英语各地口音区别：当伦敦音遭遇威尔士英语

　　学了十几年的伦敦音，往英国大街上一站，突然耳不能听，嘴不能说了，有没有?英国虽然国土面积小，各地方言口音却大不相同!有时甚至让你宛若置身于法国、德国、爱尔兰...下面就为你细数英语方言，带你领略英语各地口音的魅力!

　　With countless British accents shaped by thousands of years of history, there are few English-speaking nations with as many varieties of language in such a small space.

　　Received Pronunciation

　　Received Pronunciation is the closest accent to “Standard British” that has ever existed in the UK. Although it originally derives from London English, it is non-regional. The accent emerged from the 18th- and 19th-Century aristocracy, and has remained the “gold standard” ever since.

　　Cockney

　　Cockney is probably the second most famous of British Accents. It originated in the East End of London, but shares many features with and influences other dialects in that region.

　　Estuary English (Southeast British Accents)

　　Estuary is an accent derived from London English which has achieved a status slightly similar to “General American” in the US. Features of this accent can be heard around Southeast England, East Anglia, and perhaps further afield.

　　Geordie

　　Geordie usually refers to both the people and dialect of Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, in Northeast England. The word may also refer to accents and dialects in Northeast England in general.

　　Midlands English

　　Midlands English is one of the more stigmatized of English dialect groupings. The most famous of these dialects is Brummie.

　　Northern England English

　　These are the accents and dialect spoken north of the midlands, in cities like Manchester, Leeds, and Liverpool. Related accents also found in rural Yorkshire.

　　Welsh English

　　This refers to the accents and dialects spoken in the country of Wales. The speech of this region is heavily influenced by the Welsh language, which remained more widely spoken in modern times than the other Celtic languages.

　　Welsh is spoken natively in Wales. The Welsh Language Board indicated in 2004 that 611,000 people were able to speak Welsh. Although Welsh is a minority language, support for the language grew during the second half of the 20th century. The Welsh Language Act 1993 and the Government of Wales Act 1998 provide that the Welsh and English languages be treated equally in the public sector.

　　Scottish English

　　This is the broad definition used to describe English as it is spoken in the country of Scotland. Note that Scottish English is different than Scots, a language derived from Northumbrian Old English that is spoken in Scotland as well.

　　经过上千年历史的演变，在讲英语的国家中，很少有哪个国家像英国一样，在这么个小地方拥有如此多的英语变种。

　　标准发音

　　在英国，从来就不存在“标准英语”一说，与其最接近的就是标准发音了。标准发音发源于伦敦英语，但并不属于地方发音。这种口音源于18、19世纪的英国贵族，自此，就成了发音的“黄金标准”了。

　　考克尼(伦敦东郊贫民英语)

　　考克尼也许是除了标准发音之外的最有名的英国口音了。考克尼源于伦敦东部，深受当地的其他方言的影响，也与它们有着很多共同特点。

　　河口英语(英国东南部口音)

　　河口英语口音来源于伦敦英语，现在它在英国的地位有点类似于“通用美国英语”在美国的地位。河口英语口音分布在英格兰东南部，东英吉利地区，更远的地方可能也有分布。

　　基尼英语(英格兰东北部口音)

　　基尼英语指从英格兰东北部的纽卡斯尔到泰恩河之间的区域，人们所讲的方言。这一地区的人也叫做基尼人。基尼英语也可泛指英格兰东北部的口音和方言。

　　中部英语

　　中部英语在英语方言群中比较有标志性。其中最有名的当属伯明翰口音了。

　　北英格兰英语

　　英格兰中北部包括曼彻斯特、利兹、利物浦等地所说的英语都属于此类。约克郡郊区也有类似的口音。

　　威尔士英语

　　威尔士英语指在威尔士地区的口音和方言。威尔士语对这里的英语影响很深。而且，威尔士语也是现代社会中使用最广泛的盖尔特语言了。

　　威尔士语是威尔士地区使用的母语。根据2004年的调查，约有61万人会说威尔士语。尽管这是个小语种，但在20世纪下半叶开始，威尔士语的传承和发展就得到了很大的支持。在1993年和1998年分别通过了两项威尔士语法案，确立了公共部门中威尔士语和英语的同等地位。

　　苏格兰英语

　　苏格兰英语用以泛指苏格兰地区所说的英语。请注意，苏格兰英语和苏格兰语是不同的。苏格兰语源于诺森伯兰地区的古英语，现在在苏格兰地区人们也在使用(这里所说的苏格兰语指的是在苏格兰地区使用的苏格兰盖尔语，在苏格兰地区，包括电视台、报纸杂志、路名路牌都是用苏格兰盖尔语和英语两种语言来标示的)。