Holy crap, this Dublin accent sounds almost American

Bill Walton   Fri Dec 19, 2008 8:42 pm GMT
I'm listening to some Dublin radio show and the radio announcer sounds like an American with a slight lilt at the end of the sentences. What's up with that?
Caspian   Fri Dec 19, 2008 10:46 pm GMT
Perhaps it could have something to do with the fact that a large percentage of Americans are originally from Ireland?
Jef   Sat Dec 20, 2008 12:02 am GMT
<<Perhaps it could have something to do with the fact that a large percentage of Americans are originally from Ireland?>>

A large percent of Americans are originally from America. A large percent of their ancestors, however, are from Ireland.
urhggh   Sat Dec 20, 2008 1:57 am GMT
dirty Irish
Damian in Edinburgh   Sat Dec 20, 2008 9:05 am GMT
It really depends on "social class" whether or not a person from the fair city of Dublin "sounds" American or not. Generally speaking there can be some similarities - emphasis on the word "some" - between the Southern Irish (not just Dublin) accent and general American, but by and large the differenmces between the two are pretty well marked.

But we are "talking Dublin" here, are we not, and the majority of Dublin people have a very distinctive accent, as I knew before I paid my one and only visit, of just a few hours' duration, a couple or so years ago. It would have been even shorter had not my mate and I missed the last ferry for the day back to Holyhead, in North Wales, so we ended up chatting with some of the "locals" including two extremely interesting members of the Garda Siochana (the Southern Irish police force, the words meaning, in English" - guardians of the peace).... at about two o'clock in the morning in Dun Laoghaire (pronounced "Lairy").

The commentator in the following link, presumably an Irishman, can sound a wee bit American at times, a wee bit like Gay Byrne, a male star of Irish late night TV apparently - but not too much, but the real stars are the Dubliners issuing forth with the real street-wise Dublinese - now that really is the TRUE Dublinspeak:

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=BR0lFNSCuUs
Damian in Edinburgh   Sat Dec 20, 2008 9:13 am GMT
Also, if your ears are not over sensitive, then listen to a Dublin taxi driver with a rich and colourful form of the English language. Whether or not he is typical of all Dublin taxi drivers I wouldn't know, but discounding his vocabulary, his accent most certainly is. Do you think he sounds Amerian in any way? I don't.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=dnfgux7IiyA&feature=related

Go to Dublin sometime - it's a lovely city, and it has the € as its currency, something which the UK will follow sooner rather than later.
Guest   Sat Dec 20, 2008 12:17 pm GMT
The Euro currency is will dissapear due to the financial crisis.
Caspian   Sat Dec 20, 2008 12:27 pm GMT
<< A large percent of Americans are originally from America. A large percent of their ancestors, however, are from Ireland. >>

Yes, that's what I meant.

<< dirty Irish >>

Dirty you. I'm half Irish.
LOL   Sat Dec 20, 2008 12:29 pm GMT
if anything is going to disappear it's $
Lazar   Sat Dec 20, 2008 2:55 pm GMT
I don't think Irish English would have had much influence over American English: the areas of densest Irish settlement - the Boston and New York areas - are also areas with non-rhotic dialects (not an Irish feature at all) that diverge heavily from General American.
K. T.   Sun Dec 21, 2008 12:02 am GMT
I find this thread a little offensive. Yes, some Irish people sound like Americans to a certain degree, then you hear the "r" which is both charming and NOT American.

Not all Irish people sound like the "Lucky Charms" accent that actors like to use.
MIlton   Sun Dec 21, 2008 3:25 am GMT
I like Irish English having unrounded /A/ in ''long, song, wrong'', just like Westerns accents of US and Atlantic Canada.
Bublin   Mon Dec 22, 2008 8:51 pm GMT
I don't know about the accent, but I like to drink Irish beer.
K. T.   Tue Dec 23, 2008 12:04 am GMT
Lol.
a   Tue Dec 23, 2008 9:49 pm GMT
>> I find this thread a little offensive. Yes, some Irish people sound like Americans to a certain degree, then you hear the "r" which is both charming and NOT American. <<

But some Midwesterners and Canadians have a similar "r" pronunciation.