Mary's Accent and Languages

[Australian]

"By the way, we are talking about the former Mary Donaldson who is now Denmark's beloved Crown Princess Mary...Perhaps, the Princess wholeheartedly wants to absorb the Danish culture,language,and accent and its excusable and normal for her to be this way as she will be Denmarks' future Queen..Its not that she is putting aside her Australian upbringing nor Scottish roots, its just that Princess Mary is in another world now, and she is taking her new role with great passion and dedication..Thats what I see in her.."

I completely agree with Mahoggie.

I dont think anyone is saying that she is putting aside her Australian upbringing, and I agree that it is good for her to become more and more Danish. All Im saying is that her accent is common in Australia (at least the people surrouded around me) and this is coming from an Australian! lol

Of course she will lose her accent in time and become more Danish, it is expected, and will take time. BTW, Toledo i completely agree with you there!

 

[Toledo]

Thanks. I think we see she is Denmark's consort Crown Princess, that's a lot of weight in her shoulders. Her upbringing, like anyone else's, defines her personality and character. But is her talent, that sets her apart from born royals, to evolve from that upbringing and make the best out of it to become a great symbol for the Danish monarchy. She is now at the other side of the tracks, from a person who could easily be reading a paper on people in Government to being a person representing a Government herself. The transition is not easy had she been born royal or aristocrat (either money or titled power people). The girl is doing just fine.

 

[Australian]

I agree, she is Denmark's consort Crown Princess, that's a lot of weight in her shoulders. Her upbringing, like anyone else's, defines her personality and character. But is her talent to evolve from that and become a great symbol for the Danish monarchy that sets her apart from born royals. She is now at the other side of the tracks, from a person who could easily be reading a paper on people in Government to being a person representing a Government herself. The transition is not easy had she been born royal or aristocrat (either money or titled power people). The girl is doing just fine.

Absolutely right!

 

[dakodas]

Hey, I speak English but when I'm with my Mexican friends, I just automatically shift my accent to theirs without even thinking about it. The same goes for my southern friends. Give me five minutes with them and I'll let a "yall" slip. I know a lot of people are like that: they speak their native dialect of English, but if they're in another environment it's REALLY easy to slip into another way of speaking English.
Perhaps English is just a language that makes it easier to shift accents.

And as far as Mary goes- it's no wonder she speaks deliberately! Everything she says is instantly news so it is very wise to speak carefully. Also, with people listening for an accent, it's good that she's trying to be mindful of it.

I am half Mexican and Texan too. I shift my accents. I was in South Africa and Swaziland in October and the natives could NOT understand my very well spoken American accent. I was on safari and got lost and had to affect a Souf afreecan aksent. Hep me to my shaley pleese...I said "Please help me to my chalet" and they looked at me like I was speaking in tongues.

 

[ysbel]

Well...as an American who has spent extended periods of time living in two foreign countries--Switzerland and the Czech Republic--and who is fluent in both French and English, I can say that my accent in my native language (English) hasn't changed. My FRENCH accent did change (I speak with a bit of a Swiss accent now), and perhaps one small change or two did occur here and there in my way of phrasing things in English. I just don't think the drastic "Anglicization" of Mary's Aussie accent can be completely explained away by her travels or by the relatively short time she has lived in Denmark. It can take a lifetime for someone to lose his or her native accent. I'm not criticizing Mary, exactly. I just think there's something a bit more external at work here in her odd accent and occasionally stilted phrasing.

Tinika.

Some people never lose their accent no matter how long they are away from their native land while others inexplicably do lose their accent rather quickly. This fact of life is so commonly known in the international community, I can't believe that with your experience abroad, you never have heard of it.

 

[Layla1971]

I really don't see what the big deal is now. I'm learning to speak Swedish and, the Scandinavian languages are very similar, also both accents are equally unique.

I speak Swedish with a Swedish accent, and it hasn't yet affected my Australian accent but I'm sure it will.
Yes, you're saying maybe the CP is trying to change her English-speaking accent to sound more Danish, but I've learnt, your accent changes without trying. And, since she speaks Danish most of the time anyway, why would she change her English-speaking accent? I'm sure she has much less trivial things to occupy her time with.

 

[grevinnan]

Some very fortunate individuals can learn a new language and speak it without much trace of an accent - for some of us we never loose it. I have been in US 35+ years and people still hear I am Swedish - my daughter learned Spanish in highschool and spoke it without any accent within a couple of years.

