Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Stoney Breyer" <stoneyb AT touchwood.net>]

> the clearest american accent I have ever heard 
> was that of an old friend from Georgia.

Probably because Southern US dialects, like British dialects, employ a
much wider tonal range - pitch accent accompanies and in part replaces
the monotonous and oppressive stress accent characteristic of other US
dialects. Every teacher I've spoken with has observed British and Irish
dialects are mastered more easily by speakers of the Southern dialects
than by Midwestern or Northeastern speakers.

Stoney Breyer
Writer (and Southerner)/Touchwood, Inc.