Southern Accents

[Mith242]

Of course the choice is up to the individual. I just think it's a shame that there seems to be a stigma often attached to strong southern accents. Where most other accents in the country don't seem to be viewed quite so negatively. I always felt that way when I was younger. I was surprised when I came across foreign people who seemed to have the opposite reaction. I've discovered many people outside the country who admire the southern accent here in the US more than any other.

[Mith242]

Just thought I'd add some more info that's popped up in some other topics over in the Arkansas forum. I think most people believe that accents are fading away due to mass media and today's society where people move around so much. But I've seen it mentioned more than once that accents are actually growing stronger. I guess it's all relative though. Many of the larger southern cities do seem to be losing their accent because of the large influx of non-native people. But the general trend is that accents tend to become more different as time goes on. Which is why there are so many different accents in a small area like Britain. We could possibly be seeing the birth of new accents in different southern cities. Just like every city in Britain seems to have it's own accent. Although I guess I could see the arguement that today's world is a different place and could have different effects on things such as accents. Guess we'll just have to see what happens.

[triadcat]

I think I remember reading that accents are constantly changing within the US. There is actually now an identifiable western accent, which was known for being neutral. When I was out west to visit my former girlfriend in Colorado for the first time, I could most certainly hear her accent. She was from UT, but her dad was from WI, so I could hear a little upper midwest in her accent. We visited the Denver zoo and she said "Look at the mountain goat up there".......she pronounced "goat" almost like "gohlt", you know...the very open O's like you hear in Minnesooooohta. She commented on how she liked my North Carolina accent a couple of times. I certainly have an accent, but it is not very heavy.....just polished.

The accents I heard in Denver sounded like a mild midwest accent with a tiny bit of southern.

And has been stated, there are variations on our own southern accent.

I remember watching UNC-TV, and the program was on accents/dialects in North Carolina. It said that you will hear a greater variety of accents in North Carolina alone than you will in the entire western US!!!

I am sure that applies to many southern states as well.

Accents are still morphing!

[Mith242]

I've heard a little about the possible beginnings of an accent happening around the Utah area. It's not a real accent or dialect yet. But apparently Utahns have some unique ways of saying certain words.

[jandar]

Having been born and raised in Jacksonville, as well as being 4th generation here, with ancestry that goes back to the founding of Savannah, I can say Im southern. (well, part Cherokee as well, but most southerners have some in them)

I tend to "lose" my accent a little doing phone support, especially talking with people around the country. But Im still proud of it. North Florida has been very lucky in many ways to grow with the local population mainly and not a massive influx of people like the rest of Florida. We keep closer to our southern heritage that way I suppose. Although it is weird to hear the southern twang while strolling in St Augustine (it being founded by the spanish). Then again, if Ft Caroline had survived, we would have had a french accent, probably something simliar to Creole.

[jcestes4]

True, maybe not all southern accents are seen this way but I do believe some may think some particularly strong southern accents make them seem less proffesional or maybe less educated might also be the way to phrase it. Then I think some people perceive that people are judging them by their accent whether it may be true or not and they feel the need to lessen their accent. It just seems odd that people seem to have more negative images of southerners than people in other parts of the country.

Actually that is quite fine by me. I have what could only be described as a typical southern accent, having spent most of my live in south Mississippi (south of I-20 no less). Honestly, I find a lot of satisfaction in being underestimated either in my intelligence or my abilities as a Planner because of my accent. Nothing makes me happier than to be considered an ignorant southerner and then having multiple opportunities to prove that first perception wrong through my words, either spoken or written, or through my work.

Jimmy Buffett definitely said it best, "I have a native tongue from way down south...it sits in the cheek of my gulf coastal mouth."

[Newnan]

I think in Arkansas it is a little different. Arkansas has been the butt of jokes for a long time. Arkansas is a small poor state but it's not a third world country. But growing up in Arkansas I can't say at the time I had much pride about it. I remember kids moving into the area and making comments like 'wow, you guys do wear shoes' and actually meaning it. I think there were some people in the state that were made to feel that they should be ashamed of their state and their culture. I was born and raised most of my life in Arkansas but didn't develop a strong accent. I think sometimes even in school there was a feeling that we had to try to act and talk like someone from somewhere else to try to prove to people we weren't just a bunch of inbreed hicks. Of course now I am proud of my state and value it for what it is, it's not perfect but it's still a lot better than what many people give it credit for. I just hope the newer generations of Arkansans don't have to go through what I did.

