English!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Archive Comments 20 Feb 200720:03

Firstly, we need to distinguish between ACCENT & DIALECT.
ACCENT: How the words sound
DIALECT: How the words are placed within a sentence. Dialect refers to the grammar of an accent therefore they are not the same thing.
Accents are established over years by people from different areas conversing with each other. An example is the Liverpool 'Scouse' accent. The people of Liverpool originally spoke with a Lancashire accent however the influx of Irish to the area gradually changed the original Lancashire intonation to that of what it is today.
Proof of this can be seen in any town/city. The town I live in is bordered by Liverpool & Warrington. On the side closest to the border of Liverpool, our 'Woolyback' accent has a nasal quality to it & several Liverpool features. In fact, if we travel anywhere out of the local area, we are often mistaken for Scousers. The other half of Widnes closest to Warrington has more of a Lancashire accent similar to that of Wigan or Bolton.
It is true that accents are passed down through family however our biggest influence is from our peers, especially as a teenager.
The origin of English is argued however the main theory is that it originated from the Vikings way back when in 500AD when they invaded the British Isles. English, in fact, became extinct when the Romans invaded and the country spoke Latin apart from the 'peasants' in the villages. After the Italians left, we got our language back & it wasn't until 1800's that we borrowed the French & Latin words that are prevalent in our language today.