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[ktnflag]

I'm a Canadian who's lived in Australia for four years. In that time, I've incorporated a large number of Aussie slang words and phrases into my lexicon. The prosody of my speech has even become more Australian - although, of course, I still have an identifiably Canadian accent

Comments

[smittenbyu]

*chuckles* you are not alone. I have grown up in India, Rome, Singapore, Hawaii, and now in Kuala Lumpur. My english has become such a mix of all the different words from different places, I myself sometimes get confused! Coming from Hawaii, I have gotten so used to saying "lanai" which means "balcony". It took me a few conscious efforts to switch back to balcony.

So, I often interchange words used, between British english and American english and all the others... *sigh*

[bustamina]

YES. Just read my friends´ comments in my live journal. I tend to use a lot of Spanish words in it because I don´t KNOW the words in English. I don´t USE them in English and if I´m writing or talking about what I do in Spain, I´m going to use the words that naturally fit into the story. But no, I´m just showing off my Spanish to make people feel stupid.

[redscarfboy]

That's funny about reckon...I think most Americans would consider that very un-pretentious, since it's usually just Southern hicks that use it.

[ktnflag]

Hmmm, interesting. I didn't know that. Maybe it's because most of my friends/relatives are concentrated in California, the northern US, and western Canada. They all tend to think that "reckon" is more British-sounding.

[laufen]

I have lived out of the US for a long time and I have seen people act/say all sorts of ways. It does irritate me when a girl who has no accent suddenly gets around British people and starts using more British terms with an accent. Everyone I work with now signs off with "cheers" instead of "thanks" on their emails (they're mostly American with some Aussies/New Zealand/Canadians thrown in). I have picked up some vocab but nothing major even though I worked with mostly Brits in my last job. So, yes I can see how it can irritate others, but I think it depends on how much your personality changes too. Like aforementioned girl, she completely changed all her mannerisms. I don't think I have changed that much to match the culture, whether that is good or bad I don't know, but I am 30 and perhaps I already knew myself well enough or was personally established ...

[ktnflag]

Yes, you're right, there are definitely people who seem to alter their entire personality and thus become irritating. I don't think the move to Australia affected me to that extent, though. What baffled me was that people who know me really well thought I was doing it deliberately. Like I'd become some sort of culture snob overnight, or something, just by virtue of living somewhere else.

[capricieux]

oh yes, trust me i get alot of stick from friends at home saying i have a british accent, just because i live abroad . funnily enough, when i converse here in england, some say i've got an american accent. i do not put on any accent. people here forget that i am not british nor american. i am just an asian girl living here as an expat. then there's the meeting far eastern friends, and they say that i've got no local singaporean accent at all. so really, i am in a catch 22 situation.

i hate it when i get "questioned" about my accent because i never have an answer for it. what exactly can i say?!? :-)