National Dialects of English the United States

National Dialects of English

the United States of America, Australia, New Zealand the greater part of Canada. It is native to many who live in India, Israel, Malta, Ceylon, the Republic of South Africa, many countries in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean.

The British succeeded in ruling almost a quarter of the globe. and left their effect on languages of many nations. English is now the dominant or official language in over 60 countries

All the English-speaking nations have their own Standard variants of English pronunciation which in their turn may have educated regional and uneducated local types of pronunciation.

National variants of Standard English pronunciation • Australian pronunciation standard; • New Zealand pronunciation standard; • American pronunciation standard: regional varieties of cultivated pronunciation (USA): – the Eastern type of standard pronunciation; – the Southern type of standard pronunciation; – the Western (Midwestern, Northern, Central Western) type of standard pronunciation. It’s the least regional in character. It’s called GA – General American. • Canadian pronunciation standard. • South-African standard

Australia Discovered by Captain James Cook in 1770, it served as the first penal colony. British prisons were overcrowded and convicts were sent to Australia. By 1900 it had 4 million inhabitants from British Isles. Contact between indigenous and colonizers led to the appearance of Australian English.

New Zealand No convicts in New Zealand slow settlement. It became an official colony in 1840. People there are more inclusive of the indigenous population and it is one reason why the language contains a large number of Maori words, in contrast to Australian English. They reject American English in favor of British English.

Canada French were present in Canada from 1530, and vied with Britain for domination. Finally, French defeated by Britain. French and English languages there, but French-speakers remained in the East.

South Africa Englishmen got lands there from 1820 onwards. English became the official language of the region & by the end of the 19 th c. there were half a million of English speaking immigrants there.

British Colonialism in North America The 1 st British colony established in North America was Jamestown (in Virginia) – 1607. Englishmen went out to make for themselvs a new home in a new land, to acquire competence or wealth, to develop products suitable for export, notably tobacco. The climatic conditions and the work to be done favoured the employment of slave labour and the importation of negro slaves began in 1620, who were transported to the plantations as slaves.

Then Brits & a lot of other Europeans began to move to America increasingly, they settled there, and expanded. The Greeks wanted to plant city states on the Mediterranean shores among peoples for the most part akin to themselves. The Romans wanted to plant garrisons. The Spaniard treated his conquests in America as estates of the Crown & exploited the mineral wealth of the land etc….

The British colonial activity resulted in what is called "Language contact“ – the use of more than one language in the same place at the same time. The languages of the native aboriginal Indian tribes & languages of many newcomers who settled there came in contact with the English language. As the majority of settlers were Britons (82%), English came out to be the main source of communication between people.

The Western type of American pronunciation standard – GA The Western dialect of American English includes California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, New Mexico, Colorado, and Wyoming. It also broadly encompasses Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana. But in reality it is spoken all over the country, even in places where many people speak with what others would describe as “heavy” or “thick” accents. It is the most widespread type.

Western American dialect also, like RP in Great Britain, the least regional in character. Which is why this type of pronunciation is called General American (GA). (It is close to modern Northern English Pronunciation)

The pronunciation standard of the USA is GA as GA is the form of speech used by radio and television, in scientific, cultural and business intercourse. Besides in two important business centers - New York and St. Louis - GA is the prevailing form of speech and pronunciation, though New York is situated within the territory where Eastern American is spoken, and St. Louis is within the region of Southern American.

The difference between General American and Received Pronunciation • • within the consonant system; within the vowel system; within the accentual system; within the intonation system

The difference between GA and RP within vowels

• In GA there is no strict division of vowels into long and short. Acc. to D. Jones, all American vowels are long. • In GA the distinction between monophthongs and diphthongs is not very concrete. Russian phoneticians distinguish five diphthongs in GA [e. I, a. I, ƆI, a. U, əU]. • Glottal stop is made by GA speakers before initially stressed vowels (ex. in India). • The nasalization of vowels in GA when they are preceded or followed by a nasal sonorant is called an American twang. It results from the lowering of the soft palate while the vowel is pronounced (ex. manner, candy, fine, small, name, etc. ).

