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Where does the Australian accent come from?
The typical Australian accent derives from the cockney English spoken by many of the early convicts. The Irish were also present in large numbers and had their influence on the developing Australian accent as well, but it is the cockney that has had the defining influence. Australian's call each other 'mate' in the same way that East-end Londoners do. Its a general purpose term of address that can be used with friends, acquantances and complete strangers alike. It simply indicates good will toward the other.
While it is fading out with the onset of a flood of American expressions, until recently it was common among working class Australians to use ryhming slang similar to cockney rhyming slang, but with a uniquely Australian flavour. Expressions like 'let have a butcher's hook' or 'have a Captain Cook' (both meaning to have a look), 'have a dig in the grave' (to shave), and 'on my pat malone' (to be alone).
Another point of similarity between the Australian and Cockney accent is the tendency to pronounce the 'th' sound as 'vv' or 'ff' as in 'farver' for 'father', or 'ffursday' for 'thursday'.
It is also interesting to note that the Canadian accent was influenced by Scottish emigres, the US accent from the Irish, and the South African accent from the Dutch Afrikaans. |
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发表于 12-4-2009 20:22:15
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