Speech pattern and typographical variations across Canada

[kwoldtimer]

Originally Posted by GlassCity

They're obviously different, but not in the same way that a southern or northeastern US accent is. The Okanagan videos is more or less exactly how I talk.

And none of them would be noticeable in Southern Ontario because they are basically the same.

[P. Alouishous]

Compared to Western Canada, there's a much greater variety of accents in Ontario, Anglo Quebec, and Atlantic Canada (especially Newfoundland). I'm sure it's because the Eastern half of the country is much older. There's even more variety among the French Canadian accents and these communities are even older.

You see the same thing in the US, with older places like Boston and New York having very distinct regional accents, while people in newer Western states as dispersed as California, Colorado, and Washington all sound the same.

Personally, I love having a lot of variability in accents. Even accents I don't like the sound of (eg, Boston or Long Island) add a ton of character to those regions and the people who live there. I wish there was more accent variety in Western Canada, but to me everyone sounds the same whether they're from cities, rural areas, Alberta or BC.

[kwoldtimer]

Originally Posted by Acajack

Not saying he represents all Torontonians, but Rob Ford's accent sounds pretty typical for someone from his city to my ears.

I think that's fair, although brother Doug, being more intelligent and slightly less whiny sounding, might be a better example.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by kwoldtimer

I think that's fair, although brother Doug, being more intelligent and slightly less whiny sounding, might be a better example.

I thought of him too. They quite similar but with the nuances you mention.

[Xelebes]

Alberta accents:

In and around Edmonton, there is the french town of Beaumont. Don't know how much it differs from Quebec French but maybe our francophone friends can critique.

• Video Link

And French at St. Isadore in the northwest.

• Video Link

And French at Girouxville in the northeast.

• Video Link

It's hard finding real thick English Albertan accents on Youtube. There is Joe Carbury and then there is. . . nothing else. :/

[SignalHillHiker]

Here is Newfoundland French.

The introduction is insanely long. It starts 2 minutes in...

• Video Link

And a little info:

Newfoundland French or Newfoundland Peninsular French refers to the French spoken on the Port au Port Peninsula (part of the so-called “French Shore”) of Newfoundland. The francophones of the region are unique in Canada, tracing their origins to Continental French fishermen who settled in the late 1800s and early 1900s, and not to the Québécois, or Acadians of the Maritimes. For this reason, Newfoundland French is most closely related to the Norman and Breton French of nearby St-Pierre-et-Miquelon. Today, heavy contact with Acadian French — and especially widespread bilingualism with Newfoundland English — have taken their toll, and the community is in decline.

Also, we forbid them from speaking French for decades. So, you know, if that's what they mean by "contact with Newfoundland English"...

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by Xelebes

Alberta accents:

In and around Edmonton, there is the french town of Beaumont. Don't know how much it differs from Quebec French but maybe our francophone friends can critique.



And French at St. Isadore in the northwest.



And French at Girouxville in the northeast.

The first guy from Beaumont Marc Landry is quite obviously a transplant from the Maritimes as he speaks with an Acadian accent.

As for the St-Isidore and Girouxville clips, they are not super-clear but from what I could gauge they sound very similar to the mainstream Canadian French (non-Acadian) accent that is dominated by Québécois. If I spoke to people with less background noise I would likely pick up more differences but to someone from Quebec they would likely sound like a "slightly distanced member of the family".

I have met Franco-Albertans before and quite a few of them have a drawly aspect to their accent (Fransaskois often have this too), but I did not pick it up in these videos.

And these are rural areas which still have high percentages of francophones, so you can speak French during a good part of your day there.

Native francophones in most of the West who grew up in the larger cities tend to have a strong anglo twist to their accent, and often sound like Anglo-Montrealers speaking French to Québécois ears.

[kwoldtimer]

To my ear, that chap from Beaumont Alberta sounds almost like an Anglophone speaking fluent French.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by SignalHillHiker

Here is Newfoundland French.

The introduction is insanely long. It starts 2 minutes in...

And a little info:

Also, we forbid them from speaking French for decades. So, you know, if that's what they mean by "contact with Newfoundland English"...

The first guy has a distinctive accent for sure but also sounds like he's had more exposure (and maybe education in) to French in places outside Newfoundland. Of all the French accents posted so far, his accent is the most distant from the way most native North American francophones speak (since there are things linguistic that arecommon to Québécois, Acadians, Franco-New Englanders and even Cajuns, but that's another story).

