Did you know there are around 40 different British accents? Perhaps the most well-known of them all is Received Pronunciation (RP), as this is classed as the "standard" British accent (this is the accent you may hear King Charles using!)
For those who do not know much about British accents, it is easy to consider the British accent as a singular thing, but there are many different accents with their own unique features. In fact, the UK is one of the most diverse countries in terms of accents!
British Accent Pronunciation
Before taking a look at the different regional British accents, it is important to clarify what is meant by an accent:
The term accent refers to the particular way words are pronounced in a language. Depending on where someone lives, they will use a specific accent that can differ from other regional areas. When studying accents, we take into account the pronunciation of words (such as speech sounds, vowel length, intonation, and word stress).
An example of different accents is Standard British and Standard American:
Take the phrase "bottle of water."
In a Standard British accent, it would be pronounced as:
/bɒtl ɒv wɔːtə/
In a Standard American accent, it would be pronounced as:
/bɑdəl ʌv wɔdər/
Notice the differences in the vowel sounds and the use of /t/ and /d/.
British Accents by Region
Depending on where someone in the UK is from, they can have different regional accents. Some British accents are as follows:
| British Accent | Region |
| RP (Received Pronunciation) | London and South East England |
| Cockney | London |
| Scouse (Liverpudlian) | Liverpool |
| Geordie (Tyneside/Newcastle English) | Tyneside/Newcastle |
| Brummie (Birmingham English) | Birmingham |
| Manc (Mancunian) | Manchester |
| Yorkshire English | Yorkshire |
| West Country English | South West England |
| Bristolian | Bristol |
| Essex English | Essex |
| Scottish | Scotland |
| Welsh | Wales |
| Northern Irish | Northern Ireland |
Fig. 1 - A distinctive accent in the UK is Geordie, spoken by people in Tyneside/Newcastle.RP is one of the only British accents that is not limited to one location. Because it is the standard British accent, it is used extensively in teaching and education. This means it could be spoken by students in schools around the world, not just in the UK!
Types of British Accents
It would be impossible to include every British accent here, so let's look at some of the most distinct/ well-known British accents and their most prominent features.
Received Pronunciation
Received Pronunciation, also known as "RP," is regarded as the "Standard British" accent. It is mainly spoken in London and South East England; however, it is also the accent most commonly used in formal schooling and media (such as news broadcasts). Typical characteristics of the RP accent include:
Non-rhotic (dropping the /r/ sound unless a vowel comes after it). For example, the /r/ is not pronounced in words such as "father," "car," and "butter."
Long /ɑː/ vowel sounds, e.g., in words like "car," "bath," and "fast."
Scouse
Scouse (more uncommonly known as Liverpudlian) is the accent spoken by people from Liverpool. Liverpool is a port city and a place for ships to transport goods to and from other countries. Due to mass trade and immigration around the mid-19th century, the scouse accent became largely influenced by Welsh and Irish people. Some distinct features of Scouse include:
When the /k/ sound is at the end of a syllable, it becomes fricative. Fricative refers to a type of consonant sound made by pushing the airflow through a small space. This produces friction in the breath, which creates a harsh but breathy sound.
Geordie
Geordie is the accent spoken by people in Tyneside and Newcastle. If you have ever heard of the TV show "Geordie Shore," this is the accent they use! Some characteristics of the Geordie accent include:
The consonant sounds /k/, /t/, and /p/ are often pronounced with a glottal stop after them. A glottal stop is a consonant sound produced by stopping air flow in the vocal tract. For example, "plotting" is pronounced like /plɒʔɪn/ instead of /plɒtɪŋ/.
West Country
The West Country accent is mostly spoken by people in the South West of England. Unlike most other British accents, it is a rhotic accent. This means that no matter where an /r/ sound falls in a word, it will always be pronounced.
For example, "farmer" is pronounced with all the r's instead of "fahmuh."
Scottish, Northern Irish, and Welsh
Scottish, Northern Irish, and Welsh accents have all been influenced by their own native languages. As a result, this creates different varieties of English, each with its own unique pronunciations and features.