 

[Layla1971]

Some very fortunate individuals can learn a new language and speak it without much trace of an accent - for some of us we never loose it. I have been in US 35+ years and people still hear I am Swedish - my daughter learned Spanish in highschool and spoke it without any accent within a couple of years.

Yes, I just meant that when your native accent is that of an English-speaker your accent isn't as strong as most foreign languages. So, if one was learning to speak English, that person's native accent would be very strong.

For example, you say your native language is Swedish, well in learning English your accent would be very noticable, but for me learning Swedish, my Australian accent is totally lost because the new language is so strong, whereas [to me] the Australian accent isn't as strong as most.

 

[Jaques Demolay]

Yes, I just meant that when your native accent is that of an English-speaker your accent isn't as strong as most foreign languages. So, if one was learning to speak English, that person's native accent would be very strong.

For example, you say your native language is Swedish, well in learning English your accent would be very noticable, but for me learning Swedish, my Australian accent is totally lost because the new language is so strong, whereas [to me] the Australian accent isn't as strong as most.

Layla1971

From the perspective of a Tasmanian, who has never been overseas,( well, except to the mainland of course) Mary's accent, when speaking English, isn't any different than any East coast Australian who is trying to pronounce their words as correctly as possible and while doing so, trying to choose the most appropriate words. It comes out sounding like what we would call posh. It's not an accent of someone from England. It doesn't sound like any twang from any of the states of OZ. It's just different.
Her every word is scrutinised by all and sundry, why would she not try to be concise.

I agree Layla, that the Aussie accent is not as strong as the American or New Zealand accent for that matter.

An American would not know what an Australian sounds like, who is going through the above process, except to listen to Mary and then to think, " Goldarnit, somethin ain't right in the state a Louisiana",( Denmark in this case) because they would be expecting to hear that broad Aussie accent.

An example of this type of accent comes to mind, although the speaker is a New Zealander and there would be many Australians who do the same.

Sam Neil when not in character does not sound like a New Zealander. He has this posh style of speech. If anyone has the new Dr Zhivargo dvd watch the extras disk and listen. It does sound nice to hear someone speak like that including Mary. He unlike Mary, speaks without hesitation, but that is something which comes with confidence and experience.

Sorry about the epic, but I have heard this debate on Mary's accent on other boards as well, and I wanted to put forward my thoughts.


Thanks Jaques D.

 

[Margrethe II]

As an East coast Australian, I totally agree "JD"!

"MII"

 

[Australian]

I also agree with that Jaques Demolay, thats absolutely right.

 

[lady_windsor]

i wonder if mary ever gets to go back to australia for christmas

 

[Tinika]

Tinika.

Some people never lose their accent no matter how long they are away from their native land while others inexplicably do lose their accent rather quickly. This fact of life is so commonly known in the international community, I can't believe that with your experience abroad, you never have heard of it.

I really don't know--at this point I'm just surprised at how long this thread has gotten!

 

[Margrethe II]

i wonder if mary ever gets to go back to australia for christmas

I am sue that if Their Royal Highnesses wish to, they could and shall return to Australia for Christmas...

Still, I know where I would prefer to be

"MII"

 

[Jaques Demolay]

i wonder if mary ever gets to go back to australia for christmas

Lady_ Windsor

I am in total agreeance. I hope she returns. However we must at least give the impression, that we are not takers back of things we have let go.

Mary is Danish and as a Tasmanian, I'm a tad (well, a bit more than that) jealous of them but I will never let them know. She would not have been a princess in OZ and that is why she belongs to the Danes.

I'm sure that she will return, but she must also show the Danes, that she was sincere when she converted to Danish citizenship, by not giving the impression that she always wants to return to her place of birth.

Actually Lady Windsor, it seems that I have utilised your post as a vehicle to put forward my thoughts. I understand that they may not be yours and that you may not agree. I hope you will forgive??

P.S. If I don't say something of her accent, then this post is not on topic. I hope that she is applauded for her speech improvement(Word Pronunciation), rather than criticised by some, when she returns next time.


kind Regards Jaques D.

 

[MarieLouise]

It's funny to read australians points of view on Marys accent, when it comes to english. I am danish, and many danes (including my self) often talk about Marys accent, and that it to us has started to sound a bit danish when she speaks english. It's only from time to time. Maybe the reason could be that Frederik - who is propably her biggest influence - has a very strong danish accent when speaking english.

