Accents

[madz124]

Re: Accents

Or what really baffles me is how my cousins who were born and raised here (and even those outside of the family)...they hear their parents say basic words like theek, acha, etc...all their lives and yet when they say such basic words themselves...there's an American twang to it.

haha, yeah, that annoys me too. What can you do! =)

[Ghost14]

Re: Accents

haha, yeah, that annoys me too. What can you do! =)

Throw a naan at them.

[SaeedinPakistan]

Re: Accents

I came here when I was 15. I don't have an accent, but I've been told that sometimes I mispronounce certain words. For example: -status is pronounced like "statue" (not stay-tus) -^ same with data -contributed is not pronounced like "contribution"

I think age matters in your ability to adopt. But so does your observation and attention to detail. Not everyone is that observant and not everyone cares either.

That's probably got more to do with us learning British pronunciation at school over here and those words not being used very often.

[Huma_1]

Re: Accents

I hear accent reduction/neutralization training is quite big in India. Not sure if it has taken off in Pakistan too. Not a fan. It's all a bit superficial in my opinion. It's like skin lightening - some say brown skin isn't as appealing as gori chitti skin and you should appear lighter to look beautiful. In the same way, desi accent isn't the most alluring I know but it is what it is. People shouldn't be expected to lose their accents. It shouldn't be a deal breaker unless you couldn't even comprehend each other or if there were fluency issues. I work with Europeans, Asians and South Indians with really strong accents of their own, sometimes during conferences I even have difficulty understanding them, but this is something that you just get so used to when you live in a diverse society, it's not a big deal.

[madz124]

Re: Accents

@Ghost14

Throw a naan at them.

But that would be a waste of the naan.

[nabz]

Re: Accents

LOL, funny because my siblings and i were all born in the US and speak urdu, english and punjabi fluently with all the right accents for each language.

my hubby and his elder sister both migrated to the US right after finishing high school in Pakistan and both dont have the desi accent. (theyve been here over 10 years). they speak english very fluently and well, in fact i didnt know my husband was a FOB when i first met him because his english was so good and there was no accent :).

my younger SIL migrated to the US right after finishing high school in Pakistan as well. she went to all english and beaconhouse schools, grew up wearing jeans and tshirts in Lahore (shes always been so anti shalwar kameez), only listens to english music, has really great grammar (better than her siblings), lived in the midwest for college with ALL goray for 6 years and still has such a STRONG, STRONG accent! LOL.

[_Passionate]

Re: Accents

@redvelvet

It could be worse, PCG. Like a brown guy with a Paula Deen accent.

Actually knew a desi guy with a southern accent. Not a horrendous Paula Deen southern accent but a sweet Tennessee one. It was hot :halo:

[sweefs]

Re: Accents

forget accents, deep voices :jano:

[polished_gems]

Re: Accents

^same here!

[nzoid]

Re: Accents

@redvelvet

What’s worse? Pakistanis adopting a fake accent or those who live in Pak/or have lived there a sufficient amount of time and pretend that they don’t know Urdu? Or what really baffles me is how my cousins who were born and raised here (and even those outside of the family)…they hear their parents say basic words like theek, acha, etc…all their lives and yet when they say such basic words themselves…there’s an American twang to it. Strangely the eldest child tends to be more fluent in the language or grasps the accent…and in the subsequent children…it’s much much weaker…although they receive daily exposure to the language as well. This is just based on my observations…it’s something I’ve never understood.

and there are some in Pakistan who have never been abroad but speak with their friends in English with an American accent

[nzoid]

Re: Accents

I hear accent reduction/neutralization training is quite big in India. Not sure if it has taken off in Pakistan too. Not a fan. It's all a bit superficial in my opinion. It's like skin lightening - some say brown skin isn't as appealing as gori chitti skin and you should appear lighter to look beautiful. In the same way, desi accent isn't the most alluring I know but it is what it is. People shouldn't be expected to lose their accents. It shouldn't be a deal breaker unless you couldn't even comprehend each other or if there were fluency issues. I work with Europeans, Asians and South Indians with really strong accents of their own, sometimes during conferences I even have difficulty understanding them, but this is something that you just get so used to when you live in a diverse society, it's not a big deal.

Italians have the funniest accent, they sound like talking in Punjabi when they speak English.

[Ghost14]

Re: Accents

@madz124

But that would be a waste of the naan.

Lol true.

@_Passionate

Actually knew a desi guy with a southern accent. Not a horrendous Paula Deen southern accent but a sweet Tennessee one. It was hot :halo:

For the last time, Peyton Manning went to Tennessee but he is not Desi!

@sweet.i.f

forget accents, deep voices :jano:

@polished_gems

^same here!

puberty squeak How *you *(both) doin’?

[Deeba1234]

Re: Accents

I hear accent reduction/neutralization training is quite big in India. Not sure if it has taken off in Pakistan too. Not a fan. It's all a bit superficial in my opinion. It's like skin lightening - some say brown skin isn't as appealing as gori chitti skin and you should appear lighter to look beautiful. In the same way, desi accent isn't the most alluring I know but it is what it is. People shouldn't be expected to lose their accents. It shouldn't be a deal breaker unless you couldn't even comprehend each other or if there were fluency issues. I work with Europeans, Asians and South Indians with really strong accents of their own, sometimes during conferences I even have difficulty understanding them, but this is something that you just get so used to when you live in a diverse society, it's not a big deal.

Would you say it was superficial if the situation was reversed and UK or US-born kids thought it no big deal to speak their parents' languages in blatantly western accents? People often have a problem with those who neutralise their accents when they move to the west but when it comes to the opposite situation it's obviously usually preferred to neutralise their accents to sound more desi..

[Sanaabc]

Re: Accents

fobby accent museebat hai.. and then when they make an effort to reduce it, they are called fake. Jeeyein tou kaisay jeeyein

[CoughCough]

Re: Accents

My friend's dad is one of the most intelligent, well spoken and articulate people I have ever met.

He has a very thick arab accent.

Having a clean accent doesn't make you a better or worse person. Try focus on what they speak rather than how they speak.

Each to their own though, if its important to you, its important to you.

[queer]

Re: Accents

i had no idea paheli00 was a fob. oh jeez. :\

[goodname]

Re: Accents

[Reha]

Re: Accents

My dad came here when he was 20 or so...he's now retired. Still has the accent. I actually don't mind accents.

[madz124]

Re: Accents

In my opinion, Pakistani accent is not too bad. But Indian accent sounds really badly. Especially how they (mostly Bombay folks) say "yea" at the end of every sentence. The same way some people use "yaar" in every sentence.

I actually don't mind accents so much. I do mind people who use too much slang and think it makes them cool.

[Southie]

Re: Accents

I know someone who moved here when they were in their early teens and never lost their accent, someone else moved here around the same time, and has a completely American accent. Depends on how hard you work at it I guess.

This is the point. IMO, we need not work hard at changing our accent. Over time, in a diffusive and NATURAL process, we will start pronouncing certain words differently and naturally. As long as what we say is clear, accent can be natural. It is beautiful to hear various accents.