Why do English people who move to the US always lose their accents, but Irish and Scottish people don't?

Question

I lived in the US for a year, and yes, my english accent did get slurred and I started to lose it. I noticed that Irish people in the US never seemed to lose their accent even if they'd been living there for 20 years. All the english people I met who'd lived there more than a few years were indistinguishable from americans in their accents. Note Frasier's father in the TV series as a prime example, he's an english actor, but lost his accent long before the Frasier series started.

Answer 1

we're not as patriotic as other places thats why. you only have to look at how st patricks day is celebrated in the uk, yet no one even knows what st georges day is! the irish and the scottish are proud of their countries, us english just dont seem to care.

Answer 2

My Irish aunt is now more American than bloody Uncle Sam in practically every way - she's as big as a house, has that impolite way of demanding whilst dealing with people who work in Customer Services and shows neither an affinty with Irish tradition or any trace of an accent.

Note: About actors Marianne Jean Baptiste and Hugh Laurie are both English Actors working in the US who give very convincing US accents but still sound English when being interviewed out of character.

Answer 3

Excellent question. Your'e right the Scots and Irish don't seem to lose the accent, but the English and Welsh accents to seem to be replaced by lovely posh Queen's English type accents. Example Catherine Zeta Jones (Welsh) Patrick Stewart (English) Carry Grant (English)

Answer 4

My parents-in-law lived in South Africa for 30 years and you can still hear their Manchester roots. Some English people do lose their accents, but I can hear English accents even after many years.

Answer 5

i stumble on it thrilling that anybody ought to ever confuse a Yorkshire accessory with any Scottish one. yet nonetheless i'm a Yorkshire lass myself. this is quite ordinary, to me a minimum of, which you confuse a Cornish accessory with an Irish one; i could never make that mistake. regardless of if i assume your difficulty distinguishing British accents is resembling myself no longer be waiting to tell the adaptation between an east or west coast American accessory. Is there even a distinction?

Answer 6

the Celtic Accents are stronger inc Welsh I wonder what accent a Geordie would get after living in the States for a few years.

Answer 7

I have know dozens of folks from England. None lost their local dialect, let alone the English accent. Actors are trained in a variety of dialects.

Answer 8

Rubbish. I have lived i Switzerland for over 20 years and I can assure you I have not lost my accent at all.

Answer 9

I suppose the Scottish and Irish accents are much more distinctive, but I think all individuals are different.

Answer 10

Your right but Madonna defys all this...she spent very little time abroad but yet she has the most amazing English accent. I find that funny! She is so fake.