Education, History, Social Commentary

Aussie Accent(s)

7 Comments

My sense is that to the degree that they have different accents, it’s class based, not regional. That is, most of the people I meet are probably upper middle, whereas someone Rugby Union might speak strine so thick that it would be almost unintelligible to me.

7 thoughts on “Aussie Accent(s)”

  1. Never been to Australia, but I’m starting to pick up the various UK regional differences. Also the differences between South Africa and Australia, which is fairly easy to detect. I’m getting closer to picking up hints even in Americanized vocals such as Margo Robbie and Sia.

  2. Aussie’s have three accents.

    My source is “Acting With an Accent” by David Allen Stern, who relates that David J Baker refers to them as “hard Australian”, “soft Australian”, and “Australian trying to sound British.”

    The easiest way is to think of the basic one is a London Cockney accent through the nose. It’s unusual because lots of the phonated air passes through the nose, and the mental resonance point is above the soft pallet, in the back, way up in the nose, while the back of the tongue moves down while you make a vowel, somewhat similar to Cockney.

    The soft Australian accent passes less air through the nose and eases up on the Cockney tongue action.

  4. There used to be more differences 50 years ago but mainly in various expressions used. Someone saying something as definitely true might say “dead set” in which case you knew they came from Sydney.
    A “show” used to be a party at someone’s place in Western Australia and was known as a “turn” in Victoria. There were others.
    The differences have largely been erased by large amounts of interstate migration over the last 50 years as well as high immigration from overseas. Perth is full of poms and their accents as well as being Seth Efrican central.
    Seth Efrican and Australian accents are quite different.
    Many Australians have accents that change depending on social setting but they do all understand “Strine” in Straya.

    Southern part of UK speak intelligible English but as you go further north the decoding can become nearly impossible. The opposite applies in Germany with German. As you go further south it becomes difficult and by the time you get to Switzerland impossible. The “German” they speak amongst themselves is another language but they are polite enough to speak real German if you talk to them in it.

  5. Paul, Jo Nova’s accent isn’t all that typical. She’s a Western Australian girl. (the state is called Western Australia, not West Australia).
    I can sound like that if I want to. I grew up in Western Australia from ages 9 to 29 and went to the same university.

    1. That was my point.

      If you want to be the face of warning people about the pending economic disaster from shuttering hydrocarbon fueled power plants, it helps to have a distinctive, attention-getting accent.

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