LL-L "Language varieties" 2002.10.18 (02) [E]

[Lowlands-L]

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 L O W L A N D S - L * 18.OCT.2002 (02) * ISSN 189-5582 * LCSN 96-4226
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 A=Afrikaans Ap=Appalachian B=Brabantish D=Dutch E=English F=Frisian
 L=Limburgish LS=Lowlands Saxon (Low German) S=Scots Sh=Shetlandic
               V=(West)Flemish Z=Zeelandic (Zeêuws)
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From: Szelog, Mike <Mike.Szelog at CITIZENSBANK.com>
Subject: Language Varieties

Hi Ed and all,

On 10/18/02, Ed wrote:
"From what I've read, the accent came into the area from the original
settlers in Boston, Massachusetts, who everyone pretty much agrees spoke
with an East Anglian accent.  Note that the original Boston is in
Anglia.  The characteristics of this speech go far beyond the non-rhotic
characteristics, but apply to a fairly distinct way of pronouncing all of
the vowels, compared to most other English dialects or accents.  To use
non-technical terms, what non-Anglian dialects pronounce as cot, sounds
like the way an Anglian would say the word spelled cart, whereas they would
say the word cot and the non-Anglian speaker would hear
"caught".  Similarly "lark" <> "lock" and so forth.  The "a" is also
generally much longer in Anglian.  And I'm sure there's many other
distinctions.  Some scholars relate the accents of East London (Cockney),
Australia, New York, Chicago, and all of New England to this dialect.  When
I say that what I hear the indigenous people speak in the mountains of
Vermont is an "ancient" Anglian dialect, I mean that it sounds much less
modified than what I hear people in Boston or New York speak.

Tell me, Mike, do folks in yoa paht of the country say "shoa" afta
practically evry sentence they way they do in Vumont?"

Now I see what you're getting at! Yes, I do agree. We do indeed have a very
unique way of pronouncing our vowels. I would have to agree in that our "a"
is indeed rather (raahthah) long, particularly if it occurs in a syllable
which also undergoes the post-vocalic r deletion!

My wife is from western NY (Buffalo area) and when we visit, people get a
kick (or should I say they get a "wicked chahge") when I pronounce things
like "pop, cot, pot, etc." with the "open o" sound (by this I mean the
IPAsymbol indicated by the open o). They seem to say "pahp, caht, paht,
etc." - their accent just doesn't seem to want to use this open o sound all
that much! Hence the old joke about the Boston Tea "Potty" (most accents in
the US pronounce this as "pahty" - exactly the New England pronounciation of
"party"  - for "potty" we use that open o sound!).

Yes, the rural areas of Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine retain the "older"
or truer/broader pronounciation whereas places like Boston have a very
distinct accent. New York may be Anglian, but it's definately not a New
England accent. Southern Massachusetts, and all of Rhode Island and
Connecticut though geographically in New England, to my ears anyway, do not
speak with a New England accent - it's more like Long Island/New York to
me!!

Ndaw, we don't use the "showah/shoa" heyah in southin N' Hampshah. Yowah
more ahpt to heyah "ayuh".

Of course for those who may be wondering, you must realize that we just
don't throw all those unused r's away - we add them onto the ends of words
ending is "a"and replace the "a" with an 'e' sound, i.e. the "a" tends to
get deleted and the "r" becomes vocalic.  So, my sistah Linder, went to
visit a friend in Florider and decided she might go to Havaner, Cuber, but
wahn't  shuwah she could drive hah (her) caah theyah, might be some wicked
hahd, ayuh"

Mike S

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