In what way did various varieties of the English language transmitted and established in the American colonies

Answer 1

For the most part , we don't really know. To answer that question truthfully and accurately would require a lot of records and historical documentation about American colonial settlement that we just don't have.

There is some speculation that the English of Massachusetts (and much of the rest of the northern United States) where the Pilgrims and Puritans settled, is based on the 17th century English of East Anglia. PBS talked about this a little bit in their series "The Story of English" which came out back in 1986.

However, I've talked with many people since then who are skeptical and tell me that these kinds of theories are rather tenuous.

Roger Lass, in his book "Phonology," says that the New York accent originated in "17th century southern British English." He is probably right but we have no way of telling what parts of southern England.

Most of the American South was settled in the 18th century. This was about a century after the Pilgrims and Puritans came. During this time English society had changed and the English language had changed along with it. Most likely, most of these colonists came from the London area and being mostly prisoners, they spoke a lower-class variety of London English. However, we still cannot absolutely verify this.

There are a few North Irish Scottish Protestant English influences on the American English of Appalachia, especially in the use of words like "Youins" (You all) and "Youngins" (Young; Young ones). However, it is easy to exaggerate these things too and most of the Scottish influences that have been attributed to Appalachian American English have really been exaggerations.

A final note, very few Cockneys came to America in colonial times. This is why Cockney English is not represented anywhere in the U.S. or Canada. A lot more Cockneys went to Australia in the 19th century and they have definitely left their mark on the English of that country.

Answer 2

Different varieties depended on what parts of the English Isles colonists came from. Each area has it's own accent or dialect just as people in Glasgow, London, Cornwall, or Dublin do today. Then you mix in non-native speakers from other countries, plus Native Americans and African slaves. All of these people had to find a way to get along and learn to understand each other to survive in the early days of the colonies. It's why different parts of the east coast still have many different accents and dialects today.