If I hear an accent I don't recognize, I usually ask the person where they're from, but with a slight questioning in my mind as to the propriety of it.Shanks, may I ask what you mean by "the propriety" of an accent? In my rather simplistic grasp of the word, it suggests that could be an "improper" accent - an idea which is anathema to me. Here in NZ, RP was taught for years as the pinnacle of achievement in spoken English, the "proper" way to speak. This meant that many NZers were embarassed by their distinctive accent, and presumably left people like my father, with his Anglo-Indian accent, completely out in the cold.
While I consider myself old-fashioned in matters of usage, I refuse to accept the old orthodoxy that there is a "right" accent, and "wrong" ones. I think accents are a wonderful source of variety, to be embraced and cherished, not marked as "proper" and "improper." Here in the Antipodes, the difference between accents is a source of much debate between Australians and NZers - they say (to NZ ears) "Seeedneee", "sex"(6), and "feesh and cheeps", while we say (to Aussie ears) "Sudnee", "sux", and "fush and chups". NZ actors in Australia are told that they must lose their Kiwi accent to get work, as it is "improper". I hope that regional and national accents, however grating they seem to me, are able to survive and flourish, lest we all end up in hellish homogeneity. Salaam
p.s. May I say that, in checking the spelling of my "diversity is good" rant, I was simultaneously amused and horrified to see that Enigma suggested replacing "Kiwi" with "Klan"!