Earlier in the thread someone asked what Marys danish sound like: It is still obvious that danish isn't Marys first language, you can definately tell she is a foreigner, but her danish is improving everytime I here her speak. Both her vocabulary and her pronounciation is getting really good - I'm gessing you won't be able to tell danish is'nt her first language in a couple of years.

 

[mashed potatoes]

I am looking for links so that I can hear Princess Mary speaking Danish.

Any one???

http://www.dr.dk/nyheder/htm/baggrund/tema2005/Kronprinsesse Mary er gravid/

this is a link i found, where you can hear a little bit of mary speaking some more in danish.

go to the right where it says LYD/VIDEO and click on the first link under that to hear her.

And yet another link where you can hear CP Mary speak:
http://www.dr.dk/extention/playWindowsMedianyheder.aframe?id=209562&ListType=nyheder&trace=off

copy this link into your address bar and press GO

 

[robby86]

I have tried following many links but they no longer work. Dose someone know of a place I could go to hear her, and maybe the other members of the RF?

 

[Mandy]

I have tried following many links but they no longer work. Dose someone know of a place I could go to hear her, and maybe the other members of the RF?

Click on the link in this post to hear Mary speak.

 

[carlota]

i would like to ask any native speaker of english what are the main traces of australian accent. as a non-native english speaker, i can notice some accents although not all of them, and the australian one is the one i most have problems with. what differenciates australian from a standard english (with neutrum accent)? any similarities with the other accents?

i really don't recall mary speaking with a hard accent whatsoever at the press conferences of the engagement but again, perhaps it is because of my poor ability to distinguish them

any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[mashed potatoes]

that link doesn't work?
does anyone have another link where we could here mary speaking?

 

[LauraL]

Layla1971

"An American would not know what an Australian sounds like, who is going through the above process, except to listen to Mary and then to think, " Goldarnit, somethin ain't right in the state a Louisiana",( Denmark in this case) because they would be expecting to hear that broad Aussie accent."



Such a generalization is quite untrue. Two points. I am an American and I certainly know what an Australian sounds like. If a person is not exposed to persons of other nationalities, it does become more difficult. However, even before I had met a person from either Australia I could tell you the difference between a British, an Australian and a Scottish accent. It has to do with the sensitivity of a person's ear and their desire to pay attention, not their nationality.

Secondly, generalizing that all Americans speak in such a way (" Goldarnit, somethin ain't right in the state a Louisiana") is rude. I am from the South, Texas to be specific, and no one of my aquaintance speaks like that. Are there people who do? Yes, I imagine there is a small minority somewhere who do. But even that person could be able to hear the difference in Mary's accent.

I haven't heard Mary speak in English, but her Danish accent was markedly different from the two people who spoke before her in the most recent clip provided. Was it poor? I have no idea. I don't speak Danish. But it certainly sounded crisper, like she was making an attempt to be precise.

Oh, and it's goshdarnit, not goldarnit.

 

[RoyalKnottie]

This is an interesting topic. Of what I have heard of Mary speaking leads me to believe that she has a slight Australian accent. I looked up Mary's bio and it said she attended elementary school in Texas, USA, had Scottish parents, and ultimately grew up in Australia. So what accent she has is mostly faint, IMO.
I also think that since both of her parents are professors and highly educated they would not allow her to develop a strong, backward if you will, accent.

http://www.kronprinsparret.dk/ac000c

 

[Lady Jean]

I listened to the clip for Heart Week and even though I'm American and don't know Danish at all I was impressed with how she did....I have heard her speak only a few times. What impressed me was the apparent ease she had and the speed in which she read, no hesitancy that I could see with the pronunciation (but of course I know she could have practiced the speech many times at home).

 

[Australian]

Non-Australians can also gain an impression of Australian English from well-known actors and other native speakers. The normal speaking voices of Cate Blanchett, Russell Crowe, Hugh Jackman, Nicole Kidman and Heath Ledger are examples of General Australian accents
So this is probably the level of the accent mary has, just like the typical aussie girl.

So this is what your average Aussie sounds like, the really ocker ones sound like Steve Irwin but i dont know anyone who speaks like him, he is very exaggerated.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_English

 

[tinadk]

regarding Mary's accent maybe i can add my view

I am English but live in Denmark, over the last couple of years i have heard Mary speak more and more Danish and think that is responsible for a lot of the change in the way she speaks her English. It can be a little confusing to speak two languages on a day to day basis especially when danish is put into different sentences than English. However i will also say that when we first started hearing her speak English in public ie) Engagement and dating times it appears that she is trying to sound a little more precise when speaking the English - this may be down to the fact that she is trying to be more understood by the danes.