In Scotland, the official languages are:
Scottish Gaelic
Scots
English
In Ireland, the official languages are:
Irish (Gaeilge)
Ullans (Ulster Scots)
English
In Wales, the official languages are:
Scottish Accent
There are different Scottish English accents, such as Edinburgh Scottish, Glaswegian, etc. One of the thickest and most distinctive Scottish English accents is Glaswegian, used by people from Glasgow. Some features of the Glaswegian accent are:
Similar to Geordie, Glaswegian uses glottal stops. For example, instead of pronouncing the t's in "water bottle," they are replaced with a glottal stop, i.e., /wɔːʔə bɒʔl/.
There is often some confusion between Gaelic, Scots, and Scottish English, as all three are spoken in Scotland.
- Gaelic is a Celtic language native to Scotland, with its own vocabulary, grammar, and punctuation rules.
- Scots is also a language with its own vocabulary, grammar, and punctuation rules. It sounds quite similar to English as it shares the same ancestral language.
- Scottish English is a variety of English and is not a language on its own. It contains mainly the same vocabulary and grammar rules as other varieties of English but differs in pronunciation, lexicon, and sometimes grammar. Scottish English is heavily influenced by Scots and Gaelic.
Northern Irish Accent
Northern Irish English is also comprised of different accents. A few examples include:
Derry accent
Belfast accent
Tyrone accent
One of the most recognized Northern Irish accents is the Belfast accent, spoken by people from Belfast. A couple of the most prominent features of the Belfast accent are:
Welsh Accent
Welsh English also has a few different accents; for example, the accents in South Wales, North Wales, and Cardiff differ slightly. The most recognizable feature is the rising and falling intonation in sentences. Because of this, Welsh accents are generally said to be quite melodic (meaning they sound song-like).
Australian vs. British Accent
The standard Australian accent has been influenced by both British and American English. Australian English does not have as wide a range of different accents as the UK, but it does have distinct characteristics that differ from each British accent.
Fig. 2 - The standard British and Australian accents both follow features of Received Pronunciation.
One difference is the length of the vowel sounds. Standard Australian has longer vowel sounds than Standard British, meaning the duration they are pronounced for is longer. For example, syllables can be lengthened from one to two, i.e., "fear" is pronounced more like "fee-uh" instead of "feer."
Another difference is the use of the tapped /t/ sound in Australian English (similar to American English). A tapped /t/ sound is made by the tongue quickly tapping behind the front teeth. For example, take the word "water," Instead of pronouncing a hard /t/, Australian English uses a softer sound similar to a /d/, i.e., "wader."
British Accents in America
Have you ever watched old American shows and noticed how different they sound? This is because the Standard American English accent used to sound more similar to British English! This was known as the Mid-Atlantic accent, and it included features of both American and British English accents.
Nowadays, there are more distinct differences between the standard British and American accents. One of the most noticeable differences is the use (or non-use) of the rhotic /r/ consonant. Although there are exceptions, most British accents (including Standard British English) are non-rhotic, meaning the /r/ sound is not pronounced in a word unless a vowel follows it. On the other hand, most American accents are rhotic, so they do use the /r/ sound even if a vowel does not follow it.
Another difference is the use of the long /ɑː/ vowel sound of Standard British English versus the shorter /æ/ vowel sound of Standard American English. For example:
Take the words "past," "grass," and "laugh."
British English pronunciation:
/pɑːst/
/grɑːs/
/lɑːf/
American English pronunciation:
/pæst/
/græs/
/læf/
British Accents - Key takeaways
- An accent refers to a particular way of pronouncing words in a language, often based on geographical location.
- There are around 40 different British Accents.
- The Standard British accent is Received Pronunciation (RP), spoken mostly in London and South East England.
- Some common British accents include RP, Scouse, geordie, and west country.
- The Standard American English accent used to sound more similar to British English! This was known as the Mid-Atlantic accent, and it included features of both American and British English.
Explanations 
Exams 
Magazine 
