Do Californians have an accent?

[bluestateguy]

I am a native Californian. My extended family all still lives in the SF Bay Ares, and my parents, like many Californians, now live in the Phoenix area. I lived in the Bay Area until I left for college, and my parents moved 2 years later.

I always assumed that we had no accent, that it was only the northeasterners, southerners and midwesterners who had accents. Am I wrong? I never noticed anything unique about the way Californians speak.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. No wayyy, duuude!

[maveric]

2. My kids are from here and say "May-ouse" for "mouse".

And "Hay-ouse" for house.

Way!

[Momgonepostal]

3. May-ouse?

I'm from CA and have never heard that. My dad grew up in San Diego and he definitely didn't talk like that.

[maveric]

5. My kids and even my ex, who was raised here, say it that way.

[mike6640]

8. sounds more like Georgia accent

than Californian. In Georgia, they like to lengthen the A's and add an extra syllable eg: AY ess Hole.

M

[uppityperson]

4. Well, you know, it is sort of, you know, not really a, you know, accent

I moved to NW coast from SW USA, there from N Central state. Spoke mid-west-canadian with a mexican accent and no one could figure it out.

[Floogeldy]

6. EVERYBODY has an accent.

B-)

[evlbstrd]

7. Like, fer shuuure.

[cally]

9. In HS, I went to Washington DC

for a civics program. The counselors could tell who the Californians were by our accent. :shrug: They said we spoke faster than midwesterners and were precise. Of course, we used lots of slang.