Descriptions of dialect and accent and how they differ to each other

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DIALECT & ACCENT
1. What is dialect?
Before talking about dialect, it is better to see the other aspect
related to this topic. All speakers of English can talk to each other and
pretty much understand each other. Yet, no two of us speak exactly alike.
Some differences are the result of age, sex, social situation, and where
and when the language was learned. These differences are reflected in
word choices, the pronunciation of words, and grammatical rules. The
language of an individual speaker with its unique characteristics is
referred to as the speaker’s idiolect.
Whereas, like individuals, different groups of people who speak
the same language speak it differently. For instance, British, American,
and Australian, all exhibit variation in the way they speak English. When
there are systematic differences in the way groups speak a language, we say
that each group speaks a dialect of that language1
. Further, Yule
(2010:204) elaborates that the differences are in forms of grammar and
vocabulary as well as aspects of pronunciation.
2. Why dialect vary?
Yule (2010:241-242, 254-256) lists three aspects affecting why
dialects vary. The first is obviously the geographical locations. People
coming from different places may have different dialects. For instance,
American people speak different dialects such as New England English,
Inland Northern American English, Mid-Atlantic dialects and so forth.
These dialects are due to the geographical locations.
The second aspect is social class that is mainly used to define
groups of speakers as having something in common. The two main
1
Victoria Romkin, Robert Rodman & Nina Hyams. An Introduction to Language (9th
Edn.).
Wadsworth: Boston, MA, 2011, p. 430

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groups in social class are generally identified as “middle class,” those who
have more years of education and perform non-manual work, and
“working class,” those who have fewer years of education and perform
manual work of some kind. So, when we refer to “working-class speech,”
we are talking about a social dialect. The terms “upper” and “lower” are
used to further subdivide the groups, mainly on an economic basis,
making “upper-middle-class speech” another type of social dialect or
sociolect.
Besides Yule (2010:256) states that educational backgrounds
and/or occupations can also vary the dialects. Among those who leave the
educational system at an early age, there is a general pattern of using
certain forms that are relatively infrequent in the speech of those who go
on to complete college. Expressions such as those contained in Them boys
throwed somethin’ or It wasn’t us what done it are generally associated with
speakers who have spent less time in education. Those who spend more
time in the educational system tend to have more features in their spoken
language that derive from a lot of time spent with the written language,
so that threw is more likely than throwed and who occurs more often than
what in references to people. The observation that some teacher “talks like
a book” is possibly a reflection of an extreme form of this influence from
the written language after years in the educational system.
3. In what ways dialect vary?
Dialects can vary in terms of phonological i.e. accent,
morphological, syntactic/grammatical, and semantic/lexical2
.
2
University of Washington. Intro to Socio 1.
http://faculty.washington.edu/wassink/LING200/lect19_socio1.pdf. Accessed on 18
March 2014

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a. Phonological (accent)
There are obviously many American English accents. For reference, here
is a list of only the most common classifications in the United States and
United Kingdom3
.
General American
This refers to the spectrum of ‘standard’ English spoken by newscasters,
TV actors, and a large percentage of middle-class Americans.
Prominent Features:
 The short-a (as in cat) is raised and diphthongized before nasal
consonants. Hence man and can’t are pronounced something like
IPA meən and keənt (“meh-uhn” and “keh-uhnt.”)
 Rhotic, meaning the r is pronounced at the end of words like car
and mother.
 Words like lot and rod are pronounced with an unrounded vowel, as
lɑt and ɹɑd (“laht” and “rahd”).
 The diphthong in words like boat and rode is pronounced relatively
back: i.e. IPA boʊt and roʊd
Accent Samples:
Actor, Topher Grace (as Eddy Brooke in Spiderman 3). Visit this link for
the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PB5zHtdMDPo
Eastern New England English
This describes the classic “Boston Accent.” It also refers to related accents
in Eastern Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Maine, Eastern New Hampshire
and Eastern Connecticut. The most important feature of this is non-
rhoticity: unlike other American accents, New Englanders drop the “r” at
the end of syllables. Hence the famous phrase “pahk yuh cahr in
hahvuhd yahd” (Park your car in Harvard Yard).
3
Ben Trawick-Smith. American Accents. http://dialectblog.com/northamerican-accents/
and British Accent http://dialectblog.com/british-accents/ Accessed on 18 March 2014

