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Dragonfire Goddess

PostPosted: Fri Oct 09, 2009 7:09 pm


So we all want to sound like natives in our pronunciation, but what about when the language you're learning has multiple accents among native speakers? Which one do you aim to speak with? Do you find yourself speaking with one accent more naturally than another? Is it more important in your opinion to speak a language properly, or to learn the slang and improper but common usage?

I try to base my pronunciation on 'High German,' and I've heard that I have a bit of a Berlin accent. For example I pronounce Ich more like "Ick" as opposed to "Eech." Supposedly that's how they pronounce it in Berlin, but I don't really know how true that is.
PostPosted: Fri Oct 09, 2009 10:10 pm


I was under the impression that high german was spoken in the hills and that the [x] is the standard pronunciation of "ch" in high german while it's pronounced [k] in low german.
I was also under the impression that "high german" describes the official language of the country. That's what I speak.

Edit: I pronounce "ich" with a short i sound, not a long i.

Prince Rilian


Einllikoach

PostPosted: Sat Oct 10, 2009 5:33 am


I have no idea which English accent I have, really; I always thought it was English for that was the one I learnt from the very beginning, but lately too many people considered it Australian or even German, so at that point I just gave up trying to figure it out. rolleyes
PostPosted: Sat Dec 12, 2009 5:30 pm


I usually aim for the one that sounds better to me, and I do like learning the slang and stuff...it would be kinda weird talking without it...it's like going up to one of your friends and saying "Good morning. How are you today?" It makes you seem that much farther from native D:


Lord Fon Fabre


FedExcore.

PostPosted: Mon Dec 14, 2009 10:13 pm


My first language is French, but I live in a pretty much bilingual country (Canada), so in English, I'd say I use the Canadian English, with a Montreal accent (whatever that is, I've got it). My brother when he speaks (very broken English), he has more of an American one, as he has learnt from watching American shows, and listening to music (mostly American)

For Spanish, I learnt mostly from a teacher who is not himself a native speaker (he's Italian), but my friend from Uruguay has helped me quite a bit. So he's influenced my speech.

And as for German, both my teacher and teacher-help are from Nürnberg, so... "ich" is /iʃ/, not /ik/. "lustig" is /lustiʃ/.
PostPosted: Tue Dec 15, 2009 8:59 pm


In English, I'd say I have a Canadian accent since that's the one I've heard the most in my life. But I've been told sometimes that I have a bit of a British accent. Probably because that's that one I like the most... It's fun to speak.

In Spanish, I started with a Mexican accent since my first teacher was Mexican. Then, I switched to a Spanish accent because of my second teacher. Now, my accent sounds more like International Spanish because I mostly practice by watching every movie I have that has got a Spanish dub...
xd

Moonlight_Naida


[neon.zombie]

PostPosted: Wed Dec 16, 2009 2:53 pm


In English (my native language), I have somewhat of a weird mixture of a New Zealand accent and a neutral/English one. I come from New Zealand, and our accent is the famed 'agricultural' one where 'fish and chips' sounds like 'fush and chups', and 'I' sounds like 'oy'. But, I really dislike our accent and do my best to avoid it at all times. (Also, we say "New Zealand" like "New Zillind", the really southern accents sounds horrendous!)

For German, I think I have a neutral (High German) accent, if that makes any sense. Because I do choral singing, and we attempt to get the purest pronunciation possible, my vowels and consonants in spoken German are pretty close to neutrality, I'd say.
"ich" is /iç/, not /ix/ or /ik/ (just on a side note, [x] is a hard 'ch' sound, and is not the standard accepted consonant sound for the word 'ich')
PostPosted: Wed Dec 16, 2009 10:08 pm


It's funny how Ich seems to be one of the most...shall I say, contested? words as in how it's pronounced in the entire German language. I've heard more non-native speakers ask how it's pronounced than any other word. I guess because the ch isn't really a sound that's exactly represented in English. I think the best description I've heard is that it's like a harsh hissing sound like a cat would make.

Another question, what accent in your native language would you encourage others to learn your language in?

Dragonfire Goddess


Cold Shower

PostPosted: Thu Dec 17, 2009 1:16 am


I have an Australian/British accent. I've never been outside of Australia but according to my friends I switch between Australian and British. I have no idea how it originated.

As far as foreign languages go, I can pronounce Japanese but I can't sound Japanese to save my life. It's really, really obvious that I'm a student. Strangely, I've been told that my Russian pronunciation is good despite the fact I'm self-taught, and that I could pass myself off as a local in a few years if I tried. Such is the mystery of life.
PostPosted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 2:03 pm


for spanish, i'd probably say i have more a colombian accent than anything else because my freshman high school teacher was colombian and i learned everything about accents from him
for example
yo me llamo in colombia is pronounced /dʒo me dʒamo/ while, in argentina, for example, its pronounced more like /ʃo me ʒamo/

sono italiano


Fullmetalrunt

PostPosted: Tue Apr 20, 2010 8:59 pm


I want to try and have a Munich accent in german, they roll their rs apparently 8D

And I want a Barthelona accent because it sounds nice and funny

I have a new york accent in English apparently, and a beijing accent in chinese. o___o
PostPosted: Sat Aug 07, 2010 7:42 pm


Cold Shower
I have an Australian/British accent. I've never been outside of Australia but according to my friends I switch between Australian and British. I have no idea how it originated.

I've never really been able to hear a difference? What would you describe the difference as, then?

Doppelgaanger

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PostPosted: Sat Aug 07, 2010 7:58 pm


Do Californians even have accents?
PostPosted: Thu Aug 12, 2010 9:34 pm


I have the non-accent English accent, if that makes any sense. Basically, it's boring. It's the accent you here when you call automated numbers and stuff in the US. Apparently, it's very understandable. I've also noticed that people with my accent will quickly and unconsciously start using other accents they hear around them, e.g. drop us in the deep south and we'll probably pick up a southern drawl.

When speaking Japanese, I think I have a Tokyo accent as I have a tendency to make some of my g sounds nasally (e.g. the second g in gogo). My listening exercises have a lot of accents like that, so I guess I picked it up.

randomnessensues


lili of the lamplight

PostPosted: Fri Aug 13, 2010 12:08 pm


Dippamus
Do Californians even have accents?


Yes, yes we do. There are a few different Californian accents, too. I'm rarely aware of mine, but when I do notice it, it sounds really grating. Must train it away.
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