 

[Violet25]

Personally as an Aussie (and an avid linguist, as i studied it at university here in Sydney) I can tell you her way of speaking is not normal- regardless of how long she's been living in Denmark, because she started speaking this way a couple of years ago (2004!) and i doubt her accent changed that much when she was only starting to learn the language, an accent should only change once one starts to speak in another language , albeit more fluently.
I would say she's been made to correct her Aussie accent, she doesn't sound Aussie at all, she sounds 'half pom half Nordic' as someone put it and its really really fake. you can tell its not her normal way of speaking due to the pauses she takes between words and how carefully she articulates certain words, it just isn't natural. I'd like to believe she doesn't speak this way around her friends or they'd all be laughing at her. When she came to Australia last year and did that interview with Andrew Denton, everybody was talking here about how fake her accent sounded and how its not Australian at all. I'm not saying one has to sound like Steve Irwin to be an Aussie, because most of us don't, but Mary is no longer an Aussie- that is very evident..
I say good on her, if this is what she had to do , then she's done it well. But please dont' call her an Aussie because at the end of the day she's anything but! and I'm still trying to figure out what she's done for Australia? her life is in Denmark now and her job as a CP is to promote Danish lifestyle, culture, etc. nothing to do with Australia anymore, she's not even an Australian citizen anymore as far as I'm aware.

 

[princess olga]

Personally as an Aussie (and an avid linguist, as i studied it at university here in Sydney) I can tell you her way of speaking is not normal- regardless of how long she's been living in Denmark, because she started speaking this way a couple of years ago (2004!) and i doubt her accent changed that much when she was only starting to learn the language, an accent should only change once one starts to speak in another language , albeit more fluently.
I would say she's been made to correct her Aussie accent, she doesn't sound Aussie at all, she sounds 'half pom half Nordic' as someone put it and its really really fake. you can tell its not her normal way of speaking due to the pauses she takes between words and how carefully she articulates certain words, it just isn't natural. I'd like to believe she doesn't speak this way around her friends or they'd all be laughing at her. When she came to Australia last year and did that interview with Andrew Denton, everybody was talking here about how fake her accent sounded and how its not Australian at all. I'm not saying one has to sound like Steve Irwin to be an Aussie, because most of us don't, but Mary is no longer an Aussie- that is very evident..
I say good on her, if this is what she had to do , then she's done it well. But please dont' call her an Aussie because at the end of the day she's anything but! and I'm still trying to figure out what she's done for Australia? her life is in Denmark now and her job as a CP is to promote Danish lifestyle, culture, etc. nothing to do with Australia anymore, she's not even an Australian citizen anymore as far as I'm aware.

I have to say I'm totally with you. I have a lot of family in Australia so I know what real Australians are supposed to sound like, but when I heard Mary speak on that engagement video they did, she came across as someone who's trying to sound more English than the queen (Elizabeth, for that matter!). I also noticed the pauses between words, but I thought at the time that it might be due to the fact she's trying to please the whole world and the planet of Mars with her message..but the whole thing came across as totally utterly artificial and orchestrated, hence perhaps I never really took a shine to this girl..whatever her accent, aussie it wasn't!

 

[Peaches]

I have to say I'm totally with you. I have a lot of family in Australia so I know what real Australians are supposed to sound like, but when I heard Mary speak on that engagement video they did, she came across as someone who's trying to sound more English than the queen (Elizabeth, for that matter!). I also noticed the pauses between words, but I thought at the time that it might be due to the fact she's trying to please the whole world and the planet of Mars with her message..but the whole thing came across as totally utterly artificial and orchestrated, hence perhaps I never really took a shine to this girl..whatever her accent, aussie it wasn't!

I think she tried to refine her ways but I think she over-polished herself!

 

[RachelD]

Greetings to all!

My opinion is that she's just trying to sound as polished and proper as possible and usualy people that speak that way are depicted as British (or with a British accent). So maybe she un-intentionaly (sp?) ends up speaking sort of Britishy...but only she knows the real reason why her accent is the way it is. Does she sound Britishy? I have not been able to hear her speak (I don't have speakers on my computer!).