It seems that many people on this board claim to speak with one distinct regional accent or a version of the so-called standard American, British, Canadian, etc. accent, but what about those of us who speak with a hybrid or mixed accent? Do people frequently mistake you for being from a wide variety of different places?
Mixed/Hybrid Accents
My accent a hybrid of Southern and California English... I say ya'll and have more monophthongized diphthongs than most in California, but vowels like the /ou/ in "phone" and "moan" I tend to front the 'u.' Also, I say like and dude a lot... :-P
Well, I don't have a hybrid accent--I have a Northwestern accent. But it seems, that this one is the least identifyable of all. Texans and Oklahomans tend to think I have a Californian accent; Californians and Arizonans think I have a Midwestern accent; Midwesterners and Canadians think I have a Canadian accent; New Yorkers and New Jerseyans tend to think I have a Massachussetts accent, and Massachusetts people think I have a Florida accent.
Weird, eh?
So... I think no one knows what a Northwestern accent sounds like....
Weird, eh?
So... I think no one knows what a Northwestern accent sounds like....
The Northwestern accent is definitely hard to pin down. Based on my observations from living here, there are about three different accents in the Pacific Northwest.
People who were born and raised in the Northwest generally do not comment on my accent, but it seems to draw a lot of attention from people who were born and raised in California. They can tell that I am not from the Northwest or California, and usually peg me as Canadian or Upper Midwestern. However, when a native Northwesterner does notice my accent, they generally assume that I am from British Columbia or Alberta.
However, people in other parts of the country seem to have a wide variety of responses. Some have even told me that I do not have an accent, but I know that is false. I think if I had to define it, it would be a mix of North Central, Central Canadian, Pacific Northwestern, and a dash of the Mid-Atlantic.
People who were born and raised in the Northwest generally do not comment on my accent, but it seems to draw a lot of attention from people who were born and raised in California. They can tell that I am not from the Northwest or California, and usually peg me as Canadian or Upper Midwestern. However, when a native Northwesterner does notice my accent, they generally assume that I am from British Columbia or Alberta.
However, people in other parts of the country seem to have a wide variety of responses. Some have even told me that I do not have an accent, but I know that is false. I think if I had to define it, it would be a mix of North Central, Central Canadian, Pacific Northwestern, and a dash of the Mid-Atlantic.