Why is English spoken with different accents?

In Britain, every part of the country has its own way of speaking English. People in Yorkshire sound very different to people in Surrey; a Somerset accent is very different from any Scottish accent and it's hard to believe that people from Birmingham are speaking the same language as those from Cornwall. Most people in Britain can guess where someone comes from by the way they speak, either by their accent or by the words they use.

Identification of an accent can place the speaker in a general area of Britain. Geordie, Scouse, and Cockney* are well known dialects from Tyneside, Liverpool and London respectively.

Today the 'home counties' accent is usually accepted as Standard English. The home counties are the counties nearest to London (Southern England). A southern English accent is generally accepted to be the most easily understood, and is the accent usually taught to foreigners.

Speaking like a Brit

Here are the names of some accents in different areas of the UK.

Queen's English Jolly Well

Liverpool Scouse

North England Yorkshire

Birmingham Brummie

Newcastle Geordie

Scotland Scott

London (East End) Cockney Rhyming Slang

______________

*Anglo-Saxon – [ֽæŋgləus´æksn] англосаксонский (относящийся к англосаксам или древнеанглийскому языку)

*Germanic – [dƷɛ:´mænik] германский

*Norman – [´nƆ:mən] норманн, викинг

*Cockney – [´kƆkni] кокни (житель Лондона, уроженец Ист-Энда, представитель рабочих слоёв населения); кокни (жаргон лондонских кокни)

DID YOU GET IT?

1. Match the transcription in the left column with the words to the right:

1. [´bɛ:miŋəm]	a. Yorkshire
2. [´kƆkni]	b. Surrey
3. [´sΛri]	c. Somerset
4. [´tainsaid]	d. Birmingham
5. [´brΛmi]	e. Cornwall
6. [´livəpu:l]	f. Cockney
7. [´jƆ:k∫ə]	g. Tyneside
8. [´kƆ:nwƆ:l]	h. Liverpool
9. [´sΛməset]	i. Brummie

2. What do the following numbers and statistics refer to in the text?

9% 402 mln 3^rd 250 50%

3. Are the following statements true or false? Give the right answer if necessary:

1. Most people in Britain usually say ‘Hey Mister’ when they greet someone.

2. American English is the same as British English.

3. Over 250 languages are spoken in London primary schools.

4. Over 50% of the English language is derived from Latin.

5. Some languages other than English are spoken in the UK.

6. Anglo-Saxon influenced the English language more than other languages.

7. Most people in Britain can guess where someone comes from by the way they walk.

8. Geordie, Scouse and Cockney are the names of British dialects.

9. A southern English accent is usually accepted as Standard English.

WORDS, WORDS, WORDS…

Find the odd term in each line.

1. Anglo-Saxon / Norman / Latin / Russian

2. French / American / Australian / British

3. Cockney / Scouse / Hindi / Geordie

4. first language / native language/ foreign language

Text 2

TIME FOR READING

Read the text and say if English is the only language people speak on the British Isles?

DO WALES AND SCOTLAND HAVE THEIR OWN LANGUAGE?

The Celts spoke Celtic which survives today in the form of Welsh, Scottish Gaelic and Irish Gaelic. Scottish Gaelic and Irish Gaelic are still spoken (in some regions of Scotland, Gaelic is used as a first language, particularly in the Highlands and the Western Isles), although they have suffered more than Welsh from the spread of English. About 25% of the people in Wales still speak in their native Celtic tongue called ‘Welsh’. However, all three languages are now officially encouraged and taught in schools.

Nowadays all Welsh, Scottish and Irish people speak English (even if they speak their own language as well), but all the countries have their own special accents and dialects, and their people are easily recognizable as soon as they speak. Occasionally, people from the four countries in the UK have difficulty in understanding one another because of these different accents.

DID YOU GET IT?

Fill in the gaps using the words below.

1. The Celts spoke the language which later developed in ____________.

a) Latin b) Gaelic c) Norman French

2. About 25% of the people in Wales still speak in their native Celtic tongue called ___________.

a) Scottish Gaelic b) Irish Gaelic c) Welsh

3. Occasionally, people from the four countries in the UK have difficulty in ___________ each other.

a) understanding b) greeting c) recognizing

4. In some regions of Scotland, Gaelic is used as a __________.

a) language of teaching b) foreign language c) first language

5. All the countries in the UK have their own special __________ and dialects.

a) idioms b) accents c) speech

6. Scottish Gaelic and Irish Gaelic have suffered more than Welsh from __________.

a) Celtic influence b) Cockney accent c) the spread of English