My English is an odd mix, and I’ve noticed that I tend to subconsciously emulate the accent of whomever I’m speaking with. Lately it’s been mostly Texans, but as I work in an international environment I’ve been all over the place.
Not that many years ago my combination of coworkers resulted in some weird interpretations: Brits thought I was American, Americans and kiwis thought I was Canadian, and Canadians thought I was British. They all noticed something was up with my accent, but nobody was able to place it.
Same thing happens to me where I’ll start emulating local accents. The result is no one can accurately guess where I’m from, even people from my own country. The general answer is “northern Europe” but not from the country of whomever is guessing. But it’s the same reason… something is up with my accent, but no one is able to place it.
My English is an odd mix, and I’ve noticed that I tend to subconsciously emulate the accent of whomever I’m speaking with. Lately it’s been mostly Texans, but as I work in an international environment I’ve been all over the place.
Not that many years ago my combination of coworkers resulted in some weird interpretations: Brits thought I was American, Americans and kiwis thought I was Canadian, and Canadians thought I was British. They all noticed something was up with my accent, but nobody was able to place it.
Same thing happens to me where I’ll start emulating local accents. The result is no one can accurately guess where I’m from, even people from my own country. The general answer is “northern Europe” but not from the country of whomever is guessing. But it’s the same reason… something is up with my accent, but no one is able to place it.