Pegasus Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 DD11 has had several people, upon meeting her for the first time, ask her if she's from England. At first, I was completely puzzled by their question but have since noticed that at times, she does seem to have a British accent. I still haven't figured out WHY. We live in East Tennessee and none of her relatives or friends speak with a British accent. DD isn't TRYING to sound British and although she's heard a British accent in movies or television, hasn't been immersed by any means. Does anyone else have a child who sounds like they are from elsewhere? Any ideas why DD would sound British? :confused: All theories will be mulled over. :bigear: Pegasus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whisperlily Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 Does she have trouble enunciating the letter r? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KAR120C Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 LOL.... He has an "R" issue (not severe, just a little squishy on that sound) and depending on what he's saying, sometimes it comes out very "Harvard".... So the big joke is that we have to be extra-rigorous in our schooling so he can go to school where he sounds like he belongs ;) So I think with a British accent issue, I'd listen for any tiny little irregularities in her pronunciation -- Rs and Ls and vowel sounds especially. Maybe something she says a tiny bit "off" is coming across as an accent rather than an articulation problem? (and by "problem" I don't mean "which needs to be fixed" -- more along the lines of "just different enough to be charming" LOL) I've been told at different times that I have a bit of an accent, but no one can place it. Of course I grew up on the Canadian border (Michigan) and then lived almost half my life now in NC... I probably just sound "weird" in both locations now! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
readwithem Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 Does she have a southern accent? After we had lived in the UK awhile my dd thought my mil had a British accent - hers is *definitely* middle GA, LOL ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen500 Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 My two ds8 have told me several people have thought they had a British accent, or asked if their parents were from England. Puzzles me...my kids did have a great speech therapist when they were younger (for speech delays) and sometimes I think they really articulate some sounds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegasus Posted May 28, 2008 Author Share Posted May 28, 2008 Puzzles me...my kids did have a great speech therapist when they were younger (for speech delays) and sometimes I think they really articulate some sounds. Ok, I think ya'll may be on to something here. DD11 had serious speech articulation problems when she was young. Upon being tested at age 4, she was in the lowest 3% for articulation. She had a year of awesome speech therapy and has been perfectly easy to understand since. So, maybe she does say some sounds just a bit differently (either from the original articulation issues or from the exercises performed during speech therapy). I'll start listening specifically for the sounds that are mentioned in this thread and see if I detect a difference. It's possible that she has a bit of a southern accent, given where we live. I don't detect it but that may be because I'm so close to the situation. She certainly doesn't sound as Southern as most natives to this area. I grew up in South Dakota and consider myself to have the "non-accent" of the midwest. :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbeyej Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 My brother and I were often asked if we were British as children. We enunciated more than most of our peers, we listened to a lot of books on tape (often with British readers), and if Mom was reading to us, she did the accents (often British)... I think our vocabulary may have had something to do with it as well. We spoke more like the books that we read than the children around us... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doran Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 Our youngest used to sound like she came right outta Brooklyn. Fuggetaboutit!! Glad she grew out of that one. I say this with plenty of love for Brooklynites. My inlaws hail from that part of our country. But, having never lived there ourselves, I couldn't figure out why dd sounded the way she did. I think the enunciation/articulation thing is probably your answer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlotteb Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 My DH has a speech problem that came from a brain injury he recieved as a child. Its pretty minor, but people always think he's from another country. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TXMomof4 Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 I heard a program on NPR several years ago discussing how some areas in the Appalachian mountain areas have a more original British accent than many British people do because their families have lived in the same area, with the same accent since they immigrated to America. Of course, you are obviously not living in a mountain village without any outside influence, but just thought that was interesting. My middle dd had speech therapy also for articulation. She does sound a little foreign (especially here in TX) because her Rs aren't clear yet and she compensates by tweaking other sounds. I wouldn't say it's British, but definately not that TX twang I'm used to. Several people have commented on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suzanne in ABQ Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 Did she read young? My 11yodd learned words like "again", and "been", by sounding them out. She says several words with a British pronunciation because that's the way they sounded in her head when she first read them. So, with the above words, where I would say "a-gen", she says "a-gayn", and where I would say something like "ben", she says "bean". There are other words like this, but I can't think of them right now. I guess I've just gotten used to it. Could this be a factor with your dd? