Accent and Dialect- Estuary English

Question 1

Estuary English (EE)

Answer 1

A contemporary ‘standard British accent’ between RP and cockney.

Question 2

Where did EE originate

Answer 2

London and the South East, spreading outwards to other parts of the country, being particularly used by the younger generations.
Considered a ‘classless’ accent.

Question 3

Features of EE

Answer 3

Glottal stops- ‘lot of’ becomes ‘lo’ of’
L-vocalisation- ‘bell’ to ‘bew’
Lengthened diphthongs
Elision- blending of words
Th-fronting- ‘th’ becomes ‘f’

Question 4

Causes of Estuary English

Answer 4

Movement go Londoners away from the capital
Cockneys modifying speech to RP
Downwards divergence by RP speakers to integrate with society more

Question 5

Dialect levelling in EE

Answer 5

Estuary English is a mixture of cockney and RP accents, showing dialect levelling between the two to create a new dialect.

Question 6

Factors causing dialect levelling

Answer 6

Migration- movement of people between regions
Media influence- increased exposure to standardised language
Social mobility- individuals climbing the social ladder may modify their speech to align with different norms

Question 7

Positives of regional accents

Answer 7

People thought of as more humble, good and humorous
RP not always the most prestigious
Regional accents heard more on TV and radio
Celebrities broaden the appeal of regional accents

Question 8

Negatives of regional accents

Answer 8

Hierarchy still exists of accents and their stereotypes
May be harder to understand as they have their own grammatical patterns and lexis