Midlands
- As in the North, Midlands accents generally do not use a broad A, so that cast is pronounced rather than the pronunciation of most southern accents. The northern limit of the in many words crosses England from mid-Shropshire to The Wash, passing just south of Birmingham.
- Midlands speech also generally uses the northern short U, so putt is pronounced the same as put. The southern limit of this pronunciation also crosses from mid-Shropshire to the Wash, but dipping further south to the northern part of Oxfordshire.
- The West Midlands accent is often described as having a pronounced nasal quality, the East Midlands accent much less so.
- Old and cold may be pronounced as "owd" and "cowd" (rhyming with "loud" in the West Midlands and "ode" in the East Midlands), and in the northern Midlands home can become "wom".
- Whether Derbyshire should be classed as the West or East Midlands in terms of dialect is debatable. Stanley Ellis, a dialect expert, said in 1985 that it was more like the West Midlands, but it is often grouped with the East and is part of the region East Midlands.
- Cheshire, although part of the North-West region, is usually grouped the Midlands for the purpose of accent and dialect.
Read more about this topic: English Language In England
Famous quotes containing the word midlands:
“Sunday night meant, in the dark, wintry, rainy Midlands ... anywhere where two creatures might stand and squeeze together and spoon.... Spooning was a fine art, whereas kissing and cuddling are calf-processes.”
—D.H. (David Herbert)