Speech pattern and typographical variations across Canada

[Architype]

Originally Posted by Pinus

Yeah, I know most of what you are saying is true, but I still think it's bullshit that people buy into it. And it all stems from the influence from the US, where their criteria of what proper status is has crept into our culture as well. I really and truly despise the influence of American culture with a passion, and even more so that so many Canadians seem to want to strive to be like Americans. I truly hate it, and will make no apologies for how I feel.

The Canadian accent that was instilled in us during the 20th century age of modern communications was more like this; to me it seems like a variation of a similar American accent of the times with a bit of Trans Atlantic. The NL representative is not even very different This is who we have always been in "modern" times (no subtitles required).

• Video Link

[drew]

Originally Posted by rousseau

That was what I heard back when I was going through Minnesota a lot, stopping for gas in small towns and striking up conversations with all and sundry. Though I never heard the "Fargo" accent there when the movie came out. At first I literally thought that the Cohen brothers were being clever clever with a caricature of a rural Manitoba accent.

Because, being Mennonite with prairie Mennonite classmates (and eventually a girlfriend), I knew quite a lot of Menno kids and made a fair number of visits to the southern Manitoba Menno Belt, to my ear "Fargo" was a whole heckuva lot closer to southern Manitoba than it was to northern Minnesota.

You betcha.

To the bolded - no.

I get that you spent some time here back in the day, but no.

There is nothing remotely similar in MB to the cartoonish accent in Fargo.

[Pinus]

Originally Posted by drew

To the bolded - no.

I get that you spent some time here back in the day, but no.

There is nothing remotely similar in MB to the cartoonish accent in Fargo.

That's right. They are quite distinct. Someone disagreed with me earlier, but I stand by my statement that places like ND have a classic Midwestern American accent, with their a's having that "eeeeee" being spoken in front of it. They also have that "cartoonish" Minnesotan accent as well. They probably have both due to interstate migration to the region. But whatever the reason, they exist there firmly. Nothing as at all like a Canadian "hoser" accent.

[rousseau]

Originally Posted by drew

To the bolded - no.

I get that you spent some time here back in the day, but no.

There is nothing remotely similar in MB to the cartoonish accent in Fargo.

Well, I guess things have changed, because the Fargo accent sounds like an exaggerated caricature of a southern Manitoba Mennonite in the 1980s and 90s. I heard guys ilke this in southern Manitoba every time I went there:

• Video Link

Originally Posted by Pinus

That's right. They are quite distinct. Someone disagreed with me earlier, but I stand by my statement that places like ND have a classic Midwestern American accent, with their a's having that "eeeeee" being spoken in front of it. They also have that "cartoonish" Minnesotan accent as well. They probably have both due to interstate migration to the region. But whatever the reason, they exist there firmly. Nothing as at all like a Canadian "hoser" accent.

North Dakota does not have the classic Midwestern accent that you get in Buffalo, Detroit and Chicago et al. The Northern Cities Vowel Shift is a well-studied phenomenon. Here's a map showing where it occurs:



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inland...erican_English

[Pinus]

Originally Posted by rousseau

Well, I guess things have changed, because the Fargo accent sounds like an exaggerated caricature of a southern Manitoba Mennonite in the 1980s and 90s. I heard guys ilke this in southern Manitoba every time I went there:

• Video Link


North Dakota does not have the classic Midwestern accent that you get in Buffalo, Detroit and Chicago et al. The Northern Cities Vowel Shift is a well-studied phenomenon. Here's a map showing where it occurs:



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inland...erican_English

I've heard it in Grand Forks, Bismarck and Fargo. It's there. Like I said, perhaps due to interstate migration when ND was booming during the oil days brought people with that particular accent there. I don't know the how or why, but it's there, and prevalent.

[Architype]

Many aspects of the Fargo accent are similar to or a variation of a Canadiian accent found to a degree in many parts of Canada. Even some of the sayings like "you got that right", used in the movie clip above, are typically Canadian. Anyone who can't hear this is tone deaf.

[Xelebes]

As someone who has also lived in Mennonite communities in Saskatchewan with a lot of emigrés from Manitoba, that's not the Mennonite accent. You need that Rhenish umlaut to shine though and. . . that Fargo clip doesn't have it. Also sentence structure is a ways off.

