I know that I have addressed Canadian English a bit in the past, but when I clocked into YouTube, this video came up as a suggestion. It compares our English to American English and finds very little difference. However, there are slight variations.
In less than 8 minutes, this teacher describes a few of the differences. He will describe how we say our O's a bit differently before mentioning our predilection for saying Eh, and the two ways in which we use it. He will then mention how we spell a few words differently and that we have some unique words, like tuque/toque.
Indeed, I can't easily discern much difference between my accent and how many Americans speak. Of course, there are some distinct regional variations down there that do stand out whereas we tend to speak a with a pretty uniform accent up here.
One thing though, we do not say oot or aboot for out or about. Eh?
16 comments:
I grew up in Newfoundland and didn’t hear ‘eh’ used in the people around me. It wasn’t a part of the Newfoundland vernacular. Newfoundlanders have a distinct accent. People often say to my husband and I that we don’t sound like Newfoundlanders. One’s Newfoundland accent really depends on which part of Newfoundland one comes from. Anyone in conversation with us, will usually say something to the effect they hear our accents occasionally and in the use of certain words, like ‘b’y’.
PE islanders have distinct island accents but they don’t realize it usually. They have their own vocab usage too, like fresh for a cold windy day or yas for the plural of you. I don’t find ‘eh’ used as much here as it is used by Ontarians.
In my forays into your country, I have not noticed much of a accent compared to where I grew up, excepting Quebec of course. I find it easier to tell someone from the east coast of the U.S. from the south, from the north, than I can a Canadian from the upper Midwest of the U.S.
Agree, most Canadians i have met sound "American", which actually they are, continentally-wise. But then most i have met are from Ontario, since Interstate 77 is like a thruway from Canada to the east coast beaches. They pass through our county regularly on their way to or from their homes up north. I enjoybsome of the words you use, like whinging, and the other day Hoosier. Both new to me but very descriptive.
Hoolie, not Hoosier, lol. Darn autocorrect makes me cuss!
I think I pick up the difference with the Os.
I have a SIL from upstate NY whose accent is similar to Canadian.
My upstate N.Y. cousins have very distinct accents from mine, despite us growing up just across the river from each other. Even my grandmother managed to pick up that distinctive accent when she moved over the water. My N.Y. cousin, who is a speech pathologist, has lots of interesting theories of our linguistic idiosyncrasies.
My S.Ontario born mother had a very Irish lilt to her speech that she acquired from her Irish father. I'm more surprised she didn't catch her mothers Scottish inflections, because my grandfather was a man of few words.
I'm with you there John. I also don't hear 'oot and aboot' when Canadians speak. Folks must be hearing it somewhere to have it be accepted as a fact about the way Canadians speak. I guess it's because we're geographically huge so it differs across the country. Somewhere they must say 'oot' and 'aboot' but where? Newfoundland?
I do hear, if you say 'about' very slowly, a-bow-oot -- could that be what they're hearing? If you say 'out' very slowly it sounds like ah-oot ... we don't drawl those words, as they do (to my ear) in the southern States.
People have told JB he has an Ottawa Valley accent.
Accents are interesting. My son did a lot when acting. Now he is a financial advisor, so a talent left lying.
It been sometime since I been to British Columbia. I notice a few words and phrase they use differently.
The differences are interesting to know but we shouldn't get carried away with differences.
Funny that English is reinvented in different parts of the world
Both JG and I grew up in border towns listening to American radio more often than not. So, when I moved up here to eastern Ontario, I got teased about my American accent and word usage. However, I got Motown radio all day if I wanted, so too bad for that.
I will watch the video; it is now too late at night. And report. love this stuff.
I wonder if Canadian English is like American in that you have different "accents" or dialects. One of my Canadian friends is an oot person -- not super O but now abowt, either! I'll have to check this out, eh?
Upper midwest (US) here. There's remarkably little difference between Canadians and many midwestern accents. Every Canadian I know does have a giveaway and that's an emphasis on different parts of words with the o vowel in them. I say the word process more like praw-cess and my Canadians says pro-cess with an emphasis on the first syllable. It's not that my Canadians say "aboot," but they emphasize the second syllable and I do not. Eh. As long as we can communicate, it's all great!
House and out are the main differences I hear. Washingtonians mostly speak like Canadians, probably because we're neighbors.
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