Words which have the vowel [α: ] in RP are pronounced in GA with the phoneme [æ] • • • Ask Dance Last Example Chance • Answer [α: sk] [dα: ns] [lα: st] [Ιg'zα: mpl] [ʧα: ns] [æsk] [dæns] [læst] [Ιg'zæmpl] [ʧæns] ['α: nsə] ['ænsə]

Ask Amelie to answer like on the example I can’t dance fast when somebody laughs A cat asked for another glass

In all words which have the phoneme [ɒ] in RP the phoneme [Λ] is pronounced in GA Possible Stop Bother Dog Gone ['pɒsΙbl] [stɒp] ['bɒðə] [dɒg] [gɒn] ['pΛsΙbl] [stΛp] ['bΛðə] [dΛg] [gΛn]

Bob, you’ve got a dollar or not? It’s impossible to stop Bob when he does shopping

In unstressed position the vowel [ə] is pronounced in GA and corresponds to [əu] and [i] in RP • Fellow ['felə ] ['felə] • Negro ['nΙgrə ] ['nΙgrə] • Tomorrow [tə'mɒrə ] [tə'mΛrə] • Pocket ['pɒkΙt] ['pΛkət]

Tomorrow I’ll buy a pocket of tomato

A strong Nasalization of vowel sounds is a great peculiarity of GA accent • Morning ['mɔ: nΙŋ] • Manner ['mænə] ['kændΙ] • Candy

Tomorrow’s morning I’ll sing along Main manner

The distinction between monophthongs and diphthongs in GA is the most controversial subject. Some diphthongs have monophthongs as their variants – often the glides of these diphthongs are so weakened that they practically drop out. The RP diphthongs [Ιə], [Uə], [εə] do not occur in GA. • • • Take Dear Dare Home Bite Tour [teΙk] [dΙə] [dεə] [həUm] [baΙt] [t. Uə] [tek] [dΙr] [der] [hem] [bΛt] [t. Ur]

Her dear fair friend lives near my home I don’t care who dares to phone me when I’m on tour

Many differences between RP and GA involve the pronunciation of individual words

• Either ['aΙðə] ['i: ðər] • Neither ['naΙðə] ['ni: ðər] • Leisure ['leʒə] ['li: ʒər] • Schedule ['ʃedju: l] ['ske əl] • Vase [vα: z] [veΙz] • Forehead ['fɒrΙd] ['fƆ: hed] • Medicine ['medsΙn] ['medΙsΙn] • Nephew ['nevju: ] [nefju: ] • Advertisement [ədv'ɜ: tΙsmənt] ['ædvɜ: r'taΙzmənt]

My nephew worries about his medicine Neither of us ate tomatoes

The difference between GA and RP within consonants

The phoneme [r] of GA differs from its RP counterpart: it is pronounced in the word final position and in the middle of a word, before a consonant. Unlike the RP variant where [r] is not pronounced in these positions. Americans are generally very practical people & think if there is a letter in the word, it must used by all means, that is it must be pronounced.

In the pronunciation of GA [r] the top of the tongue is curled back further than in RP so that a wider air passage is formed. This process is called retroflexion. • Farm [fα: m] [fα: rm] • Doctor ['dɒktə] ['dΛktər] • First [fɜ: st] [fɜ: rst] • Mercy • Form ['mɜ: sΙ] [fƆ: m] ['mɜ: rsΙ] [fƆ: rm] • Bird • Star [bɜ: d] [stα: ] [bɜ: rd] [stα: r]

Their computer isn’t working I gave her four other pictures Her fourth birthday is on Thursday

In GA the intervocalic [t] (ex. pretty) and [t] between a stressed vowel and a sonorant (ex. partly) usually becomes voiced [d]. The result is neutralization of the opposition between [t] and [d] in many words (ex. latter -ladder). (The distinction is preserved through vowel length – the vowel before [t] is shorter). • Letter ['letə] ['ledər] • Writer ['raΙtə] ['raΙdər] • City ['sΙtΙ] ['sΙdΙ] • Better ['betə] ['bedər] • Party • Cattle ['pα: tΙ] [kætl] ['pΛrdΙ] [kædl]

Betty bought a bit of better butter It is better not to spill water on my computer Do you want to get in or to get out?