[harls]

Here's a video featuring Hutterites from Washington State and Manitoba.

• Video Link

Don't ask me how, but I can tell that Eli guy is American. It's like the Pepsi / Coke taste test.

(also, there is always an Eli in every colony).

[Sarah89]

Canadians have never sounded anything like the people in the upper Midwest with NCVS or in Minnesota. Completely different accent and a very American vowel shift pattern.

The only accent remotely similar to standard Canadian is Northern California. However there are differences even still. A young Canadian (non-hoser) will sound extremely similar to a young American in North Cal. except for mild vowel raising.

Yes vowel raising is ''cringey'' but we all do it. You can pull back you jaw, bite young tongue but you won't always stop the ''raise'' from popping ''OAT''.

[kwoldtimer]

Originally Posted by Sarah89

Canadians have never sounded anything like the people in the upper Midwest with NCVS or in Minnesota. Completely different accent and a very American vowel shift pattern.

The only accent remotely similar to standard Canadian is Northern California. However there are differences even still. A young Canadian (non-hoser) will sound extremely similar to a young American in North Cal. except for mild vowel raising.

Yes vowel raising is ''cringey'' but we all do it. You can pull back you jaw, bite young tongue but you won't always stop the ''raise'' from popping ''OAT''.

"Cringey"? Not to me.

[Pinus]

Originally Posted by Sarah89

Canadians have never sounded anything like the people in the upper Midwest with NCVS or in Minnesota. Completely different accent and a very American vowel shift pattern.

The only accent remotely similar to standard Canadian is Northern California. However there are differences even still. A young Canadian (non-hoser) will sound extremely similar to a young American in North Cal. except for mild vowel raising.

Yes vowel raising is ''cringey'' but we all do it. You can pull back you jaw, bite young tongue but you won't always stop the ''raise'' from popping ''OAT''.

Why is it "cringey"? Again another example of someone whobis ashamed of a Canadian accent, which is sad.

[Loco101]

It's pretty much the exact same accent in English in Canada from the Ottawa River to the Pacific Ocean unless you were raised somewhere else, Indigenous (or raised in an Indigenous community) or part of a religious group that lives separately from mainstream society.

Is there anywhere else in the world where the same accent in a language covers such a large area?

[theman23]

Originally Posted by someone123

We finally have validation from the only source that matters. It's even more impressive when you consider how the Raptors succeeded during an active genocide.

I keep seeing Raptors "north of the 49th parallel" type statements in the media, even Canadian media (which I guess they just copy from their American media feed?). Someday maybe someone will locate Toronto on a map.

Somebody needs to learn what a metonym is.

[someone123]

Originally Posted by theman23

Somebody needs to learn what a metonym is.

"I'm going south of the 49th parallel!"
"Didn't you say you were headed to Alaska...?"
"Anchorage! It's called a metonym Brenda, look it up!"

[esquire]

Originally Posted by someone123

"I'm going south of the 49th parallel!"
"Didn't you say you were headed to Alaska...?"
"Anchorage! It's called a metonym Brenda, look it up!"

[VANRIDERFAN]

Isn't Toronto's heart really south of the 49th?

[MonctonRad]

1/3rd of Canadians live north of the 49th parallel.
1/3rd of Canadians live between the 45th & 49th parallels
1/3rd of Canadians live south of the 45th parallel.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by Loco101

It's pretty much the exact same accent in English in Canada from the Ottawa River to the Pacific Ocean unless you were raised somewhere else, Indigenous (or raised in an Indigenous community) or part of a religious group that lives separately from mainstream society.

Is there anywhere else in the world where the same accent in a language cover such a large area?

Not sure if the distance is more, less or about the same but that's basically what you've got in Australia from Indian Ocean to the Pacific Ocean.

[wave46]

Originally Posted by Acajack

Not sure if the distance is more, less or about the same but that's basically what you've got in Australia from Indian Ocean to the Pacific Ocean.

Ottawa to Victoria is about 3600km.

Sydney to Perth is about 3300km.

So, about the same.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by wave46

Ottawa to Victoria is about 3600km.

Sydney to Perth is about 3300km.

So, about the same.

I might argue that in Canada's case the accent could be said to extend even further, into Anglo-Montreal and also is close enough to being dominant in much of Atlantic Canada.