Tags
accent, Arika Okrent, language, linguistics, Mental Floss, video
As those of you who have watched my interviews know, I have a strange accent. Definitely not Greek, it’s been mistaken for British (by my American friends) and Dutch (by my British ones). Even worse, I seem to unconsciously pick up the accent of the person I’m talking to and mimic that. I blame on the fact I was first taught English at the very early age of two, and on my musical ear: we Corfiots are famous for our love of music and supposed to be good at picking tunes etc.
In any case, I was fascinated by this Mental Floss video by Arika Okrent I came across the other day. The human vocal tract can produce thousands of different sounds but languages use only a tiny subset of them. What happens when you try to speak a language that uses a different subset from your own?
Charles Yallowitz said:
I have a friend who mimics accents too. It sneaks up on him and he tends to get stuck for a few days.
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Nicholas C. Rossis said:
A gift–and a curse!
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Charles Yallowitz said:
Those go hand-in-hand so often.
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Tom Gould said:
Languages were never my strong point.
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Nicholas C. Rossis said:
I don’t think it matters that much when you speak English 🙂
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linesoflisteningblog.wordpress.com said:
This video is very entertaining and informative. It expresses in simple terms what is a complicated subject.
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Nicholas C. Rossis said:
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Joyce! Thank you 🙂
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Michelle Morrison said:
Very interesting and informative.
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Nicholas C. Rossis said:
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Michelle 🙂
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kimwrtr said:
Reblogged this on Kim's Author Support Blog.
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Emma Cownie said:
Fascinating video. I struggle with Welsh words, as a native English speaker. The letter “Y” can be pronounced in three different ways depending on where it is in a word. For example the word for hospital is “Ysbyty” which is pronouced (“Uz-Bett-EE”).
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Nicholas C. Rossis said:
Oh, wow! You live in Wales?
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Emma Cownie said:
Yes I do.
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Mae Clair said:
This was an excellent video. As a native English speaker trying to learn Spanish, I’ve found mimicking the correct accent can be difficult. I’m still working on it and learning, but it certainly is a challenge!
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Nicholas C. Rossis said:
Go Spanish 😀
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