Dialects of England - Annalisa Kiely

'Alreet Pet', 'Alright love', 'Ay up'

 

What are all of these? These are just a few greetings from specific regions in England. Do any of these reflect you, or are you even aware of your regional voice? Why are there so many different dialects? English dialects are variety in regional grammar, lexis and pronunciation. A dialect such as 'Standard English' is associated with the 'Received Pronunciation' accent or in other words, the 'Queen's English'.

 

Most of us have a certain dialect which we speak and use distinctive grammar and words. They are often associated with a regional accent, such as Birmingham dialect with a 'Brummie' accent. But what happens when we start to use more than one dialect? For example, a person from Newcastle, known as a 'Geordie' moving down to East London, (where the dialect is known as 'Cockney') might have difficulty understanding why the word 'bread' is used to distinguish 'money' or why someone could be 'cabbage' instead of being 'slow'. 

 

There has been recent discussion in newspapers and magazines over the latest addition to 'Coronation Street' - Michelle Collins and her 'Northern' accent. After leaving 'Eastenders', where it's hard to find anyone who can say 'house' without dropping the /h/, Michelle arrived in Manchester with her brand new accent. However, there has been much debate as to whether her 'Cockney' roots are just too strong for her to succeed as a 'Northerner'. Michelle has to change her 'my' to 'me' and 'me' to 'us' and a lot more complicating changes! This example suggests that it is possible to learn and speak different dialect, but it is challenging and most certainly confusing, and I doubt Michelle would go back to the East End and say, 'Give us me coat!' Nonetheless, Accent is something we learn in our early lives and once learnt it is very difficult to change. 

 

Cheryl Cole might have been removed from the recent 'US X Factor' because the Americans could not understand her 'Geordie' Accent, but how is it that regions such as South East or West Midlands can understand her and they are opposite sides of the country? 

 

Peter Trudgill investigated the dialects of England and who uses them. He discovered the significance of our backgrounds and upbringing towards the way we speak and how we can form an identity through our regional dialects. 

 

English is constantly changing, and these changes may or may not spread to certain parts of the country, which leads to different dialects across England. People evolve differently, and their development and understanding of English language evolves with them. A significant influence in our dialect is our societal group which could be lower class, working class, middle class or upper class. A person can develop an individual way of speaking in a certain group and influence the language of others.