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Regional Variations in American English

Posted: Wed Sep 15, 2004 4:14 pm
by mooney47
As a native of Wisconsin, USA, I find that the English I speak is Grade A, bland English, and can't be identified as anything but American English.

On the other hand, the English spoke in Britain (and most languages spoke in most places in the world) it seems are full of unique pronunciations, vocabulary and even grammar.

I can only find two words in my vocabulary that run contrary to the above statement, 'bubbler' and 'tyme machine'.

For the sake of my students, and myself, what is a good resource on the web related to regional variations in American English?

Michael M.
Teaching English in Guangdong
http://sinomooney.bravehost.com

Posted: Wed Sep 15, 2004 9:32 pm
by Metamorfose
As a native of Wisconsin, USA, I find that the English I speak is Grade A, bland English, and can't be identified as anything but American English.

On the other hand, the English spoke in Britain (and most languages spoke in most places in the world) it seems are full of unique pronunciations, vocabulary and even grammar.
Hey Michael, based on what you can say so? I've got here a book (unfortunately the 'xerox art-work' of an already xeroxed book so that I don't even have its name) and it shows many nuancesses on American English so that I find it hard to classify or pick out one accent and call it anything but American English.

José

Posted: Thu Sep 16, 2004 6:55 am
by strider
Hi moony47

There's an excellent book on English called 'Our Language' by Simeoon Potter. In it, he says (if my memory serves me corrctly) that there are more differences in accent and vocabulary between the Tyne and the Thames (2 rivers in England) than in the whole of the North American continent.

cheers

Posted: Thu Sep 16, 2004 1:48 pm
by mooney47
cheers. hope I can locate that book.

auf wiedersehen from the dairy state.