In GA [t] and [d] may be dropped after [n] and before an unstressed vowel. Thus «winner» and «winter» may sound identical. • Twenty ['twentΙ] ['twenΙ] • Wonderful ['wΛndəfəl] ['wΛnərfəl] • Centre ['sentə] ['senər] • Plenty ['plentΙ] ['plenΙ] • Antonym ['æntənΙm] ['ænənΙm]

In winter we bought twenty printers. There was a plenty of antonyms and twenty synonyms

The phoneme [l] exists in GA only in the form of its dark variant [ł], which is even slightly darker than the RP dark [ł] and it occurs in all positions – even before vowels and before [j]. Though in these positions in RP clear variant [l] is used • • Look Value Will you I love you [l. Uk] [vælju: ] [wΙl j. U] [aΙ lΛv j. U] [łUk] [væłu: ] [wΙł j. U] [aΙ łΛv j. U]

Hey, Luke, will you look at a little lake?

In GA accent the sound [j] before [u: ] and [U] is omitted after the consonants s, t, n. Instead of [ju: ] GA speakers pronounce [u: ] • Tune • News • Suitcase • Tuesday • Student • Stupid [tju: n] [nju: z] [sju: tkeΙs] [tju: zdΙ] [stju: dənt] [stju: pΙd] [tu: n] [nu: z] [su: tkeΙs] [tu: zdΙ] [stu: dənt] [stu: pΙd]

New students will come on Tuesday. News tells about a new super tune.

The sound [h] in the diagraph wh in such words as which, whether, why in RP is not pronounced, in GA it is pronounced and it sounds as [hw]. Such words as «which» and «witch» , «whether» and «weather» , «where» and «ware» sound differently in GA, though in RP they are homophones. • Which [wΙʧ] [hwΙʧ] • • • [wɒt] [waΙ] [wεə] [wi: l] [wisk] [hwα: t] [hwaΙ] [hwεə] [hwi: ] [hwisk] What Why Where Wheel Whisk

In GA the sound [∫] becomes voiced [ʒ] in suffixes -ion, -ia • Asia • version

The Eastern type of American pronunciation standard This describes the classic “Boston Accent. ” It also refers to related accents in Eastern Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Maine, Eastern New Hampshire and Eastern Connecticut It is spoken along the East coast of New England in New York City.

The Eastern type of American It bears a close resemblance to the Southern English pronunciation which is explained by close contacts of the New England States with Britain during the colonization of America. The most important feature of Eastern American 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).

The Southern type of American pronunciation standard is used in the South and South-East of the USA. • Coastal/Lowland Southern English. This is the “classic southern” accent that you typically see in films about Civil War or Plantation life. In contemporary times, the accent is arguably dying out. • Inland/Mountain Southern. This is the other Southern dialect, sometimes perceived as more guttural. You hear this accent amongst Appalachian natives, Texans, Tennesseeans and many others. Some linguists consider Southern American pronunciation non-standard, as it is peculiar only to that part of the country and has not spread north.

Southern American Its most striking distinctive feature is the Southern drawl – a specific way of pronouncing vowels, consisting in the diphthongization of some simple vowels and monophthongization of some diphthongs at the expense of prolonging ( «drawling» ) their nuclei and dropping the glides (ex. that [ðæIet] , cute [kjuət], fine [fα: n]). Southern American pronunciation has some features in common with RP: dropping of [r] after [з: ], and [ə], the use of clear [l] before a vowel and others.