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dalynnrmc Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 Ok, I think ya'll may be on to something here. DD11 had serious speech articulation problems when she was young. Upon being tested at age 4, she was in the lowest 3% for articulation. She had a year of awesome speech therapy and has been perfectly easy to understand since. So, maybe she does say some sounds just a bit differently (either from the original articulation issues or from the exercises performed during speech therapy). I'll start listening specifically for the sounds that are mentioned in this thread and see if I detect a difference. It's possible that she has a bit of a southern accent, given where we live. I don't detect it but that may be because I'm so close to the situation. She certainly doesn't sound as Southern as most natives to this area. I grew up in South Dakota and consider myself to have the "non-accent" of the midwest. :tongue_smilie: I didn't read the whole thread, but, did her speech therapist happen to have a British-like accent? :D Just a thought. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nancypants Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 I don't know why but chances are she'll be more readily welcomed around the world because of it, so let her keep it! ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vita Passiva Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 Does she listen to Natasha on Story Nory? http://storynory.com/ My kids love this program and I find that sometimes they will repeat words with a British accent. The woman who narrates is British. Just a thought Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmoira Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 A friend of mine has a DD who can do all manner of British accents after hearing them in audio books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jumping In Puddles Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 This is the strangest thing but my daughter sounds a little like she has a french accent! :lol: Every time she opens her mouth in public people tell me they love to hear her speak. She is starting to lose the "accent" now but it is sweet to hear her talk for some reason. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pster Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 My dd developed a British accent after she was listening to the Narnia audio story cd's. She was maybe 6 or 7 at the time. It was pretty funny to hear. She told her sister "they were being horrid" one time - and she was so serious - couldn't help but laugh at the sound of that! Has she listened to any audio cd's lately? Many of them are read by British readers~:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plaid Dad Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 Does she listen to Natasha on Story Nory? Total sidetrack here, but I attribute my dd's crisp pronunciation of the name "Alice" entirely to Natasha's reading of Lewis Carroll. Dd does her signature "bye-bye" too! ;) But about the OP's question, if you can't identify any obvious outside influences, I would bet it's the articulation issues that others have mentioned. If you drop or slur a few consonants, it will affect the quality of the nearby vowels. That's at the root of what distinguishes the British-sounding East Coast upper class accents (Boston Brahmin, "Long Island Lockjaw") from the surrounding accents. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LisaNY Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 A friend of mine has a DD who can do all manner of British accents after hearing them in audio books. I can do that, too! My sister can as well. She went to England many years ago, and even fooled the natives. I chalk it up to the fact that our grandfather had a strong English accent, and we were exposed to it as children. I'd give myself about a month in England, and I'd be speaking just like them. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegasus Posted June 1, 2008 Author Share Posted June 1, 2008 Lots of good ideas! I knew I was doing the right thing by asking here. To answer a few of the questions: Yes, she did read early but mostly learned to sight-read so I'm not sure sounding out words to herself would have been a factor. Yes, she has a good vocabulary for her age, since she reads a lot. No, her speech therapist did not have a British accent. Cool idea though! No, she doesn't listen to audio books. Hmmm. . .now how do I determine if DD's accent is "upper class" or "lower class" British. :tongue_smilie: Pegasus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pamela H in Texas Posted June 1, 2008 Share Posted June 1, 2008 My son has a speech impediment. He was getting speech therapy for it and started doing much better. When we joined this congregation, a LOT of people wondered where we were from because of Ty's "accent." Seems that now that the impediment is much less pronounced, he just sounds like he's from a different country or something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beansprouts Posted June 1, 2008 Share Posted June 1, 2008 People who meet me for the first time often ask me where I am from. I have never been outside the US :tongue_smilie: When I started having babies I became very conscientious about pronouncing words clearly for their benefit. I think people mistake this for an accent. I can see how the same might happen with speech therapy. I guess your dd just speaks better English than many of us;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greenwillow Posted June 1, 2008 Share Posted June 1, 2008 My dd did that for a short time when she was small (I'd say she was about 5 or 6 yrs old), and when we finally questioned her about it she corrected us: she was TRYING to have an AUSTRALIAN accent!!! (Duh, mom!) LOL We are southern as well, and she loved to watch the Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin back then......... :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greenwillow Posted June 1, 2008 Share Posted June 1, 2008 Hmmm. . .now how do I determine if DD's accent is "upper class" or "lower class" British. :tongue_smilie: Pegasus LOL Hopefully you won't have to start training her.... "The rain in Spain falls mainly on the plain"...... :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lolly Posted June 1, 2008 Share Posted June 1, 2008 My dd sounded very British after reading The Chronicles of Narnia. She picked up a lot of their speech patterns. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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