Accent and Dialect

Accent

The way that words are pronounced by people from a particular geographical region.

Received Pronunciation (RP)

An accent not specific to a geographical region, spoken by 2% of the population; the basis for phonetic transcriptions.

Trap-Bath Split

A change in pronunciation between the north and south of England.

Cockney English Features

Includes th-fronting, glottal stops, /æ/ replaced with /e/, and H-dropping in words beginning with h.

Estuary English Features

Characterized by glottal stops at the end of words, replacing ‘l’ with a /w/ sound, and H-dropping.

London Vowel Shift

A phenomenon where vowel sounds change, affecting pronunciation of words like ‘face’ and ‘price’.

Gupta's Findings

North England speakers found the /a:/ sound ‘comical’, ‘snobbish’, and ‘pompous’.

Petyt's Findings

People in West Yorkshire viewed the /a:/ sound as ‘incorrect’.

Giles's Findings

Speakers of RP are rated more highly in competence and intelligence compared to those with regional accents.

Trudgill's Norwich Study (1974)

Studied pronunciation of ‘-ing’ and found men used non-standard forms more than women.

Emphatic Tag

A phrase added at the end of a declarative sentence to reinforce the information provided.

Dialect

The words and grammatical structures used by people from a particular geographical region.

Non-Standard Past Tense

When past tense is formed in a way that isn't standard English.

Unreduced Negative Particle

Some dialects might say ‘there’s not’ instead of ‘there isn’t’.

Alternative Negative Particle

Words like 'nae' and 'no' used to express negation, common in Scotland.