Illinois Accents (Chicago, Rockford, Peoria: price, area, cities)

[Central Illinois 1]

Originally Posted by KJAnsia

Dennis Farina sounds like my dad. Heh. But this is prime example of a strong Chi-caw-go accent.



Now, I've some in-laws who are from, and still reside in, Pana, Illinois, which is about two-thirds of the way downstate. They all have the thickest drawls I've ever heard in my life. I mean, the first time I met them, I was like, "What the f*** are these people talking about?" I literally could not understand at least a third of what they were saying. I'm not sure if they're originally from somewhere in the Deep South, or if they represent the accent at it's strongest or what.

I live in the same general area as some of your relatives and yes- alot of people in this part of the state have a very thick southern accent. This is especially true of working class and older people in the smaller towns. Once you get south of a line from about Lincoln to Champaign-Urbana, the southern drawl becomes very prevalent.

[Avengerfire]

Originally Posted by KJAnsia

Dennis Farina sounds like my dad. Heh. But this is prime example of a strong Chi-caw-go accent...

Yeah my former boss speaks almost exactly the same as Farina even though my former boss is Polish!

[KJAnsia]

Originally Posted by Avengerfire

Yeah my former boss speaks almost exactly the same as Farina even though my former boss is Polish!

Yeah, you'll find it among almost all the second-generation European and Hispanic (remember listening to Matt Rodriguez holding press conferences?!) ethnicities of working class stock up until a certain point.

It sounds best when funneled properly into the right language vessel, such as "Whaddya do dat for, ya jag-off?!"

[BrightonMan84]

Originally Posted by Central Illinois 1

I live in the same general area as some of your relatives and yes- alot of people in this part of the state have a very thick southern accent. This is especially true of working class and older people in the smaller towns. Once you get south of a line from about Lincoln to Champaign-Urbana, the southern drawl becomes very prevalent.

Very interesting, that. I had always thought that region was part of the "neutral accent" area, but evidently not. Incidentally, as I'm curious, how does accent impact upon regional identification in the state? Would folks with heavier accents self-identify more as Southerners than Midwesterners? (I'm talking further down in the state than the towns you mentioned, obviously).

[Drover]

Originally Posted by BrightonMan84

Very interesting, that. I had always thought that region was part of the "neutral accent" area, but evidently not. Incidentally, as I'm curious, how does accent impact upon regional identification in the state? Would folks with heavier accents self-identify more as Southerners than Midwesterners? (I'm talking further down in the state than the towns you mentioned, obviously).

They would self-identify as Midwesterners, but if you got down to specifics to discern their sociopolitical and cultural leanings, I suspect they would more readily identify with the South than with the northern Midwest, particularly the urban/post-industrial sections of the northern Midwest.

[GraniteStater]

Do any of you guys think that Brucato has the northern cities shift accent in the video?

[Drover]

Originally Posted by GraniteStater

Do any of you guys think that Brucato has the northern cities shift accent in the video?

Hers is more of a Northwoods lilt, which is related but not quite the same. An imprecise but workable description of her accent is a blend between the Northern Cities shift and a Canadian accent; as you move north from the southern Great Lakes cities, the accent gradually changes from one to the other until you reach upper Minnesota or Michigan's Upper Peninsula, where "out" almost sounds like "oot" and "yeah" is pronounced "yaa" almost like you'd hear in a "Hans and Franz" SNL skit.

For a classic example of the Northern Cities shift, Dennis Farina (per above) is where it's at.

[TopperPop]

Having spent all of my nearly 50 years in the Chicago area I would say that there are different accents from suburb to suburb. I think that alot of it had to do with different ethnicities settling in different areas. There seems to be less of this now as areas become more diverse.

As far as southern Illinois we have relatives in Decatur and there is a definate difference in their accents and phraseology.

Whenever we return from a visit and my wife asks me to do something I tell her "I was just fixin to do that"




John

[Pastor's Helpmeet]

Yeah, I would say it's a Midwestern accent. I have the same problem. When I go up north, they say I have a "southern" accent. We lived in Tennessee for a while, and everyone said I had a "Yankee" accent. So, I would say it's somewhere in between.

[Central Illinois 1]

Originally Posted by Pastor's Helpmeet

Yeah, I would say it's a Midwestern accent. I have the same problem. When I go up north, they say I have a "southern" accent. We lived in Tennessee for a while, and everyone said I had a "Yankee" accent. So, I would say it's somewhere in between.

I would say that in the southern half of Illinois, alot of people in the rural areas and especially the older people and working cloass people have a very strong drawl. However, when you get into the more urban areas and college town areas, the dialect becomes much more neutral.