Nebraska/Iowa vs Oregon/Washington: Which states have a more neutral accent? (population, people)
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Seattle is mostly transplants from other parts of the US. The true accent from the locals around that area is like a mix of Western Canadian,Californian, and Upper Midwestern, very flat and monotone sounding.
I'm glad I'm not the only one who has noticed this since Ive been here in washington. Older locals have that fusion accent. I think the midwestern influence is from scandinavian immigrants who took the northern pacific railroad from minnesota/ wisconsin and were the regions first settlers. Ive also noticed many native americans here have a distinct accent i cant quite describe. Seattle in the city is pretty neutral since there are so many transplants but the more local places definitely have a distinct accent to an outsider.
I cant really comment on nebraska since my sample size for there is too small,but of the few people ive met from there, their accent seems more neutral than the Pacific Northwest.
Many Iowans speak in an accent that is very similar to Minnesota's.
That is false. Minnesotans speak with a slight Canadian influence. So do people from Wisconsin. They don't have the neutral accents that Iowa and Nebraska have. People from Southern Iowa sound more like Missouri (South Midland dialect), people from Central, West Central, and East Central Iowa sound neutral, people from Northern Iowa sound more like Minnesota.
That's not false at all. I've lived in Minneapolis, Des Moines, and the Driftless for close to 20 years and it's similar all over. The North Central accent is alive and well in northern Iowa, and I've even occasionally heard it as far south as Cedar Rapids and Des Moines. You also hear the "neutral" General American accent all over the Twin Cities.
I think those places do have accents, I found people out in Oregon to talk slower and have a weak way of pronunciation. Not saying it's a bad thing, it's not, it's just different and is noticeable.
That's not false at all. I've lived in Minneapolis, Des Moines, and the Driftless for close to 20 years and it's similar all over. The North Central accent is alive and well in northern Iowa, and I've even occasionally heard it as far south as Cedar Rapids and Des Moines. You also hear the "neutral" General American accent all over the Twin Cities.
You'll also hear the neutral General American accent in Kansas City and St. Louis. So the point is that Iowa and Minnesota are not twin states in terms of dialect. Look up dialects for linguistics on the University of Pennsylvania's site. If you are so good let's see you beat them. Scroll down and look at all the maps. What they show is that Northern Iowa shares similarities to Minnesota in terms of dialect, while the rest of the state, including Cedar Rapids and Des Moines, does not.
Many Iowans speak in an accent that is very similar to Minnesota's.
Maybe its similar to people who are accent neutral, but Iowans certainly don't speak with the "Minnesota accent" except maybe areas in the far north, although after living there 22 years I never heard it. Iowans mimic the "minnesota" accent or the "north dakota" accent as much as anyone else.
Iowa is generally seen as the most neutral accent in the country according to most studies. Historically many national newscasters got their start or worked time in the Des Moines market to get the accent down.
Many Iowans speak in an accent that is very similar to Minnesota's.
Yes many Iowans have an upper Midwestern accent. I'm surprised this poll is as close as it is. The Northwest is as close to no accent as you'l find anywhere.
Many call centers are in Nebraska because the accent there is also considered to be about the most neutral, standard you will find. Very similar to that of the Northwest.
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