In the english language word accent is

I. Word accent. Word accent in English.

1.
In
the English language the word accent is the constitutive function of
a word as of lexical and morphological element of a language in its
absolute form. The word accent can be observed both in monosyllabic
and polysyllabic words. For the latter it is typical to single out
one or more syllables by increasing the degree of their prominence.
Thus, the word accent organizes a word as complex auditory unit and
at the same time gives prominence to separate syllables. Such
syllables are considered to be singled out accentually (accented) or
stressed.

It is a
common knowledge that stress
or accent
means greater degree of prominence to certain syllable or syllables.
Such prominence is achieved through the greater force of exhalation
and higher level of voice pitch and slight change in the direction of
voice.

The
nature of an accent
— still represents a ground for disputes.

Gimson
believes
that the effect of prominence
is
achieved through the combination of 4 major factors: degree of
tenseness, tone, intensity and length of a vowel. The prominence of a
syllable in the languages with the rhythmic tendency is achieved by
higher muscular tension while pronouncing the given syllable.

In the European languages,
such as English, German, French, Russian the dynamic tendency in a
word accent prevails. In the Scandinavian languages the accent is
considered to be dynamic and musical. Musical character of a word
accent may be observed in Chinese, Japanese and Vietnamese languages.

So, passing
directly to the English language, it is necessary to mention, that
word accent in the English language is
dynamic.
It is accepted practically by all the linguists. However,
experimental researches testify, and such linguists as Gimson
and
Crystal point out as well, that the word accents in English is a
complex and complicated phenomenon marked by changes in the energy,
in the voice height, characterized by qualitative and quantitative
changes. Dynamic and tonal features of the English word accent
prevail over the other characteristics.

Qualitative
and
quantitative
aspects of a stress or accent
are
important components of a word accent. In this case we deal with the
qualitative or quantitative changes of a vowel in the unstressed
syllables in comparison with the stressed ones. It is natural, that
in a stressed syllable a vowel is longer and of full quality
(possesses all the qualitative characteristics). The qualitative
aspect of an accent is revealed through the change of a colour or
quality of a vowel in the stressed position while quantitative aspect
— with the change in the length of a vowel sound.

The nature
of Russian
stress differs from
English.
The qualitative component of an accent plays bigger role in the
system of Russian word accent as Russian vowels in the unstressed
position always undergo a qualitative reduction. While in the English
language we may find vowels of full quality in the unstressed
position (we spoke about it at our last lecture).

One more
fact that deserves our attention here is the
position
of a stress in different languages. So, according to this aspect we
may single out languages that have
fixed
stress and those whose word accent has free
character.

In the
languages with
the fixed accent,
the position of a word accent is fixed on a concrete syllable. Thus,
for example, in the French language it is the last syllable in a word
(Paris, a cachenez, an orchestra),
in the Finnish and Czech languages — on the first syllable
(Helsinki, the Sauna, Карловы
Вары,
Gold Prague),
and in Polish — on the last but one.

In
languages with a free
stress,
the word accent is not fixed on any concrete syllable. For example,
appetite, beginning, balloon
and
lake, weather, milk.

It is
necessary to note, that in the English language the accent is not
only free, but even has a shifting character, i.e. carries out
semantic function, distinguishing lexical units, parts of speech,
grammar forms.

The phonologic status of a
word accent also doesn’t possess any stability in the world of
linguistics. Anyway, all the linguists are of the same opinion — the
analysis of a word accent should be carried out from the point of
view of its degree.

Thus, it is
accepted, that the English word stress has three degrees:
primary, secondary
and
weak stress.
These ideas are reflected in the works of Jones, Gimson, Kingdon,
Torsuev, Vasiliev. Some phoneticians distinguish four degrees of a
word accent:
primary, secondary, tertiary
and
weak stress.

Primary
accent
falls either on the third or on the second syllable from the end.

In the
majority of words
the secondary
stress falls on the syllable separated from a stressed (nuclear)
syllable by one unstressed syllable. Something like in the following
words,
pro’nunciֽaton,
ֽ
occupation,
governmental, patriotic.

In many
derivative nouns the secondary accent falls on the same syllable
which has a primary accent in the initial word, i.e. in the word from
which the noun is derived:
organize
—
organization,
peculiar
—
peculiarity.

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Dialect derives from accent, but rather than describing how our voices sound, it refers to how where we live impacts our grammar and lexical choices. Dialect is a mode of speech that differs from standard English. Our dialects are dependent on our geographical location, as where we live impacts the words we use.

Other Relevant Definitions

• The term slang refers to words and phrases, whereas dialect is a way of speaking.

• Slang is not always region-specific like dialect. Slang presents itself in communities like students and divisions within the student bubble. For example, you wouldn’t expect a group of gamers to say something like ‘I stan cookies so much, they are so peng’, they would most likely have their own slang in relation to their hobby.

• Slang terms continuously change as time goes by; in the past 5-7 years we have witnessed the rise and fall of many slang terms such as ‘goals’, ‘eyebrows on fleek’, and ‘YOLO’, which most people would not use now, but were popular in the period between 2013-2015.

• ‘Da bomb’ — meaning something really cool or amazing

• ‘Eat my shorts’ — dismissive comment

• ‘Aiight’ — modified phrase of alright, used as a greeting or in agreement.

• ‘All that and a bag of chips’ — when something is so good, it’s ‘all that’ and more (‘a bag of chips’). Because chips are good, this means something is really, really good!

  Fig. 2 — There was a lot of different slang in the 90s than there is nowadays.

21st century slang

• Bang — Appealing/ attractive. Used in relation to people, things, and situations.

• ‘I stan him so much’ — Stan means a hardcore fan. Originally used in relation to pop stars, now it can mean anything you really, really like.