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Prominent Features:
 Non-rhoticity, as mentioned above.
 Fronted pronunciation of words like father and palm, so these are
pronounced IPA faðə and pa:m (i.e. this vowel is close to the vowel
in words like “cat” and “mad” in General American).
 Unlike most other American accents, the vowel in lot and rod is
rounded as in most British dialects, pronounced IPA lɒt and ɹɒd
(“lawt” and “rawd”). Note that this feature is less prevalent in some
sub-dialects, such as Rhode Island.
Accent Samples:
Boston Mayor, Thomas Menino. Visit this link for the video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LabuH1PnUoo
Received Pronunciation
Received Pronunciation is the closest to a “standard accent” that has ever
existed in the UK. Although it originally derives from London English, it
is non-regional. You’ve probably heard this accent countless times in
Jane Austen adaptations, Merchant Ivory films, and Oscar Wilde plays. It
emerged from the 18th- and 19th-Century aristocracy, and has remained
the “gold standard” ever since.
Prominent Features:
 Non-rhoticity, meaning the r at the ends of words isn’t pronounced
(mother sounds like “muhthuh”).
 Trap-bath split, meaning that certain a words, like bath, can’t, and
dance are pronounced with the broad-a in father. (This differs from
most American accents, in which these words are pronounced with
the short-a in cat.
 The vowels tend to be a bit more conservative than other accents in
Southern England, which have undergone significant vowel
shifting over the past century.

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Speech Samples:
 Actress, Dame Judi Dench (as M in James Bond). Visit this link for
the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwhvJU2JMT4
Cockney
Cockney is probably the second most famous British accent. It originated
in the East End of London, but shares many features with and influences
other dialects in that region.
Prominent Features:
 Raised vowel in words like trap and cat so these sounds like “trep”
and “cet.”
 Non-rhoticity: see explanation above under Received Pronunciation,
above.
 Trap-bath split: see explanation above under Received Pronunciation.
 London vowel shift: The vowel sounds are shifted around so that
Cockney “day” sounds is pronounced IPA dæɪ (close to American
“die”) and Cockney buy verges near IPA bɒɪ (close to American
“boy”).
 Glottal Stopping: the letter t is pronounced with the back of the
throat (glottis) in between vowels; hence better becomes IPA be?ə
(sounds to outsiders like “be’uh”).
 L-vocalization: The l at the end of words often becomes a vowel
sound Hence pal can seem to sound like “pow.” (I’ve seen this
rendered in IPA as /w/, /o,/ and /ɰ/.)
 Th-Fronting: The th in words like think or this is pronounced with a
more forward consonant depending on the word: thing becomes
“fing,” this becomes “dis,” and mother becomes “muhvah.”
Speech Samples:
Actor, Ray Winstone. Visit this link for the video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vP4f95AK8L4

