OT: Dialect quiz

[bballbeadle]

I've lived in Texas for almost 20 years now and I still have people tell me I have a norther accent, and my map looks like I still have the upstate NY dialect. Interestingly, it also says I strongly share a dialect with Wisconsin - a state I've never been to.

On Wisconsin! Ya!

 

[bballbeadle]

You might be able to access it using Google? Try the link that says How Ya'all when you google Harvard Dialect Survey..lots of times you can freely access NY Times articles from a google search

I sent it to my family and two people have already responded that I know darn well don't subscribe to the NY Times. (I do.) There should be a way around this. Think, man, think!

 

[HarrisonJBounel]

wow dr who was right- the dialects are taking over the world-

You will be exteeeeeeeerminated!

 

[CaptainJ]

You might be able to access it using Google? Try the link that says How Ya'all when you google Harvard Dialect Survey..lots of times you can freely access NY Times articles from a google search

Thanks for the suggestion but I did try that and more beforehand. ...After typing that sentence I decided to try Firefox instead of my usual browser(Opera), and for some reason it worked. I dont know why Opera gives me such a hard time when I've been so faithful to it! Reminds me of certain relationships IRL.

So I got Rochester, Grand Rapids, and Madison(WI). I came from Utica, brief stint in Hawaii, and now in Colorado where people have tended to guess I'm from Wisconsin. I imagine some of the words can just be preferences from our families(especially since I was trying to remember my childhood usage) which aren't always indicative of the region. Three cities aside, the reddest was by far in CNY, which makes me feel warm inside.

 

[CaptainJ]

I sent it to my family and two people have already responded that I know darn well don't subscribe to the NY Times. (I do.) There should be a way around this. Think, man, think!

I like your family!!! I remember saying the same thing in another thread...the thought repulsed me! Anyhow, I guess I was taking the quiz while you posted that, but switching browsers make work for them as well(although I doubt they were using Opera like me). Also, maybe your family will get a kick out of hearing that someone on the board is more anti-NYT than they are

 

[Toga]

Heavy Rochester Buffalo with a little Rockford, Illinois thrown in for some reason.

 

[cliftonparksufan]

Heavy Rochester Buffalo with a little Rockford, Illinois thrown in for some reason.

I had Rockford, Grand Rapids and Yonkers. Guess with my dad from the Bronx that makes sense.

 

[bballbeadle]

I like your family!!! I remember saying the same thing in another thread...the thought repulsed me! Anyhow, I guess I was taking the quiz while you posted that, but switching browsers make work for them as well(although I doubt they were using Opera like me). Also, maybe your family will get a kick out of hearing that someone on the board is more anti-NYT than they are

They're not anti. They just don't read about news on the internet. I'm glad your browser switch worked! All hail, Madison, WI, home of my alma mater!

 

[Hoo's That]

People often guess I'm from Wisconsin when they hear me talk, so maybe their are some similarities to at least some parts of CNY.

Maybe the extreme number of all those dairy cows in those two areas has the same effects on Wiscy and CNY?

 

[LPOrange]

pretty spot on for me. CNY has is the "Inland North" dialect of American English, with Syracuse and Utica using a lot of New England vocabulary, and and pop/soda line forming around Rochester

 

[Delmar]

The key words that put me rightly in South Jersey were sun shower, Mischief Night, and hoagie.

 

[dundundun]

Yonkers, New York City, Newark. From northern NJ so, yea.

exact same results/situation for me.

 

[Niastri]

Mine was dead on as well. Had me pegged as Rochester/Buffalo which are my exact roots as I have one parent who grew up in each. I grew up in Oswego and apparently the use of "sneakers" was the biggest tell in pin pointing me.

My parents were raised in Boston and I was raised in Syracuse, it had me dead on with Boston as my third city, Rochester and Buffalo my first two comps. They didn't ask if I root for the Bills or the Pats, or they might have guessed different cities

 

[Cheriehoop]

Heavy Rochester Buffalo with a little Rockford, Illinois thrown in for some reason.

Me too. Where did that Rockford Ill come from? Is Syracuse even an option?

 

[ImperialOrange]

Baltimore, DC, and Newark. My first thought was "that's prime recruiting areas for JAB".

I've lived in Southern PA my entire life. Live/worked in Lancaster, went to school in York, and work/lived in Reading so would make sense that I've picked up pieces from different surrounding areas. Spent a fair amount of time in Baltimore and York is more like Bmore vs Lancaster/Reading which are more like Philly. Figure it picked DC because of Bmore and time I spent in Richmond, VA. Newark is a reach but I have family from central jersey and uncle from north jersey. Perhaps I listed to Redman too often growing up? Brick City!

I also got a kick out of the secondary red-orange areas (southern tier, and richmond) where I've spent a bunch of time, Syracuse being orange, and yellow areas (Southern FL, ATL) each of which I've visited under 5 times.

 

[ImperialOrange]

Also, can we rig this so that when edowd takes the quiz his top 3 are Montreal, Toronto and Halifax?

 

[Entropic]

Got me with Buffalo/Rochester/Arlington VA. I was born and raised in CNY so I understand the first 2 but can anyone explain how Arlington would fit in? lol Funny thing is I moved to Richmond VA in July.

 

[Entropic]

Rochester/buffalo/Arlington VA

Born and raised in cuse, so that explains those two, while I lived in the DMV area for 5 years recently - pretty accurate!

I got the same results. I am in Richmond now but only been here since July. Haven't really been in the DMV area, how close is the dialect to Buf/Roc in your opinion.

 

[mark79]

I grew up in Congers, NY which is near the Tappan Zee bridge. Moved to Hackensack NJ as a teenager, went to SU, moved to Danbury CT and for the last two years have been in Richmond. It definitely has me pegged as deep red In NY/NJ. I thought everyone said sneakers! Merry Christmas and happy holidays everyone!

 

[CuseFan]

Rochester/Buffalo/Madison but grew up in Eastwood/Syracuse (and can't wait to get back there tomorrow to visit the family, and maybe catch the Villanova game).
Haven't lived in the Cuse for 25 years though, but did live in the midwest for a while, which might explain the Madison connection.

Didn't know "sneakers" was a Syracuse thing.

 

[LAOrange]

Complete spread... Rockford. IL, Spokane, WA and Salt Lake City. Considering I grew up near Syracuse, went to college at SU and spent the last sixteen years in California, I think the influence must stem from the middle years reflecting many, many job relocations.

 

[MGP]

Just curious - for those of you who got Syracuse (doesn't seem like many) - what was the telling question? I got Rochester/Buffalo though my parents and myself grew up in Syracuse. I've been in Illinois for nearly 20 years now (Chicago & North Central), pretty cool how it can pretty much nail it. Don't know why I didn't get 'Cuse though. I did also get Grand Rapids, MI, which I assume comes from my time in the Midwest...

 

[Dnyr85]

Rochester, Buffalo, Akron

Raised in Canandaigua, NY

Now living in Western Ohio...I'd say that quiz is spot on.

 

[SUfanNC]

I got Rochester and buffalo and somewhere in ohio. I got the soda question so I don't get why it didn't slide me east from Rochester

 

[br801]

Rochester/Syracuse. But I grew up in Wisconsin! So, I was a little disappointed in that. Although, come to think of it, I lived in Wisconsin 22 years, North Carolina 12, and Syracuse 26 years. I wonder if there are a lot of similarities between Wisconsin and CNY? I'm going to send this to all my Wisconsin friends and see what they come up with!

Interesting. I grew up in CNY and got Rochester/Buffalo/Madison.