I live in Georgia and I have some friends like that too. They like think of themselves as worldly and sophisticated so they try not to develop a southern accent even though their parents are VERY southern. I don't have a very strong accent only because my parents don't. My dad comes from a southern family, but growing up in Atlanta and going to College in Florida has kept him from developing a real strong accent. He still has a slight one though. My mom's parents were from DC and New York and she grew up in DEcatur, Cincinatti and Dunwoody so she never developed an accent.

-However, growing up in Newnan, GA it's hard not to get an accent. Like most peolple I say yall and say some words and phrases southern style, and you can bet I'm proud of the slight southern accent I have!

[Newnan]

Interestingly enough- My cousins, whose father has a much stronger accent than my father, (Their father is my uncle by marriage) don't have a single trace of a southern accent because they live in Sandy Springs, an affluent suburb 15 minutes north of Atlanta. I seriously do think that the inner suburban areas of southern cities have erradicated the southern accent.

[Newnan]

I agree. I think New York, New Jersey, Boston accents, etc are the ones who really suffer from sounding uneducated and ignorant, not the southerners. And certainly no one EVER thinks a southern accent sounds rude or hostile. Friendly and hospitable is what a southern accent brings to mind.

I disagree. My grandfather had a very strong New York accent and it never sounded harsh, hostile, or dumb at all. It seems like you've just been watching too much All in the Family. Hollywood stereotypes northern accents too, you know.

Question: If your grandfather is from New York, does that make you 1/4 New Yorker?

[Newnan]

Well, I'm fixin to go git in my car, crank it up, and drive up to Warshington.

You know, I think warsh is midwestern too. My Grandmother's father was from the midwest and he got her saying warsh. She passed it on to my mom and it drives me crazy!!

[Temeteron]

It doesn't matter what state or region you live in, there are multiple accents, varying from person to person, and depending on what suburb or part of the city or town you live in......the inner suburbs of southern cities definately have less of a southern twang than the outer ones.....for example Charlotte....people in SouthPark and Myers Park areas are more likely to say "you guys" and are more likely to be from up north(or midwest) and/or have parents from the north(or midwest) than people who are from Gastonia or Concord......and in northern states its kind of the opposite....example, in Boston downtown residents seem to have the thickest accents....whereas the outer suburbans like Worcester and Natick people seem to sound normal and tend to pronounce their R's way more than inner city Bostonians....it is impossible to count how many accents America has

[redjeep77]

^That's not true. Most of the people that like in eastover and mp are from "old money". That money has been in charlotte for a while. "you guys" would be seen more so in ballentyne and lake norman where the carpetbaggers go. Gastonia has been virtually immune from the growth of the charlotte area until just recently. It still has the good ole boys (i know cause i am from gaston county).

[Newnan]

IC I got a question

It seems like Douglas County has been able to keep its southern nature despite its proximity to Atlanta unlike other areas. Is this true and if it is, why?

[ironchapman]

That is another aspect. How many have 'lost' their accent because of the stigma to it. Just because people have a thick southern accent people assume you're some idiot hick. It's really a shame that the southern accent seems to be much more maligned than any other accent in the US.

I've lost it, but it isn't because of the stigma attached to it. I just lost it somewhere along the way. it's probably because my Dad is an English teacher and my Mom is a speech therapist. Now, I have either no accent, or a British or Irish accent (I have no idea where I picked it up, it's just that people often ask me if I am from Britain).

IC I got a question

It seems like Douglas County has been able to keep its southern nature despite its proximity to Atlanta unlike other areas. Is this true and if it is, why?

I'm not really sure, but it does have more of a Southern nature to it than, say, Gwinnett or DeKalb County.

My guess is because of the forested subdivisions with large or relatively large lots also invite the type of person who enjoys large lots. Also, there are still several farms or farm-like areas throughout the county. It's not fully developed, so there is still a lot of forested land that invites the type of people who enjoy that (i.e. hunters, rednecks, etc.)

That said, I think Haralson County is the big HQ of rednecks (if my experiences there and the opinions of others are correct).