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Of course, there are many more American and British accents than this.
These are just the largest groupings of accents. There are any number of
sub-dialects that are quite unique. Hopefully this example will serve as a
good jumping off point.
b. Morphological
Unlike British English, American English has always shown a marked
tendency to use nouns as verbs. Examples of ‘verbed’ nouns are interview,
advocate, vacuum, lobby, pressure, rear-end, transition, feature, profile, spearhead,
skyrocket, showcase, service (as a car), corner, torch, exit (as in “exit the lobby”),
factor (in mathematics), gun (“shoot”)4
.
c. Syntactic/Grammar
Even British and American speak English, but both of them utilize
different aspects of grammar. Here, I only attach one example of
differences in syntactic/grammar of American and British English. In
British English collective nouns, (i.e. nouns referring to particular groups
of people or things), (e.g. staff , government, class, team) can be followed
by a singular or plural verb depending on whether the group is thought
of as one idea, or as many individuals, e.g.:
My team is winning.
The other team are all sitting down.
In American English collective nouns are always followed by a singular
verb, so an American would usually say:
Which team is losing?
Whereas in British English both plural and singular forms of the verb are
possible, as in:
Which team is/are losing?5
4
Wikipedia. American English. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_English. Accessed
on 17 March 2014
5
Kerry Maxwell and Lindsay Clandfield. Differences in American and British English
grammar – article. http://www.onestopenglish.com/grammar/grammar-
reference/american-english-vs-british-english/differences-in-american-and-british-
english-grammar-article/152820.article. Accessed on 17 March 2014

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d. Sematic/lexical
Here are several examples of sematic/lexical differences between
American and British English6
.
British English American English
anti-clockwise counter-clockwise
articulated lorry trailer truck
autumn autumn, fall
barrister attorney
bill (restaurant) bill, check
biscuit cookie
block of flats apartment building
bonnet (clothing) hat
bonnet (car) hood
boot trunk
4. What is Accent?
Every language-user speaks with an accent. Everyone has an
accent, just as everyone speaks a dialect. Technically, the term “accent” is
restricted to the description of aspects of pronunciation that identify
where an individual speaker is from, regionally or socially7
.
It is different from the term dialect above. Thus, accent refers to the
characteristics of speech that convey information about the speaker's
dialect, which may reveal in what country or what part of the country the
speaker grew up or to which socio linguistics group the speaker belongs
6
English Club. British English/American English Vocabulary.
http://www.englishclub.com/vocabulary/british-american.htm. Accessed on 17 March
2014
7
ibid

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to8
. It’s not a question of “having” or “not having” an accent or dialect, it’s
a question of which accent or dialect you speak with.
5. Why accent can vary?
Some differences such as age, sex, social situation, and where and
when the language was learned affect variation in accents9
. For example,
the age at which the non-native language is learned is the most significant
factor in predicting if a person will acquire a native-like accent and if not,
to what degree the non-native accent will be noticeable (or strong). Native
language is the first language a person learns. By definition, it is
impossible for non-native speakers to become native speakers in the
language they did not learn first, they would have to be born again. Only
individuals who learn two languages simultaneously from birth, at the
same rate, are considered native speakers in two languages.
6. In what ways accent vary?
As we discussed earlier, accent only happens in the aspects of
pronunciation. Thus, accent only varies in the way of pronouncing the
language. For the discussion and explanation of this section, see point 3a
above. Point 3a provides sufficient explanation about various accent in
American English and British English as well.
7. Dialects and accents in English?
This is a list of dialects of the English language. Dialects are
linguistic varieties which differ in pronunciation, vocabulary and
grammar from each other and from Standard English (which is itself a
dialect). Dialects can be usefully defined as “sub-forms of languages which
are, in general, mutually comprehensible”. British linguists distinguish
8
Victoria Romkin, Robert Rodman & Nina Hyams, op. cit., p. 433
9
Victoria Romkin, Robert Rodman & Nina Hyams. op. cit., p. 430

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dialect from accent, which refers only to pronunciation. Thus, any
educated English speaker can use the vocabulary and grammar of
Standard English, but different speakers use their own local words for
everyday objects or actions, regional accent, or Received Pronunciation,
which within the U.K. is considered an accent distinguished by class
rather than by region. American linguists, however, include
pronunciation differences as part of the definition of regional or social
dialects. The combination of differences in pronunciation and use of local
words may make some English dialects almost unintelligible to speakers
from other regions. The major native dialects of English are often divided
by linguists into the three general categories of the British Isles dialects,
those of North America and those of Australasia10
.
British English
10
Wikipedia. List of Dialects of the English Language.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_dialects_of_the_English_language accessed on 19
March 2014

