Charles Halton at Awilum points to an interesting quiz that tries to peg people on the basis of their accent.1 I took the test and found the results to be a little odd. Here they are:

What American accent do you have?

Your Result: The Midland

 

 

“You have a Midland accent” is just another way of saying “you don’t have an accent.” You probably are from the Midland (Pennsylvania, southern Ohio, southern Indiana, southern Illinois, and Missouri) but then for all we know you could be from Florida or Charleston or one of those big southern cities like Atlanta or Dallas. You have a good voice for TV and radio.
The South

 

 
The Northeast

 

 
The Inland North

 

 
The West

 

 
Philadelphia

 

 
Boston

 

 
North Central

 

 
What American accent do you have?
Quiz Created on GoToQuiz

I am originally from the south. I was born in North Carolina and raised in Tennessee. I lived in Tennessee until I went to seminary in Connecticut. This explains why my rating for the South and the Northeast are both so high. I often pick up on some elements of the accent in the place where I live. For example, I am living in the Boston area right now and have found myself inadvertently pronouncing things with a Boston-ish accent. This drives me crazy, because to me the Boston accent sounds like a colicky baby being scraped down a chalkboard.2

What is weird is the fact that I rate highest for the Midland, a place where I have never lived. I suspect Midland is what you get when you consciously try to speak with a standard American accent, as I do. I work on trying to change my pronunciation of a number of words, and I often succeed. It doesn’t always work, and my wife will be pleased to know that I did check the box to indicate that ‘pin’ and ‘pen’ are pronounced the same way.

There is nothing wrong with a Southern accent. People often think that some accents are better than others, but there is no such thing as a standard accent.3 But people do tend to judge you by it when they hear a Southern accent come out of your mouth. So, in academic circles, I tend to use what is (wrongly) considered a “standard American accent.” It is the usual accent you heard on TV, unless somewhat is trying to play a character from a particular area. People take you more seriously that way. I also find that it helps my students to understand me better, especially when I was teaching in Eastern Europe.

I will admit, however, to playing the redneck game sometimes. I enjoying having people judge me on the basis of my accent and then surprising them with the fact that I have a Ph.D. I hope it helps to bust a few stereotypes.

And please don’t ask me why I spell archaeology the British way. I have no idea.


  1. By the way, if you are from my home state, the first syllable of ‘accent’ is pronounced like ‘ache’. [back]
  2. Hat tip to my brother for that phrase. [back]
  3. For those who think there is, I should point out that the version of English spoken in the mountains of North Carolina is closer to Victorian English than even British English is today. Change and development in language is a constant, and changes in language and pronunciation are neither positive or negative. [back]
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