[Newnan]

Downtown Atlanta: Wassup fool

Buckhead: Hey theyu (old money southern) You're likely to hear plenty of non-regional accents though

Sandy Springs-Roswell-Alpharetta- Like, hey! How are you guys doing

Canton- Hey (yall) how are you doing (rapidly losing its southern dialect)

Mountains- How yall folks doing. Come and sit a spell.

[Tennesseestorm]

My aunt lives in upstate South Carolina. While not an accent, I have heard her comment on how folks down there call what we call a "water hose" or garden hose - they call a "hose pipe". She has actually picked up some of the words there. Anywhere else call it a hosepipe?

[Tennesseestorm]

71% dixie here.

Here's a fun little exercise to see just how we all rate. Yankee or Dixie

[Tennesseestorm]

I know a lady at work that was born and raised in southwestern Georgia, that only moved here from there about 4 years ago. I was very surprised that she was from there when she told me, as her accent is identical to ours in northeast Tennessee. When questioned, she said everyone in that parts speaks like we do. I was expecting that "long southern drawl" from that area. Then on TWC they were showing people in southwestern Georgia talking about the storms and they sound just like her and folks here in east Tennessee. So, you folks in southern Georgia (at least southwestern GA) have the same accent as east Tennesseans (if you are a native SW Georgian)

Southeast GA may be a different story..... perhaps that part has the very long southern drawl?

[Tennesseestorm]

That link does no longer work..... is there a working link? Also, where is the "key" for the southern accents map?

Here is a link to a site that breaks down various accents in the South: Southern Accents.

A picture of U.S. accents:

[Greenville]

On the Yankee vs. Dixie quiz, I scored 45% (barely into the Yankee category). It is always fun to see where people fall on the spectrum.

I grew up in Greenville, and have heard people who are from the country (read: rural) refer to a garden hose as a "hose pipe." This always amuses me, since it is somewhat redundant. Also, people who say "hose pipe" are also likely to pronounce "spigot" as "spicket" (rhymes with cricket).

[dimebag1980]

Anyone interested in a discussion about southern accents? One of the most noticable aspects of southern culture are the accents. Many people in other countries can even identify them. It's funny, here in the US southern accents are often made fun of or the butts of many jokes. But I've learned that many people outside the US actually like southern accents over other American accents. But not all southern accents are alike. What's some of the best accents in the south? How do southern accents compare in different regions of the south?

For me, it's a negative on the southern accent altogether; I absolutely despise a thick southern accent. I am the only person in my family, as far as I know, who has dropped my southern accent.

[triadcat]

On the Yankee vs. Dixie quiz, I scored 45% (barely into the Yankee category). It is always fun to see where people fall on the spectrum.

I grew up in Greenville, and have heard people who are from the country (read: rural) refer to a garden hose as a "hose pipe." This always amuses me, since it is somewhat redundant. Also, people who say "hose pipe" are also likely to pronounce "spigot" as "spicket" (rhymes with cricket).

How could you score only 45%??

You must be from somewhere else originally or dropped your southern accent and certain southern words to sound more northern.

I scored a 77% on that Dixie quiz and I am a born and bred caucasian North Carolinian.

I don't consider my accent particularly heavy either.

That quiz doesn't really test the thickness of the accent, rather certain sayings and words...."roly-poly", "soft-drink" (which is mostly a "Carolina" thing), etc.

Edit: I screwed up. I got a 73% on the quiz. Still a high score. I didn't know a couple of those though.

[lammius]

I got 40%. I was born and raised in Norfolk VA. I have a lot of Philadelphia-isms b/c my mom is from there. Now living in NJ doesn't help either! haha.

[jmanhsv]

lol, I don't have a Southern accent, but I still got 79%. I think it's the roly polies and crawdads.

[Lady Celeste]

Okay, that southern accent test is bogus.

I took it and it gave me:

46% (Yankee). Barely into the Yankee category.

I have lived in metro Atlanta almost since it was called Marthasville.

This goes to show how different accents can be. When I'm up north and people find out I'm from Georgia, I seriously think they think I'm going to talk like Dixie Carter from designing women. That's how funny accents can be. People automatically assume because you are from the south that you are going to have this accent from Gone With The Wind....they never take the time to ask how many generations of your family lived in the south.

BTW, who calls their aunt an "ant"?