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I think southern part of Ontario may sound more like the US where other parts of Canada have more of Canadian accent with the exceptions of Vancouver that sounds more of the west coast of the US.
I disagree, there's a pretty large difference between how people talk in Whatcom County (kind of hillbilly sounding if you ask me) and people in the Lower Mainland (hoo's it goin' eh?)
I have always found they are among the most American-sounding of English-speaking Canadians.
I suspect there are several factors that enter into play, not the least of which is that the ambient "Anglo-Canadianness" is much less present for them than in other parts of Canada. Consider how much of the public sphere discourse in Montreal that they are exposed to is in French, and on the occasions when English is being spoken, it is often not by native speakers of Canadian English, but by francophones, people of other origins and also visiting Americans (very numerous in Montreal).
So Anglo-Montrealers tend to have less exposure to "model speakers" of Canadian English than people do in other parts of country.
Because of this as well, they tend to pick up a lot of their accents and expressions from American TV and movies. Now, Anglo-Montrealers don't consume American stuff any more than other English-speaking Canadians do, but a much greater share of their "English exposure" comes from TV and movies, whereas in the rest of Canada the public sphere has a proportionally greater influence, and this tends to be where Canadianisms are most present and get traction.
One last factor is the fact that many Anglo-Montrealers are of Italian, Ashkenazi Jewish and other origins. This is true of many families that are descended from older 20th century immigration. The waves that brought these people were the same waves that brought immigrants to the northeastern U.S. (many immigrants to Montreal actually came through Ellis Island), and so quite a few people have close family ties in New York, Boston, Philadelphia and other parts of the NE US. This also likely influences the way they speak English to some degree.
I disagree, there's a pretty large difference between how people talk in Whatcom County (kind of hillbilly sounding if you ask me) and people in the Lower Mainland (hoo's it goin' eh?)
I was talking about Vancouver not out of the city.
Here is good web site that explains this Canadian accent.
Canadian vs American
asphalt road ---- blacktop
blinds ----------- shades
elastic band ---- rubber band
feather --------- (corn) silk
sheaf------------ bundle
tap -------------- faucet
tea party ------- coffee party
chesterfield---- couch/sofa
veranda --------- porch
General Canadian English is extremely similar to General American English. However, there are a number of differences between the two dialects. GCE (General Canadian English) exhibits a linguistic phenomenon called Canadian Raising. Basically, the diphthong /ai/--as in "by" or "lie"--is raised before voiceless consonants (t, k, p, s, f); by contrast, this diphthong is not raised before other consonants (v, z, d, b, l, m, n, r, etc).
Not sure what they are trying to say about this Canadian raising
Quote:
Thus, by using Canadian Raising, the words in the following word pairs can be pronounced differently: ride and write, five and fife, and rise and rice.
Quote:
The diphthong /au/, as in "loud," is commonly raised before the consonants "t," "th," and "s." This diphthong, though, is not raised before the consonants "d," "z," "n," and "j." As was pointed out, the word "about" sounds like "a boat"... well, to our American ears, that is. In General American English, the diphthong /ai/ is not raised before any consonant, nor is the diphthong /au/. Yet, this raising has been occurring in various areas of the U.S., and it is spreading.
The ones I've heard sounded very American to me, like I couldn't tell any Canadian features in their speech at all! You'd think it would be more influenced by French wouldn't you?
Is it perhaps because they're geographically isolated from other Anglo-Canadians so they pick up their cues on speaking English from American television?
I kinda thought that was true, but American immigrants who live in Montreal have told me that the local
English accent, that I speak, doesn't sound American, and people in Seattle think I've got an accent, but people in Vancouver can't really tell me from a local (although there are definitely some words that are different and people from the regions sound a little different). Here are three videos that I think have pretty representative examples of the accent:
I disagree, there's a pretty large difference between how people talk in Whatcom County (kind of hillbilly sounding if you ask me) and people in the Lower Mainland (hoo's it goin' eh?)
I think this has been covered in one of the many accent threads. The general consensus is that Vancouver and Southern Ontario accents are generally closer to "Standard American" than any of the other Canadian accents - with Vancouver having a west coast influence and Ontario having a Great Lakes influence. These influences are more evident in the dialect and the pronunciation of certain things then the overall sound. Canadians still tend to round out their vowels differently. It's especially noticeable in younger Canadians.
I pronounce many words the American way "data (dayta) , project (prahject), process (prahcess)" yet with a Canadian sound. I've had people from the US and Ontario ask me where my accent was from.
Oddly enough, I find places in rural Washington to be more more American sounding then in the major cities. There are plenty of people in Portland, Seattle and even major California cities who sound very, very close to the way I talk.
