Why is it so hard to hear your own accent? (woman, people)

[Maxie89]

Originally Posted by MisfitBanana

A girl from Georgia who lived in Arizona for a few years swore she had a "western" accent. Uhhh, no sweetheart.

When I was a girl, I had a lot of hearing problems (as in, I could barely hear). So I learned to talk the way I heard. Everyone would ask me where I was from. When I told them I was born and raised in California, they would ask where my parents were from. When I told them my dad was born and raised in California, and my mom was born and raised in Utah, they would go, "Ohhhh...it must be a Utah thing." Uh. No. I just had a hard time with pronunciation. Once I could hear, I got a lot of speech therapy - now I have sort of a general California accent, but I do say some words in special ways, like kitten will be kidden.

What I find odd though is not only the inability to hear your accent but for someone to think they have another type of regional accent that's dramatically different than what they actually have (like your southern friend that thought she spoke cali). It's like, why do I hear myself as sounding general american when actually have a Canadian accent with strong regional features? that's just f*cked up.

I notice this with weight as well. I went through a weight gain a few years ago and ended up going up to 175 pounds, but from looking at my reflection I perceived myself as no more than a 140 and even though I was gaining I still never really "noticed" that many changes in my body. Weird.

[The Postman]

Originally Posted by citylove101

You only have an accent in comparison to something else.

There has to be a standard for someone to have a variation on it that is considered an accent. England has this standard: It's what you hear on a BBC broadcast, so Cockney English or Scottish English are considered accents, or variations on the norm. There are similar standards (and variations on them) from official bodies in Spain and France.

But the U.S. has no official standard about what speech should sound like, although many people do consider the flat Midwestern way of talking --what many broadcasters use -- as an unofficial standard. I believe that same situation exists in Canada.

So anything in the U.S. or Canada can be considered an accent if it differs greatly from what most people around you sound like. And if you rarely get out of the population where your speech was formed, you won't notice that until you spend time with other people.

It should go without saying but everyone speaks with an accent, just like everyone who speaks speaks a language. If you're used to only hearing American accents you just won't perceive your accent as that different, but trust me, if you come here you'll soon realise how different your accent is. I can hear my accent, but it doesn't sound as strong as it really is. Of course living here I don't take much notice of the Australian accent, whereas IRL American accents definitely do stand out.

[ThisIsMe123]

I actually hear mine pretty well. What I hear makes sense considering where I've lived, for how long, and by what others tell me of my accent.

[Spaceman1234]

Ya somehow some people hear mine while others don't.

[NCN]

The only thing I notice is when someone says they don't have an accent. Everybody has an accent. I think educated people who are around many different types of people realize the only thing important is whether or not you can understand what the other person is saying. As a librarian in an area that has about 50 new people move in daily, I talked to people with many different accents every day. I would be told that I didn't talk like the other people around here and I would think, "Which other people don't I talk like?" We were the fastest growing county in America 2 years in a row about that time. Then I would explain to them that I am a native of this state, born and bred. When I would see their questioning look I would go on to explain that I was born several counties away. I cannot even imagine how many different accents our state has.

Through the years I encountered a few times when I would have to ask the person to spell whatever it was they were looking for. One was a lady who grew up in Ohio and said "doll" like I would say "dowel" rod. She asked for a book titled THE DOLL HOUSE MURDERS but it took a while for me to know what she was asking so I finally asked her to spell it. She said "dowel, doll." We both had a good laugh at the exchange. She was a regular and we had a good relationship as librarian and patron.

Another one I remember is a lady who was looking for a devotional to present at a church meeting. The word she used was something I had never heard before. After what seemed about 30 minutes of me asking about the meeting so I could help her find the perfect book to use, I finally asked for the word to be spelled. It was an Usher Board meeting. I had never heard the word "usher" pronounced with so many syllables and vowels in my life as the way she had said it. And I will also show my ignorance in saying I didn't know there was an office in the church called Usher Board that had meetings where there was a program presented. I learned so much in that job. My husband was head of the ushers in our church and all they ever did was seat the people, hand out the programs and take up the offering. That didn't require a lot of meetings more than a few minutes to make sure everyone was where they should be.

[jtur88]

I have a friend who is an intellectual career woman, who has a southern accent that is nearly comical. She told me a couple of years ago she phoned into an NPR call in show, and listened to it when it was repeated at a later time on her local station, and only then did she realize that she had such a strong southern accent.

[Woodrow LI]

I don't have an accent, everybody else does.

I grew up in Connecticut and do have a distinct New England accent even after leaving CT in 1959. When I lived in the South (Louisiana and Arkansas) everybody commented on my "Yankee" accent. But when I lived in Texas everybody made fun of my Louisiana "Cajun" Accent and now here in North Dakota I get told I have a Texas accent. but when I speak Arabic I have a "Darija" (Moroccan ) accent and only Arab speakers from Morocco can understand me.

I don't understand it, when I talk to myself, I don't hear any accent.

[aliasfinn]

I remember years ago watching the news about some little town,I think it was in Mississippi that got hit by a tornado and they were interviewing this guy who had his house destroyed. He was an American, probably had ancestors in that same town for 200 years but they were showing subtitles at the bottom of the screen for everything he said. I know if that were me I couldn't wait to get home to see myself on the news but if I saw those subtitles I would say "WTF ?" No more interviews from me.

[Mightyqueen801]

I remember people from Minnesota being angry when the movie Fargo came out (which mostly takes place in Minnesota, despite the title and opening scene) over how they were portrayed, especially the way they spoke. Then I was watching one of those true crime shows and they interviewed a Minnesotan who had found a body in the woods, and he sounded just like the people in the movie.

[Zen88]

I'm mostly aware of my Bronx/Long Island accent, and I have a hard time trying to mimic others. What impresses me is those who can do other accents seemingly flawlessly. Some people are able to mimic one or two others, but I know a guy who's had some acting training, and can do ALL (didn't know there were so many) the different English, Irish, and Scottish accents, having a leg up from having English parents (but was born and raised in the US). He also does an indian accent, since his closest friend was of indian parents.