2018-02-14
2237
Roughly speaking the non-RP accents of England may be groups into South and North dialects. The main differences between them are:
In vowels: presence or absence of particular phonemes:
a)[^]- doesn’t occur in north accents [bl^d]-S, [blvd]-N
Have u: instead of v [bu:k]book
b) in N: [aa] instead of [a:] before [f, th, s] and cons clusters beginning [n] [m]
path [pa:th]-S, [path]-N
in S [a:] instead of [aa] bad [baad] –RP,[ba:d]-S
c) final [i:]: N: [i] [siti], S [i:] [siti:]
In consonants:
1.rhotic/non-rhotic accents (r-full/r-less). If it is written the sound is post-vocalic (Scotland, Ireland, s-w England)
2. glottal stop. In most regional accents it is more widely used than in RP, esp n-e of Engl, East Anglia, Nothern Ireland, the glottal stop may be pronounced simultaneously with voiceless [ptk], esp between vowels
3. use [n] in –ing instead of [ng] – in western central area of England- Birmingham, Manchester and Liverpool –pronounce [ng]
4. j-dropping. In most accents is dropped after [t,sh]- student. In parts of north even after [th]- enthusiasm. In large areas of Eastern England [j] is lost after every cons, esp in London.
Southern English accents.
Educated southern speech is very much near RP accent, whereas non-standard accents are very near Cockney- the sp of working class areas of the Great London.
Vowels: 1. [^]→aai blood [bl^d- blaaid]. 2. [aa]→e/ei bag [beig]. 3. [i] in word final position [i:] [siti:]. 4. [ei]→[aai]/[ai] lady [laaidi:]. 5. RP[ev] soaked [saaukt]
Consonants: 1. [h] in unstressed is almost abscent. 2. Glottal stop is widely spread. 3. [th]=[f] thin [fin]. 4. In word final posit [ng]=[n] dancing [da:nsin]. 5. [ptk] are heavily aspirated.
Scottish English. The status of Scottish English is still debated. Some linguists say it’s a national variant, some- dialect. Educated Scottish people speak a form of Scottish Standard English that grammatically and lexically is not different from Eng (RP) although with Scottish accent.
