Dialect differences

[frustratedpoodle]

Losing The Accent

There are people that can just pick up on accents, which I find amazing. As a teen, I moved from the South to California, and was dubbed "Swampy" for the rest of my high school career there because of my accent. Yet, when I came back home, everyone in my hometown swore I had no accent anymore. I guess people pick up on what's different to their ears. To this day, some people guess that I am from North Florida, while others have no clue where to begin guessing.

 

[CelticFrog]

I have to agree that once a brogue is there, it's there forever, even if not to the extent it used to be.

I can still catch myself with turns of phrase or even just turns of SYLLABLE that throw everyone off... including me.

Ang

 

[Guest]

 

[Cherrie]

Here in Thailand an English dialect is not all it seems. It is a well-known fact that most Asians have trouble pronouncing their ‘R’s’ and ‘L’s’ even in their own language. Now when they speak, or should I say try to speak what little English they have managed to pick up from tourists, it turns out to be a whole different ball game. I will try to explain…

A young bargirl will spot a potential walking ATM machine (Tourist, usually male and inebriated) and will throw out the customary greeting.

“Hello darkling…you very ham sum man.”

The intended victim, chest puffed up with pride, that such a lovely thing would compliment him so, will readily come inside to negotiate a fair price for her services. After all she did call him darling and told him what a handsome man he was…or did she?

If we break the sentence down into how it sounded and what she actually said into her own language, we come up with the following interpretation…

“Hello”…simple enough in any language.

“Darkling”…Monkey Ass.

“You a Ham sum man”…a man with small balls or genitalia.

So pleased be warned…nothing over here is as it first seems.