Do people in New Orleans have the southern accent? (pharmacy, suburban)

[mohunny]

Originally Posted by jtur88

The off-camera narrator of this feature has a classic New Orleans "radio announcer's" accent.


YouTube - A variety of New Orleans accents from YEAH YOU RITE!

Great video, thanks for sharing that

[hugsnpugs]

Here's the deal, coming from a native. There is no single accent associated with New Orleans. The "yat" accent is not typical-I don't know anyone who sounds like that (I'm 33). Each area in the New Orleans metro area has a different accent. In NO, if you are poor/lower income classes and /or live in the hood, you will sound completely different than someone from uptown. The yat accent is associated with older New Orleanians. Most middle class folks from NOLA sound a vaguely like they are from Brooklyn/Boston, just softer and with plenty of ya'lls thrown around. People from St. Bernard parish (or "da parish") have a much stronger Brooklyn/Boston accent peppered with more local phrases, like "makin groceries" and the like, and the complate absence of "r"s (washin tha cah). People from Jefferson parish, particulary Metairie, have a variation of the St. bernard accent-both groups of people are ex-new orleanians who just migrated in opposite directions. The farther away from new orleans you go, the more twang starts showing up, though if you are in cajun country, that is a completely unique and thick accent that is nothing like something you would hear in Georgia. North Louisiana sounds pretty much like they do in Steel Magnolias, just not as overdone.

Hope that helps ya'll!

[domino]

I once heard the accent described as Brooklyn on quaaludes.

[PaintTheWorld]

Brooklyn on quaaludes is a good way of putting it. I grew up in Maryland (with a crappy, bland mid-Atlantic accent) and notice that New Orleans doesn't sound anything like a southern accent. I travel from Panama City to Corpus Christi for my sales territory, and no one else sounds like Orleaninans (and especially not like the Chalmette area). Outside the city, though, you do get the standard "southern drawl" (which I really like the sound of).
The New Orleans accents are way cool though, and they do remind me of New Yorkers (with only slightly less use of the f-bomb peppering conversation!)

[yat]

All the movies get it wromg. All the TV shows get it wrong. It's much more complicated than that. New Orleanians can't even all say the name of the city they live in the same way.

"Brooklyn on quaaludes..." is very a very good discription of part of it but hugsnpugs has nailed it.

[Robin504]

New Orleanians have the proud distinction of being just that: DISTINCT in our "accents' be it Uptown, Downtown, Back-A-Town, Lower & Upper Ninth Ward, etc. I think we can all agree on that.

I simply love the New Orleans accents, and I could be blind folded and still identify one of my homefolks, be they white, black or other. I have THAT much confidence in my "ear" for our subtle dialects

~Robin504~
In The Bronx

[Robin504]

Originally Posted by yat

All the movies get it wromg. All the TV shows get it wrong. It's much more complicated than that. New Orleanians can't even all say the name of the city they live in the same way.

"Brooklyn on quaaludes..." is very a very good discription of part of it but hugsnpugs has nailed it.

I thought I was the only one who realized that Hollywood just can't seem to get "our accents" correct when filming. They can create an entire city or town to exact dimensions, but for some reason, just can't get us correct. Maybe they need to fly some of us in to inform them of their shortcomings. What do you think?

~Robin504~

[hdwell]

Originally Posted by Robin504

I thought I was the only one who realized that Hollywood just can't seem to get "our accents" correct when filming. They can create an entire city or town to exact dimensions, but for some reason, just can't get us correct. Maybe they need to fly some of us in to inform them of their shortcomings. What do you think?

~Robin504~

I believe Hollywood doesn't always do the research needed on these things; they just assume things. Reminds me alot of people in general. I mean they are thinking "oh it's just the South, who really cares about those rednecks?"

[shellybellyrelly]

its sorta like brooklyn meets the bayou haha

[missylyn]

Originally Posted by jacq63

They don't have 'the' southern accent, if you mean as in Scarlet O'Haha from Gone with the Wind. The typical accent from 'round NOLA sounded a little like Brooklyn NYC to me. It was hard to pinpoint, but I certainly didn't hear people saying "why yay-yes, ah would lurve if y'all would put down yer cayup for li'l ol' me"..okay I'm being silly.
They do say 'y'all' but without the draaawwwwl. Didn't hear anyone refer to anyone else as 'cher' either.

one of the best accents ive heard that was done very well was on the movie green mile the cajin guy with the mouse that was in prison, that named the mouse mr.jangles. he imitated a thibodeaux sounding accent. that is exactly how my grandparents talk even to this day. they still speak the broken french language which is died out in my generation. but different parts of new orleans had different accents.