Paul&Ann-Marie

Hello again.

i must admit, i'm feeling rather drunk do please forgive me and stop reading this post right NOW !


:lecture:

Ok, i have two interests this evening, one is a serious matter regarding the kids accents, the other is just my point of view on something.

First.Kids accents.
When i left oz i was merely 4 years old ( awwwwwwww ) and the night before we left for the uk my parents made a tape recording of a conversation we had that evening. In it, i had a very broad australian accent, over the years the accent has gone and i speak like a proper northerner lol.
My question is, with our children aged 7 and 9 , will they adopt the aussie accent or will it stay english etc etc.

Second. Point of view.
it really is only MY OPINION but i was curious as to how others feel with their own circumstances.
I have mentioned on a few occasions about families receptions to being told you are emigrating, positive comments, negative comments etc.
I think i last spoke about relatives etc and said something along the lines of " selfish reasons" and " how much they rely on you ".
Since then i have taken more notice of peoples comments and found the following :

The more people ( family, friends etc.) rely on you, whether it be financially, emotionally, see you often, or just support, these seem to be the people most keen on you NOT emigrating, whilst those that you seldom see or rely on you the least ( for whatever reason ) are those with the most praise and admiration.

How many times have you told a relative stranger " we're emigrating" with a reply of " good for you ", " I don't blame you " etc etc.Taxi driver, someone on the phone, the list goes on.

I know family hardly compares to a taxi driver but family act the same, we have members of our family we rarely see, we have family we see often but purely on a social basis ( parties etc ) and we have family we see / speak-to, often the comments are in stark contrast of each other.

I was merely wondering if i am alone in this view or if others share it.
Anyone that hasn't noticed, i think, should take a look around them and ask a few questions, the results could be quite interesting....................................... or humiliating

If you are still reading, thank you and please reply with your views.

Paul ( about to pop another stella )

Take care all.

steandleigh

Hello paul!

To say you've had a few beers, thats quite a coherent post!!!!

I think that 'yes', over time the kids will lose their ukers accent and gain an aussie one - for yourself and ann marie, you'll either keep your own ( not likely 'tho, as it seems only the scots, irish and welsh manage to saty true to their accent ) or gain a 'twang' which makes you incoherent to either the brits or the aussies. ( only kidding! ).

As far as your 2nd point goes - I agree totally.

Strangers / taxi drivers / pizza boys / anyone esle I bore to death with my 'emigrating' tale - they say - " good for you ".

my m-i-l : self sufficient says: " well done, i'm proud of you both ".

My parents, who rely on me for company, car lifts, whatever say: " Hmm, we'll never see you again, whoa is me...blah, blah, blah."

Basically, me old china, who gives a to*s? If its what you want and you feel you're doing the best by yourselves and your children, then good luck to 'ya.

ceinwen

I left Australia at 12 with a very strong Aussie accent .I now sound so English (after 15 yrs here)that when I was explaining to people that we got a spouse visa they replied "so your husband is Australian then "
People do say they notice a slight accent once Ive told them and you can hear it when I talk to other Aussies.
Im hoping the kids pick it up really quickly and I cant wait ,also hoping mine will come back

My family are generally ignoring the fact Im going and Ive been hard pressed to get to see my father before I go because he is so busy ????.He is very anti Australia .
My mum is sad .

Simone

I was raised bilingual(?) so in Oz I speak Oz, and in Holland I speak Dutch. Very easy

Here see this post:
It happens sooo fast


Have a nice night

Paul&Ann-Marie

leigh, the only reason the post was coherent is because it took about forty minutes to write lol ( "damn, spelt that f@@@@r wrong aswell ! " lol ).
Thanks for your reply, personally i would love to hear the kids with an aussie accent...................i think lol.

ceinwen, sorry to hear about your folks, also hoping the kids pick it up quickly.

Simone, great link, loved the comments, i guess you are just blessed when it comes to speaking the right " tongue "
hope that doesn't sound crude................

Paul,

more, more MORE lol

Simone

I don't really know what crude means, so NO

Paul&Ann-Marie

crude = rude, naughty, dirty etc ( adult )

Paul

Simone

ah, that is what I thought

Nah, didn't think so
my toung is very clean

suffolkdino

best bit of advice you'll ever hear. accents mean nothing
(yorkshireman living in suffolk, says it all) and as for families.........
I've come to the conclusion that trying to do the best by your immediate family ( wife, kids) is not "selfish" but actually the right thing to do. good luck mate, stella ( the beer not the girl) is very good for you

RichS

alas my remedial classes with the boys have failed. Its been a 2 year tussle with the eldest (the youngest ahs only ever spoke since we lived here), but I am now conceding defeat.

You can only tell them that pasture is what cows eat and not what you put sauce on so many times.

MrsDagboy

Our boys (C in particular) have an english accent despite being aussies! I knew I was fighting a losing battle last night when M pronounced it "brock-ly" rather than "brock-o-lie" .

Although they do say "parsta" rather than that other funny pronounciation .

jayr

My 6 year old is speaking more and more Oz and now raises his intonation at the end of each sentence making every statement a question. He also now has little use for 'ing', and says for example "goin" instead of "going". I've even heard him say "yow-gurt" instead of "yoghurt.

ANA123

My 5 year old has developed a split accent, ausie at school, brummie at home, I think its all about fitting in, though I'm sure we'll hear less of the brummie as time passes. I met up with an old schoolfriend in sydney last week who came over in her early twenties and after 8 years here she sounds as ausie as our ausie friends, even they couldnt tell (though it did slip a little after several beers and a night of me chewing her ear off) so adults do pick it up sometimes!

Larissa

What I've learnt so far about people & leaving etc.
There's no rules/ formulae etc. They are totally unpredictable - someone can be accepting of your move, then (crash, bang, wallop) they can start flinging all sorts of doubts in the air. Recently I was told that I had no contingency plan. The person who came up with this has been previously supportive, but decided to make assumptions and not ask me! My dad was very anti - , wanted to pretend I'd died but is now OK (not jumping for joy, but OK will do). My SILs who I never see and don't like have been anti - but I don't give a stuff.
My mum has been pro, anti, pro, unsure and pro again. You have to accept that people go through this stuff, but don't give in to their manipulations etc. which result from insecurity. Just be patient, but determined.
Gotta go! Can't check me post!

mozzie

I think the accent thing is totally unpredictable. I met two brothers in Oz who had been there for about fifteen years. The younger one was about ten when they emigrated and he sounded like a dinky-die Aussie. The older brother (only by a couple of years) sounded like he'd just got of the plane.