Ever wondered what accent your ancestors had?

[maggbill]

Not having much English background, I thought I would search for some Irish/Scottish/Australian equivalents... and found an amazing site where you can find dialects and accents from anywhere!  Try it - amazing - http://www.dialectsarchive.com/

Gives a world map - and you just zoom in on wherever you would like to hear the relevant accent.  Could spend hours doing this!
Happy listening!

[maggbill]

Sorry, - should have been more specific... the accents given are of course, speaking a set English bit of prose... so e.g. "Italy" -  Italian accent from various parts, but speaking English....
Interesting. 

[maggbill]

Sorry to have taken over this post - just a bit more explanation of the website - it gives recordings of many different people - with biographical details, - and shows not just the regional accents, but the influences of combined regional experiences - e.g. - someone who is from Co. Antrim, but grew up in London, or studied in USA or whatever.... Fascinating stuff.

[LizzieW]

Thank you for your link maggbill, I've just clicked on one at random which turned out to be Aberdeen.  Although I haven't any ancestors from there, my paternal grandfather was living and working in Aberdeen when he was killed in a motorcycle accident.  I think the accent is quite easy to understand and I don't expect it's changed much since he was there in the 1920s.  Of course that's nearly 100 years ago, but being born in 1941 I always relate years to where I fit into the scheme of things.

[maggbill]

Hi LizzieW

Well, accents certainly can vary - and often people will really adjust their speech according to circumstances, and who they are speaking to.  I left Scotland in 1962 - but still think I have a Glaswegian accent, and when I get together with my siblings, we are just sooooo Glaswegian, but I bet you a real "Glasgow" person would think my accent has become "Australianised".   My OH is from Aberdeen, but does not have a strong Aberdonian accent, however when I hear some of his fellow Aberdonians - especially the older ones - I struggle to understand them, especially when they use the actual "dialect" rather than just the accent. 

Fascinating subject - Another field of knowledge I have grown in since I got interested in "Family history"!

[avm228]

I agree that the linguistic experience of migrants is really interesting.

When I was at an early stage in my family history "journey" there was a gg-grandmother Annie whose birth I could not trace.  The only living person who knew and remembered Annie was my great-aunt.  She was adamant that Annie must have grown up in Scotland because she remembered her having a strong Scottish accent all her life.

After a frustrating time I eventually found that Annie had been born in Nebraska in 1869.  Her Scottish parents had just settled in the US and so far as I know Annie never set foot in Scotland.  Her Scottish accent must have come entirely from her parents.

[sarahsean]

I just had a listen to the Wandsworth accent as my family lived there for generations. It really reminded me of my mothers`aunt! My mum and my nan did not have the same accent theirs  was much softer.

I did smile about getting attuned to the accent. I live in Ireland but am from Sussex and when we visit my sister there it takes me a while to get used to the accent even though I grew up with it!

I do find also that my Dubliner husband also uses different sentence constructions from me at times. Saying something in a way that I would never have said it so for those of you with Irish ancestors that would be something to consider. I think the classic example would be amn`t I for am I not. Then also to consider would be the use of vocabulary I`ve lived in Ireland for nearly 20 years and still use English terms for some things.

Sarah

[chris_49]

I'm actually pretty sure that my gggg uncle, railway entrepreneur John Skelsey spoke with a Warwickshire accent because the 1851 Yorkshire enumerator heard and listed his birth as "Royton, Warwickshire" when he was actually born Ryton-on-Dunsmore.

And, yes, I have ancestors who I know spoke Welsh but this ceased to be recorded when they moved to Oswestry, Shropshire - an area where Welsh was then much spoken, I believe. I read an article some years ago about children being taught Welsh at one of the primary schools thereabouts.

[iluleah]

I'm actually pretty sure that my gggg uncle, railway entrepreneur John Skelsey spoke with a Warwickshire accent because the 1851 Yorkshire enumerator heard and listed his birth as "Royton, Warwickshire" when he was actually born Ryton-on-Dunsmore.

And, yes, I have ancestors who I know spoke Welsh but this ceased to be recorded when they moved to Oswestry, Shropshire - an area where Welsh was then much spoken, I believe. I read an article some years ago about children being taught Welsh at one of the primary schools thereabouts.

Highly likely being that Ryton-on-Dunsmore is Rugby in Warwickshire