Origins of The Canadian English Accent - Part 2

Origins of The Canadian English Accent Part 2 focuses on how the Canadian accent was shaped by Loyalist Immigration after the American Revolution and Immigration from the UK.

Sources:

Regional Phonetic Differentiation in Standard Canadian English by Dr. Charles Boberg

The English Language in Canada: Status, History and Comparative Analysis by Dr. Charles Boberg

The Canadian Encyclopedia: Canadian English (article by Dr. Charles Boberg)

[DareBStoopid]

These are really good videos. I hope that you continue these videos despite a lack of deserved views.

[danielcarroll]

Those were interesting videos. I recently spent a week in Toronto for the first time. Being Californian I get to BC more often. I made a quick check of vocabulary differences before travel, but the only word I needed was "washroom". Your comment about Canadians being able to easily work in Los Angeles certainly rings true. I felt I was among "my people", whatever that means. After spending twenty years working abroad in various countries, I found that Toronto felt more like home than many of the US states!

[kjun]

I attended Scottish Anglo schools in Quebec province in the 50s! My environment spoke the Ulster Scots based accent which appears to have softened with exposure to media and globalization!
We marched up to classrooms with bagpipes and teachers often wore kilts ! The Union Jack was our flag and not a plant ! We also had the Fleur de lys ! Bagpipes on Sundays and holidays! I don’t recognise today’s softened Canadian English! The Protestant ethic and behaviour was strong!!!
Thanks!!!

[cawsha]

I'm English with a south east/RP accent and to me the Ontario and Quebec accents sound almost American although softer so I would probably guess they were Canadian if I didn't already know.
The Alberta guy has what I think of as typical and distinctively Canadian accent, although with only 4.2 million people that's hardly typical.
Many Canadian visitors to the UK wear prominent Canadian flags on badges or clothing, presumably so people don't think they are American!

[edwardfranks]

About 50, 000 Loyalists (of 500, 000 in the colonies of 2.2 million whites; and 600, 000 blacks in 1780) went by the end of 1783 from all colonies and 30, 000 Americans immigrated to Ontario in the 1790s. The Loyalists were called the King's Loyal Americans since Canadians were the French speakers.

[brainfreeze]

A fascinating video....thanks. I will share.

[larshildebrandt]

Really enjoy this, would love to hear more on regional urban vs rural accents. I have worked many times in the north coastal communities of Ontario and even worked on many of the fly-in Native communities. Most have a VERY strong Scottish accent mixed in with Cree or Oji-Cree. It is very distinct and interesting! I have even heard German words mixed in with their Cree languages! When I ask what does it mean, I was not wrong! It is interesting that linguistic studies also mirror much of the DNA studies, which of course, should make sense! Thanks for sharing keep up the great work! Cheers!

[edwardfranks]

So funny...that famous painting gives the impression that Loyalists were all aristocrats who wore their finest Ball Dress on the way to the Maritimes. In fact Loyalists came from all professions and classes.

[edwardfranks]

1 million came from the British Isles from 1815-1850, 10% of whom went south. Excellent presentation, accurate. Can't tell the difference without certain markers such as oot and aboot. While several million Canadians (20% French) went south from 170-1930, 350, 000 Americans went north.

[zeddamirian]

I just love how he says "homuh-genius" 😂 I don't know why, it's just funny to me. Maybe I'm a weirdo.

[ericb]

Great video with actual scholars! So many videos on line with pseudo teachers and misinformation.

[edwardfranks]

that was 1870-1930 several million. not all the 5 million who went south were Canadian. many were British immigrants who got off the boat and made their way south.

[maxglendale]

So the Canadian accent is derived from the colonial American Accent? Interesting!

[mr.angelosonassis]

The theory that non-rhotic Loyalists from New York and Virginia created the Canadian accent does not explain the rhotic Canadian English. Rhotic Canadian English had to come from another group of immigrants.

[michaelchen]

In my working career with the US federal government we had a contractor and a good part of that career who would come in and teach us computer skills primarily units sea programming and other kinds of communication protocols based on the the IP communication stack

I can’t think of his name readily I should have it written down because I still have a lot of material but he was originally from the UK and it was a welsh dissent and he told me that he and his family came to Canada in the early 1970s like 1972

I think a lot of immigrants from the UK that it would come to Canada in the 1960s in the 1970s were working class people who didn’t necessarily have practice of using what they call high-level received pronunciation and their speech patterns would’ve been modified as they adopted and became part of the Canadian culture because he certainly didn’t have a British accent

The gentleman a reference is about my age Lily you’re older and I’m in my early 60s

[jxavier]

A lot of Yorkshire immigrants early on

[TwiztedHumor]

Say what? The original English Canadians were Americans? Wow

[christophercoey]

Canadian accents sound much more akin to English accents to me than most American accents. Maybe that's just me - i'm English.

[edwardfranks]

I lived in England for 4 years. Canadian accents are near to American accents because virtually all the 100, 000 English-speakers in British North America in 1795 were Americans from the south 13 and in 1815 82% were and their descendants. English accents are very different because of pronunciation, intonation and pitch.

[excellinkus]

Of course this guy is from GTA, and thinks he knows everything about Canada.