As for the two other ladies they really sound like Newfoundlanders speaking in French. There a little general anglo side to it (that all anglos of the world seem to have in French) and there is also an Irish-esque lilt to it. A bit of Acadian thrown into the mix as well.

[SignalHillHiker]

Originally Posted by Acajack

The first guy has a distinctive accent for sure but also sounds like he's had more exposure (and maybe education in) to French in places outside Newfoundland. Of all the French accents posted so far, his accent is the most distant from the way most native North American francophones speak (since there are things linguistic that arecommon to Québécois, Acadians, Franco-New Englanders and even Cajuns, but that's another story).

As for the two other ladies they really sound like Newfoundlanders speaking in French. There a little general anglo side to it (that all anglos of the world seem to have in French) and there is also an Irish-esque lilt to it. A bit of Acadian thrown into the mix as well.

Yeah, I actually think I have better pronunciation than that woman at 15 minutes in.

It's too bad we didn't preserve and promote Newfoundland French. I prefer the way that guy sounds, for example, than the hostess.

Here are few gorgeous (no seriously... French fisherman... row on over) examples from St-Pierre-et-Miquelon, which is close to how Newfoundland French was:

• Video Link

[Acajack]

Here is Acadian French from southwestern Nova Scotia:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3TCQUuWudPY

[SignalHillHiker]

Originally Posted by Acajack

Here is Acadian French from southwestern Nova Scotia:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3TCQUuWudPY

Apparently mainlanders speak slowly in both official languages.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by SignalHillHiker

Apparently mainlanders speak slowly in both official languages.

Not all of them.

This is pretty much classic rural Quebec French:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UkYYa0yBRDc

He's actually performing in France here, but he is not known for internationalising his speech so it's still pretty reflective of what you hear in Quebec as well.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by SignalHillHiker

Yeah, I actually think I have better pronunciation than that woman at 15 minutes in.

It's too bad we didn't preserve and promote Newfoundland French. I prefer the way that guy sounds, for example, than the hostess.

Here are few gorgeous (no seriously... French fisherman... row on over) examples from St-Pierre-et-Miquelon, which is close to how Newfoundland French was:

• Video Link

There is world of difference between the people from SPM and Franco-Newfoundlanders from just across the water. These people very obviously speak continental European French, while the people from NL speak a variant of North American French.

There are a few things typical of NA French that I picked up, but not many.

For example the older fisherman said he could continue to work if he stayed "smatte" which is an Acadian word corrupted from the English word "smart" but it doesn't mean exactly the same thing. The reporter incorrectly translated it for her continental French viewers as "healthy and strong" but in this sense he probably meant "hard-working and tough".

Smatte can also mean "smart-ass" in another context.

Also one person said peut-êt' which is also common in NA French, whereas European francophones tend to pronounce all of the syllables: peut-être. But overall if these people walked down the street in Montreal people would automatically think they were European francophones.

A school system will do that to you.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by kwoldtimer

To my ear, that chap from Beaumont Alberta sounds almost like an Anglophone speaking fluent French.

Definitely Acadian.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by SignalHillHiker

It's too bad we didn't preserve and promote Newfoundland French. I prefer the way that guy sounds, for example, than the hostess.

Which hostess? On this video or the other?

[SignalHillHiker]

The first one. Hers is a bit grating.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by SignalHillHiker

The first one. Hers is a bit grating.

I knew when I heard the hostess that she wasn't from NL and deduced that this was some kind of cross-Canada series.

So I checked and the hostess is Laura Lussier and she is Franco-Manitoban. Sounds totally logical - her accent is quite typical of Franco-Manitobans who have a pretty good basis in French.

Others sound more like anglos who are speaking French.

[Centropolis]

i'm currently watching Argo in an illinois motel, and specifically the part where the Americans are trying on their Canadian personas and a general Canadian dialect. "*charant-toe* NO TORON-O." or whatever, i'm paraphrasing.


i say "charan-toe."

[kwoldtimer]

Originally Posted by Centropolis

i'm currently watching Argo in an illinois motel, and specifically the part where the Americans are trying on their Canadian personas and a general Canadian dialect. "*charant-toe* NO TORON-O." or whatever, i'm paraphrasing.


i say "charan-toe."

Why would anyone pronounce a word starting with "T" followed by a vowel as "ch"? That's not even English!