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Map from Pictures of England (http://www.picturesofengland.com)
1. Northern
a. Cheshire
b. Cumbrian
c. Geordie
d. Lancastrian
e. Mackem
f. Mancunian-Salfordian
g. Northumbrian
h. Pitmatic
i. Scouse
j. Smoggie
k. Yorkshire
2. East midland

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3. West midland
a. Black Country
b. Brummie (Birmingham)
c. Potteries (north Staffordshire)
d. Telford (east Shropshire)
4. East Anglian
a. Norfolk
b. Suffolk
5. Southern
a. Received Pronunciation
b. Cockney
c. Essex
d. Estuary
e. Kentish
f. Multicultural London English (Inner London)
g. Sussex
6. West country
a. Anglo-Cornish
b. Bristolian
American English

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The dialects of the United States (with approximate areas):
1. Northern
a. Northern New England (Maine and New Hampshire)
b. Boston area (eastern Massachusetts, Rhode Island)
c. Northeastern (Connecticut, western Massachusetts,
Vermont, upstate New York, lower Michigan, northern
Illinois)
d. New York City area (including most of Long Island and
northern New Jersey)
e. North central (upper Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, the
Dakotas)
2. Northern midland
a. Philadelphia area (including eastern Pennsylvania, southern
New Jersey, Delaware, and the Baltimore area)
b. Pittsburgh area (western Pennsylvania)
c. Ohio-Plains (Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri,
Nebraska, Kansas...)
3. Southern midland
a. Appalachia (western Virginia, West Virginia, eastern
Kentucky, eastern Tennessee)
b. Arkansas-Oklahoma
4. Southern
a. Virginia (eastern)
b. North Carolina (eastern)
c. South Carolina
d. Georgia-Florida
e. Mississippi-Gulf (including Alabama, Louisiana, eastern
Texas, western Tennessee, western Kentucky)
f. West Texas

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5. Western (Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Colorado, Utah, New
Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, California)
Points to Ponder
Language exhibit variations within its speakers. The variations can
reveal the identities of the speakers. Dialects and accents are one of the
variations in a language i.e. English. These two terms are not exactly the
same. However, both of them are interwoven. Dialect is not a substandard
of a language, it is not slang either. Dialect is a variety of a language
spoken by group of people that is characterized by systematic features
(e.g. phonological, lexical, and grammatical) that distinguish it from other
varieties of that same language. While accent is only variations in
pronunciation. Thus, accent is a subset of dialect.
REFERENCES
English Club. British English/American English Vocabulary.
http://www.englishclub.com/vocabulary/british-american.htm.
Accessed on 17 March 2014
Maxwell, K., & Clandfield, L. (undated) Differences in American and British
English grammar – article.
http://www.onestopenglish.com/grammar/grammar-
reference/american-english-vs-british-english/differences-in-
american-and-british-english-grammar-article/152820.article.
Accessed on 17 March 2014
Romkin, V., Rodman, R., & Hyams, N. 2011. An Introduction to Language
(9th
Edn.). Boston, MA: Wadsworth
Trawick-Smith, B. 2011. American Accents.
http://dialectblog.com/northamerican-accents/ Accessed on 18
March 2014

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Trawick-Smith, B. 2011. British Accent. http://dialectblog.com/british-
accents/ Accessed on 18 March 2014
University of Washington. (undated) Intro to Socio 1.
http://faculty.washington.edu/wassink/LING200/lect19_socio1.pdf
Accessed on 18 March 2014
Wikipedia. 2010. American English.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_English. Accessed on 17
March 2014
Wikipedia. 2014. List of Dialects of the English Language.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_dialects_of_the_English_lang
uage accessed on 19 March 2014