American accent test

[Dennis Preston]

Wilson,

Labov is particularly impressed by the fronting
of the onset of the /aU/ diphthong in
Philadelphia, a feature he notes as distinctly
Southern.

You will also be interested in knowing (if you
don't already) that Labov took a Black speaker's
sentence with the word "house" in it and
resynthesized it so that the onset was not at /a/
but at /ae/. When he played both versions for
Philadelphians (black and white), they
overwhelmingly said that the /ae/ version was
spoken by a white speaker (although the rest of
the sentence had characteristically AAVE
features).

dInIs

>---------------------- Information from the mail
>header -----------------------
>Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>Poster:       Wilson Gray <hwgray at GMAIL.COM>
>Subject:      Re: American accent test
>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>dInIs writes, "Got to pick and choose your features to make [the claim
>that Philadelphia is the US's northernmost southern city] true." As
>the bruz 'n' cuz would put it, "You sayin' a tas'e!" I first heard
>middle-class Philly BE spoken before, for all practical purposes, I
>had ever been anyplace except Saint Louis. Hence, I was still quite
>sensitive to the "funny" ways of speaking used by outsiders. Philly BE
>struck me as being as different from Saint Louis BE as NYC BE was
>(which is not to say that they showed any particular similarities to
>each other, to the naÔve ear). I've since had occasion to hear
>middle-class, white Philadelphians, e.g. Chomsky, speak. They don't
>sound in any way Southern to me.
>
>On the other hand, I mistook (white) Bostonians for both New Yorkers
>and Southerners, when I first heard examples of their speech.
>
>-Wilson
>
>On 3/24/08, Dennis Preston <preston at msu.edu> wrote:
>>  ---------------------- Information from the
>>mail header -----------------------
>>   Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>>
>>  Poster:       Dennis Preston <preston at MSU.EDU>
>>
>>  Subject:      Re: American accent test
>>
>>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>>
>>  As Labov says, Philadelphia is the US's northernmost southern city.
>>   (Got to pick and choose your features to make that true.)
>>
>>   dInIs
>>
>>
>>   >---------------------- Information from the mail header
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>>   >Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>>
>>  >Poster:       Wilson Gray <hwgray at GMAIL.COM>
>>
>>  >Subject:      Re: American accent test
>>
>>>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>   >
>>
>>  >For me, it missed by a mile, saying that I'm from Philadelphia.
>>   >However, if I interpreted the bar graph on the answer page correctly,
>>   >the Philly accent isn't very far removed from the Southern accent.
>>   >IMO, though, this is simply unbelievable.
>>   >
>>   >-Wilson
>>   >
>>
>>  >On 3/23/08, Tom Zurinskas <truespel at hotmail.com> wrote:
>>   >>  ---------------------- Information from the mail header
>>   >>-----------------------
>>   >>   Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>>
>>  >>   Poster:       Tom Zurinskas <truespel at HOTMAIL.COM>
>>
>>  >>   Subject:      American accent test
>>   >>
>>
>>>>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>   >>
>>   >>   This site tries to locate your American accent.  For me it came
>>   >>close, but just missed.
>>   >>
>>   >>   http://gotoquiz.com/what_american_accent_do_you_have
>>   >>
>>   >>
>>   >>
>>   >>   Tom Zurinskas, USA - CT20, TN3, NJ33, FL5+
>>
>>  >>   See truespel.com - and the 4 truespel books plus "Occasional
>>   >>Poems" at authorhouse.com.
>>   >>
>>   >>   _________________________________________________________________
>>   >>   Watch "Cause Effect," a show about real people making a real
>>   >>difference.  Learn more.
>>   >>   http://im.live.com/Messenger/IM/MTV/?source=text_watchcause
>>   >>
>>   >>   ------------------------------------------------------------
>  >
>>  >>   The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>>   >>
>>   >
>>   >
>>
>>  >--
>>   >All say, "How hard it is that we have to die"---a strange complaint to
>>   >come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
>>   >-----
>>   >                                               -Sam'l Clemens
>>   >
>>   >------------------------------------------------------------
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>>
>>
>>
>>  --
>>   Dennis R. Preston
>>   University Distinguished Professor
>>   Department of English
>>   Morrill Hall 15-C
>>   Michigan State University
>>   East Lansing, MI 48864 USA
>>
>>
>>   ------------------------------------------------------------
>>   The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>>
>
>
>--
>All say, "How hard it is that we have to die"---a strange complaint to
>come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
>-----
>                                               -Sam'l Clemens
>
>------------------------------------------------------------
>The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org


--
Dennis R. Preston
University Distinguished Professor
Department of English
Morrill Hall 15-C
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI 48864 USA

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