• ‘Ugh, that’s basic’ — Basic has been used as a derogatory term meaning something boring and uninspiring. This goes further than the original meaning of something practical and essential.

• ‘Okay boomer’ — Boomer describes a person born between 1946-1964 (the baby boom period), but young people use it to describe anyone over the age of 35/40. Usually used in a dismissive way to veto the opinions of the older generation online.

Let’s have a look at some differences between slang and accent.

• Slang is usually in the form of phrases, whereas an accent impacts everything the speaker says, not just a small portion.

• Slang is not region-specific like accent is, instead it is community-specific.

• Slang is more fluid than accent, developing over time. While accents can change slightly over time, they are a lot more fixed than slang.

• Dialects preserve the cultural heritage of particular regions. This is because dialects express the individual qualities of a town, city, or county.

• Unique ways of pronouncing words help distinguish different parts of the UK, constructing the region’s identity.

• Dialects help expand our minds by helping us learn new words and ideas from alternate perspectives.

• They enhance cultural differences and celebrate what makes one place different from another.

The importance of accents

• Accents represent history, as they are a product of historical conversation.

• They are a part of our identities. If someone grew up in multiple places, their accent would be an amalgamation of those different influences.

• They represent where we come from and our past, including where we grew up.

• They can be used in literature to help establish where characters are from.

The term accent has various meanings, but in speaking, an accent is an identifiable style of pronunciation, often varying regionally or even socioeconomically.

It can be contrasted with a person’s dialect, which includes regional vocabulary. «Standard English has nothing to do with pronunciation,» wrote Peter Trudgill («Dialects.» Routledge, 2004). «In fact, most people who speak Standard English do so with some sort of regional pronunciation, so that you can tell where they come from much more by their accent than by their grammar or vocabulary.»

George Mason University holds a speech accent archive, where people have been recorded reading the same English passage, for linguists to study, for example, what makes accents distinct from one another. 

More on Dialects Versus Accents

«A dialect is a verbal departure from standard language. Dialects are characteristic of a particular group of speakers and have their own charm as well. ‘Y’all’ in the South, ‘Yah’ in Minnesota, ‘Eh?’ in Canada. The regional dialects of Brooklyn, the rural South, New England, and Appalachia, not to mention the greater contributions of Canada and Britain, and those of various ethnic cultures, have certainly enriched the English language. An accent is a particular way of pronouncing a language. ‘Warsh’ for wash in Cajun Louisiana, ‘New Yawk’ for New York among native New Yorkers, ‘aboot’ for about in Canada. The appeal of dialects and accents comes from our appreciation of their musical intonations, imaginative word choices, and emotive speech rhythms.»

(James Thomas, «Script Analysis for Actors, Directors, and Designers.» Focal Press, 2009)

Regional and Social Accents

Accents are not just regional but sometimes contain information about a person’s ethnicity, such as in the case of nonnative English speakers; education; or economic status.

«Within each national variety [of English] the standard dialect is relatively homogeneous in grammar, vocabulary, spelling, and punctuation. Pronunciation is a different matter, since there is no equivalent standard accent (type of pronunciation). For each national variety, there are regional accents, related to geographical area, and social accents, related to the educational, socio-economic, and ethnic backgrounds of the speakers.»

(Tom McArthur, «The English Languages.» Cambridge University Press, 1998)

Phonetic and Phonological Differences

Even though pronunciation differs, meanings of the same words often remain the same, such as around North America or between Britain and Australia. 

«Differences between accents are of two main sorts: phonetic and phonological. When two accents differ from each other only phonetically, we find the same set of phonemes in both accents, but some or all of the phonemes are realised differently. There may also be differences in stress and intonation, but not such as would cause a change in meaning. As an example of phonetic differences at the segmental level, it is said that Australian English has the same set of phonemes and phonemic contrasts as BBC pronunciation, yet Australian pronunciation is so different from that accent that it is easily recognized.
«Many accents of English also differ noticeably in intonations without the difference being such as would cause a difference in meaning; some Welsh accents, for example, have a tendency for unstressed ​syllables to be higher in pitch than stressed syllables. Such a difference is, again, a phonetic one…
«Phonological differences are of various types…Within the area of segmental phonology the most obvious type of difference is where one accent has a different number of phonemes (and hence of phonemic contrasts) from another.»
(Peter Roach, «English Phonetics and Phonology: A Practical Course,» 4th ed. Cambridge University Press, 2009)

Why So Many British Accents?

Though Britain is a relatively small place, English spoken there can sound quite different from one end of the country to another.

«There are more accents per square mile in Britain than in any other part of the English-speaking world.
«This is because of the hugely diverse history of English in the British Isles, with the originally Germanic dialects of Europe mixing with the Norse accents of the Vikings, the French accents of the Normans, and wave after wave of immigration from the Middle Ages down to the present day.
«But it’s also because of the rise of ‘mixed’ accents, as people move house around the country and pick up features of the accent wherever they find themselves.»
(David Crystal and Ben Crystal, «Revealed: Why the Brummie Accent Is Loved Everywhere but Britain.» «Daily Mail,» October 3, 2014)

The Lighter Side

«I sometimes wonder if Americans aren’t fooled by our [British] accent into detecting brilliance that may not really be there.»
(Stephen Fry)
«You know, Fez, unfortunately there are some people in this world that are going to judge you on the color of your skin or your funny accent or that girly little way you run. But you know what? You’re not alone. Why do you think the Martians won’t land here? Because they’re green, and they know people are going to make fun of them!»
(Ashton Kutcher as Michael Kelso in «Bring It on Home.» «That 70s Show,» 2003)
«[Yankees] are pretty much like Southerners—except with worse manners, of course, and terrible accents.»
(Margaret Mitchell, «Gone With the Wind,» 1936)