring if we all sounded the same – do we want the “speech police” to tell us how we should speak?
As long as we understand each other – let differences remain!


© B. Wilson 12/4/11

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Thanks, Brian and you are correct. The world would be quite boring without the differences. So, bring them ON (imagine my American accent here).

I don't know about you kids, but I want to know more, a lot more, about those Singing Hinnies.