I think this has been covered in one of the many accent threads. The general consensus is that Vancouver and Southern Ontario accents are generally closer to "Standard American" than any of the other Canadian accents - with Vancouver having a west coast influence and Ontario having a Great Lakes influence. These influences are more evident in the dialect and the pronunciation of certain things then the overall sound. Canadians still tend to round out their vowels differently. It's especially noticeable in younger Canadians.
I pronounce many words the American way "data (dayta) , project (prahject), process (prahcess)" yet with a Canadian sound. I've had people from the US and Ontario ask me where my accent was from.
Oddly enough, I find places in rural Washington to be more more American sounding then in the major cities. There are plenty of people in Portland, Seattle and even major California cities who sound very, very close to the way I talk.
I actually say 'data' with the same vowel as 'apple', I don't say 'dayta' and I'm from the US though some people in the US do.
People in Vancouver don't really sound American at all to me. I mean, no more than other Canadians. They lack the distinctive US drawl even if the raising is a bit more muted in a lot of speakers compared to say Timmins or Saskatoon.
I think the Great Lakes influence in Torontonian speech is declining. Old timers pronounce Toronto as 'Tranna' but now it's more like 'Tuhronno'. I'd say oddly enough, Ontario is influenced more by the Western US accent than by the Great Lakes accent, probably because of Hollywood.
I agree with you about rural Washington having a different accent, Whatcom County accents sound pretty hillbilly to me like I was saying. Oddly Longview has a bit of a Canadian type accent - maybe it's the legacy of the Hudson's Bay Company?
I think this has been covered in one of the many accent threads. The general consensus is that Vancouver and Southern Ontario accents are generally closer to "Standard American" than any of the other Canadian accents - with Vancouver having a west coast influence and Ontario having a Great Lakes influence. These influences are more evident in the dialect and the pronunciation of certain things then the overall sound. Canadians still tend to round out their vowels differently. It's especially noticeable in younger Canadians.
I pronounce many words the American way "data (dayta) , project (prahject), process (prahcess)" yet with a Canadian sound. I've had people from the US and Ontario ask me where my accent was from.
Oddly enough, I find places in rural Washington to be more more American sounding then in the major cities. There are plenty of people in Portland, Seattle and even major California cities who sound very, very close to the way I talk.
What do you mean when you say These influences are more evident in the dialect and the pronunciation of certain things then the overall sound. Canadians still tend to round out their vowels differently
Can you explain and elaborate on this.
I find it strange no one replied to my to post above.
Note Some people say data and other people say dayta in Canada.
What do you mean when you say These influences are more evident in the dialect and the pronunciation of certain things then the overall sound. Canadians still tend to round out their vowels differently
Can you explain and elaborate on this.
I find it strange no one replied to my to post above.
Note Some people say data and other people say dayta in Canada.
I guess what I meant is that some regions in Canada seem to be a bit of a hybrid between the American way and the stereotypical Canadian way of saying things.
Using "data" as an example - this seems to be a west coast thing. Unlike most Canadians, I say the word like "dayta" although I would say my accident is distinctly Canadian (I definitely do not have an American drawl) - especially any words that contain the "ou" sound. When I moved to Ontario - people noticed my pronunciation of certain words and asked if I was American. I've also met some Great Lakes Americans who say "daata", so closer to the standard Canadian pronunciation - but with the vowel more drawn out.
I probably haven't articulated this very well - perhaps somebody with a background in linguistics could identify this.
I actually say 'data' with the same vowel as 'apple', I don't say 'dayta' and I'm from the US though some people in the US do.
People in Vancouver don't really sound American at all to me. I mean, no more than other Canadians. They lack the distinctive US drawl even if the raising is a bit more muted in a lot of speakers compared to say Timmins or Saskatoon.
I think the Great Lakes influence in Torontonian speech is declining. Old timers pronounce Toronto as 'Tranna' but now it's more like 'Tuhronno'. I'd say oddly enough, Ontario is influenced more by the Western US accent than by the Great Lakes accent, probably because of Hollywood.
I agree with you about rural Washington having a different accent, Whatcom County accents sound pretty hillbilly to me like I was saying. Oddly Longview has a bit of a Canadian type accent - maybe it's the legacy of the Hudson's Bay Company?
When I said Southern Ontario - I was referring to areas outside Toronto as well. Agreed that Toronto has adopted an accent with similarities to "Standard American", and less Great Lakes. However, the Great Lakes sound seems to still exist more in SW Ontario near Windsor. My extended family from Windsor do the classic vowel shift. A sounds like E, O sounds like A etc. I sat next to a man on the plane once, he had the most perfect sounding American accent ever - until he told me that he was from Windsor...I know I'm not the only one who has made that mistake!
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