Things you were shockingly old when you learned

(xps) Yes, Creg, that's as bad as Gram!

I always hear it as 'Crag' like a cumbersome rock.

That's a name a Southerner could turn into nearly two syllables

"Cray-ugh"

I honestly had never heard anyone pronounce Billy Graham as Billy Gram but I just watched some youtubes and it sounds totally weird. However as many (Americnan) people were pronouncing Graham the "British way" as the "American way".

where I'm from in the hills of NorCal, 'dude' might be pronounced 'deed'.. as in "Awww, deed.." was something I heard multiple times a day in high school

Sort of a hillbilly/stoner/surfer dialectic.. "seen" often replaced "saw", as in "I seen a sweet Camaro this morning"

Craig and Greg DO NOT RHYME. I have very strong feelings about that. Also can't stand Gram for Graham (Gram as a nickname is fine, using it as standard pronunciation is bad) but I do like skwurl for squirrel (but not more than squirrel for squirrel, I just like them both).

One of the many things that fascinate me is the idea that the modern U.S. Southern accent somehow evolved from the accents of the early European settlers of the area, most of whom were Scots (along with Africans, of course).

"melk," "pellow"

Wasn't he the singer for Wet Wet Wet?

Hey little squirrel is your daddy home
Did he go and leave you all alone

#onethread

My siblings in Colorado still describe things as "burly" (which I think is a near synonym for "gnarly" in its colloquial sense). I have no recollection of using that expression as a youngster.

Perhaps one day I'll befriend a couple named Graham and Craig and on a balmy Wednesday evening I will remind my husband 'Crackers and Rocks are coming for dinner Friday'.

ne of the many things that fascinate me is the idea that the modern U.S. Southern accent somehow evolved from the accents of the early European settlers of the area, most of whom were Scots (along with Africans, of course).

All (white) American accents evolved from the accents of early European settlers surely?

Surely, but the Southern accent is almost completely distinct from any other.

What I mean is, I have a hard time seeing how a Scottish accent gradually morphed into what we have now.

To be fair, there's quite a few southern accents, not just white folks either

What about all those people paaaking caaaahs up in New England?

Some southern accents remind me of a small child putting on airs at a tea party, pinky aloft.

To be fair, there's quite a few southern accents, not just white folks either

True enough. I've lived in Georgia long enough I can usually tell if someone is from there, or Virginia, Alabama or Mississippi. Some of the other states are a bit less distinct.

They speculate that the early settlers of the original 13 colonies probably sounded Irish (to our modern ears), but there's obv no recordings of them

xpost - yeah, I was watching some 'top model' show with my GF, and I'm like 'that woman is from Arkansas' and I was right

I'll take a Graham of your finest cocaine, good sir.

West Country/rural English is more likely than Irish.

I'll take a Graham of your finest cocaine, good sir.

LOL

What I mean is most people in the South of England in those days would have had accents that resembled West Country or Norfolk accents - though not any more.

interesting: This (early American) accent was rhotic, meaning the R's were heard as in "car" rather than "cah". The American accent today is known as rhotic, whereas the English accent is now non-rhotic.

Unless it's your cousin from Bahston.

Apparently we all sounded the same in 1750 but it was the ENGLISH that changed while Americans mostly stayed the same

Put that graham in you craig and smoke it

https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/65493/what-did-original-colonists-sound

americans saying Craig as Creg always sounds weird to me

I've lived in Georgia long enough I can usually tell if someone is from there, or Virginia, Alabama or Mississippi. Some of the other states are a bit less distinct.

I once guessed correctly that someone was from North Carolina triangle area because of their accent!

(my stepfather has it bigtime, "warsh" clothes instead of "wash" etc)

Xp
cr-AY-g. Australia pronounces it this way too. Maybe the g should be capitalized.

In the southern parts of the UK, Craig is pronounced to rhyme with plague. In Scotland broadly the same, but with the rhotic r?

Craig can rhyme with vague or with keg. The difference may be personal or regional or associated with a particular speech community.

I don't think it's a right/wrong thing, and it shouldn't be presented as such. Any more than skedjull / shedjull or RENaissance / reNAIssance.

Had no idea Americans pronounced Craig like keg. I once briefly lived with an American who said herbs the American way, without pronouncing the 'h', and for years I thought that was just a personal affectation of hers.

since we're here, how are these given names pronounced

niall ferguson (i know you're gonna say 'cunt', but i mean apart from that)
rian johnson

Where I'm from (NJ):

Craig = kreg
Graham = gram
aunt = ant
good morning/how are you = what's up, asshole?

I associate "warsh" for "wash" with the Midwest, because that is how my grandmother, from many generations IL/IN, pronounced it.

niall ferguson - "Ni-Yel Fer-gus-son" I cant even see how else you'd say it.
rian johnson - Ree-ann.

Oh wait I get it now, do some people say "Neil" for Niall? Am I wrong? lol.

Nigh-All

wash = 'worsh' used to be a thing in SW pennsylvania, eg I-70 and I-79 meet up in worshington

i used to think this sort of thing was fading away but then i met my mom's neighbor. she's a few years younger than me, and a grandmother, and kinda hot, and incredibly nice, and literally every single pittsburgh stereotype you could imagine wrapped into one. she's amazing

How bout them Stillers

i was worried that niall = neil

and that rian = ryan

but i'm relieved to hear otherwise

How bout them Stillers

oh, they're goin all the way

wait, Rian Johnson is pronounced Ryan, right?

"ree-ah-nuh"

Rhiaaaaaaaaaaa non

i was worried that niall = neil

It is? Or at least it should be, because that's the Irish pronunciation, compare with Niamh for instance - need gyac or darraghmac to confirm though. Anyway it's how the Niall in Niall Ferguson is pronounced.

wait, Rian Johnson is pronounced Ryan, right?

He pronounces his name as "Ryan" though I keep wanting to say "ree-ahn" like Rhian from Wet Leg.

It is? Or at least it should be, because that's the Irish pronunciation, compare with Niamh for instance - need gyac or darraghmac to confirm though. Anyway it's how the Niall in Niall Ferguson is pronounced.

Now seems to be an opportune moment to mention my all time most hated mispronunciation (I'm always going on about this, here and elsewhere): it's Auld Lang Syne NOT Auld Lang Zyne.