Comments on: Stroke gives woman foreign accent

Stroke gives woman foreign accent

ArunK — Tue, 04 Jul 2006 23:31:17 -0800

UK stroke victim wakes up with a Jamaican accent Linda Walker has apparently developed foreign accents after waking up following a stroke.

By: wilful

wilful — Tue, 04 Jul 2006 23:38:14 -0800

Hey, if we're going one link BBC news posts, let me improve things with the wiki link: Foreign Accent Syndrome.

By: nightchrome

nightchrome — Tue, 04 Jul 2006 23:44:21 -0800

Metafilter: Stuff you saw three days ago everywhere else

By: Ryvar

Ryvar — Tue, 04 Jul 2006 23:49:39 -0800

UK stroke victim wakes up with a Jamaican accent *looks up from newspaper* "Maan, dis be worse dan de thing wit Jah-Jah Binks, maan." "No sheet, maan." (Yes, I'm going to Hell.)

By: freebird

freebird — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 00:00:47 -0800

nightcrome: impotently pissing in threads instead of coming up with his own.

By: sien

sien — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 00:08:15 -0800

Do people with Foreign Accent Syndrome over come up talking like pirates?

By: puke & cry

puke & cry — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 00:20:25 -0800

Because that would be awesome.

By: nightchrome

nightchrome — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 00:23:40 -0800

freebird: exactly

By: Alexandros

Alexandros — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 00:36:36 -0800

I hadn't seen it before, and for what it's worth, I'd only read about Foreign Accent Syndrome so this was the first time I got to see a video of someone who suffers from it. Thanks for the post. You can definitely hear what sounds like a Jamaican accent popping up in certain sentences. I also thought the anchors were a little quick to laugh at the woman when she was clearly not amused with what had happened to her. It be funny if it was temporary or if you could learn to control it, but if you have no say in the matter (no pun intended) it's gotta suck.

By: The Tensor

The Tensor — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 00:41:44 -0800

Foreign Accent Syndrome is probably misnamed. It should be called something like "scrambled phonology syndrome" because the accents that sufferers "acquire" only superficially resemble real-world accents. If you're interested, you can read the reactions of an honest-to-God phonologist to a previous story about FAS here.

By: Flashman

Flashman — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 00:58:54 -0800

The thing is though that a Geordie accent (my ex-stepdad was one) already sounds like a Jamaican accent. I'm not kidding, it does.

By: MrMustard

MrMustard — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 01:48:43 -0800

Flashman - Only if you slow it down. A lot.

By: randomination

randomination — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 01:51:37 -0800

Aye. Ah'm clemmin. Howay lass, less ge' a goot curry.

By: A189Nut

A189Nut — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 02:11:03 -0800

I'm a Geordie and to me she sounded like a Geordie with a speech impediment and halting delivery caused by partial paralysis due to a stroke...

By: Serial Killer Slumber Party

Serial Killer Slumber Party — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 02:58:01 -0800

Her accent is Jamaican? I thought it was more some kind of space potato-man.

By: horsemuth

horsemuth — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 03:21:34 -0800

Samson Simpson, l stick by my story ! l'm from Jamaica. lf l wasn't Jamaican, then why would l wear this hat? Hmm?

By: Dantien

Dantien — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 05:41:51 -0800

A Half-Baked reference? On MeFi? *the mind boggles* "They killed killer bee!"

By: isopraxis

isopraxis — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 06:12:25 -0800

i hear the stroke happened right neeh da beach.

By: PinkStainlessTail

PinkStainlessTail — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 06:32:31 -0800

If I'm ever in a coma, I'm using this as an excuse to talk like Borat when I wake up.

By: rosemere

rosemere — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 06:45:23 -0800

Mrs Walker said: "My sister-in-law said that I sounded Italian, then my brother said I sounded Slovakian and someone else said I sounded French Canadian. "But the latest is that I sound Jamaican, I just don't know how to explain it. "Everybody is obviously hearing me differently. ... She sounds different, and people map that difference to whatever makes sense to them. I can "hear" both French-Canadian and Jamaican in her voice only because she stresses the last syllable of words where most native English speakers don't, plus some of her consonants are clipped (the initial "h" in words disappears and her "th" sounds sometimes turn to "d"). Meanwhile, the "o" in "go" is still very Geordie. What I'm wondering is if FAS patients sing with an accent, given the claims that regional accents disappear in song. (Yeah, tell that to Billy Bragg.)

By: scblackman

scblackman — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 06:50:11 -0800

Hmm. Must be something about Jamaican accents. I take care of a young man who had huge bi-frontal brain tumor who started speaking with a Jamaican accent. I thought it might have been his Jamaican grandmother's influence, but perhaps not ...

By: slimepuppy

slimepuppy — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 07:22:57 -0800

Rosemere makes a good point about her just sounding different and the listener's interpretation playing a large part in 'placing' the accent. I get to play this all the time as my (English) accent is a bizarre amalgamation of Finnish, American English, British English and my personal intepretation on how things should be pronounced. No additional brain trauma required to confuse the hell out of people.

By: derbs

derbs — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 07:47:51 -0800

*sucks teeth* blood clart

By: qvantamon

qvantamon — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 08:46:52 -0800

Thus proving that brain-damaged accent is always the same, whether the damage is caused by a stroke or excessive pot smoking. *runs* /Any offense contained in this comment should be considered a bonus.

By: Chuckles

Chuckles — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 10:10:28 -0800

The woman was interviewed on As It Happens last night - starts at 17:18 of part 1.

By: jouke

jouke — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 10:24:27 -0800

Man, so that's what I have! I woke up this morning and I spoke english with a dutch accent. It's in my brain...!

By: wfc123

wfc123 — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 10:58:44 -0800

So THAT's what happened to Madonna...

By: mmkhd

mmkhd — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 12:32:15 -0800

I don't know how pretentious Madonna is, but when I lived in the US for a year, I acquired an American accent. Now back in Germany listening to BFBS broadcasts (British forces radio), I seem to have moved back to the British pronounciation I learned in school. ( but the r seems to stay)

By: PinkStainlessTail

PinkStainlessTail — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 12:35:22 -0800

I don't know how pretentious Madonna is, but when I lived in the US for a year, I acquired an American accent. If memory serves, Madonna's bizarre new accent showed up before she was living in the UK.

By: mmkhd

mmkhd — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 12:40:49 -0800

And in addition I want to say that Madonna has been overall bizarre for a long time now.

By: saturnine

saturnine — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 14:52:00 -0800

When this came up on the radio at work, my Jamaican co-worker pointedly said that her accent sounded nothing like anything he had ever heard. Take that as you will.

By: Decani

Decani — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 17:50:50 -0800

But... is she feelin' irie an' t'ing, mon? OH SHIT! I've had one too!

By: sunshinesky

sunshinesky — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 19:21:51 -0800

I call FARK on this one.

By: krinklyfig

krinklyfig — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 20:14:04 -0800

The voices in my head sound like Groundskeeper Willie.

By: spiderwire

spiderwire — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 23:18:51 -0800

"They killed killer bee!" It's "They killed Killer, B!" My god. krinklyfig: "It's the Shinning!"

By: TwelveTwo

TwelveTwo — Thu, 06 Jul 2006 02:48:26 -0800

But what if this happens to a mime?