Oh, all right then, since someone has resurrected this one, I just have to have Maxie on about his statement There is a trace of Scots in the only distinctive regional accent within NZ. Southland has its own accent, distinguished by being markedly rhotic, in sharp contrast with the very non-rhotic NZ standard.

Max, Southland was settled by predominantly English settlers. A professor of linguistics at Otago University some time ago debunked the theory that the burr in the Southland accent is Scottish in origin - but couldn't explain where it came from for certain. There were a number of early settlers from whaling ships in that area, and the idea that the Cornish or Devon accent was perpetuated out of Bluff or Riverton was the favourite. This was twenty years ago - the view could have changed.


The idiot also known as Capfka ...