Manchester (Mancunian/Manc) Dialect
Common occupations: Factory workers, sheep farmers
Geography: Scotland is to the north of the region
Major dialects: Cumbrian, Northumbrian, Geordie, Pitmatic, Tesside, Yorkshire, Lancashire, Liverpool
Dialects of focus: Yorkshire and Liverpool
Characteristics:
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Pitch rises towards the end of phrases, especially on words requiring emphasis. Note how Gigi’s voice pitch rises towards the climax of her story.
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Consonants (k,
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Characterized by “northern vowels.” Manchester over-enunciates vowel sounds (this is what makes it destinct from other northern regions). Pay particular attention to Gigi’s vowels at the beginning of the recording provided below!
Supporting Recordings/Videos:
Accent Challenge (Male, Manchester): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zzpvU4PBCv8
Accent Challenge (Male, Manchester): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5KVn6cfNUo
Spoken Word Poem re: slang (Male, Manchester): http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/argh-kid-national-poetry-day-11991211
Examples:
Daphne Moon in Frasier
Images:
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A musical version of Gigi’s story has been transcribed. Follow along as you listen to the recording. Observing how Gigi’s pitch rises and falls while telling the story can help you make more informed intonation decisions as you develop your own character’s patterns of speech.
Note that Gigi is from Buxton in Darbyshire, which is near Manchester.
GIGI TRANSCRIPTION
Ɛʌm, ðʌ stori. Ɛʌm, wʌns wƐn ɑi wʌz lɑik sIkstin æn’ mɑi
Uh the story. Um, once when I was like sixteen and my
mɑm hƐd gʌn ʌwƐi so ɑi hæd ðʌ hæus tu mɑisƐ(w)f
mom had gone away so I had the house to myself
ɑi wƐnt æut drInkIŋ wIθ mɑI frƐn’s æn’ ðƐn ɑI ræn
I went out drinking with my friends and then I ran
Intu mɑI Ɛks. hi wʌs wIθ ðʌ gƐl hi— Ɛʌm, kors ɑi
into my ex. He was with the girl he— um, course I
wʌs oldʌ(r) ækshuli— hi tʃitid ɑn mi wIθ so ɑI wʌs trɑ/iIn’
was older actually-- he cheated on me with so I was trying
tu gƐɁ ʌwƐi frʌm hIm æn’ wɔkt Intu ʌ lɑmpost æn’
to get away from him and walked into a lamppost and
gɑt nɑk’d æut æn’ hIs bƐst frƐnd hæd tu kƐri mi
got knocked out and his best friend had to carry me
hʌum ɑl ðʌ wƐi ʌp ðʌ stƐps
home all the way up the steps