THE COCKNEY ACCENT

1. THE COCKNEY ACCENT

2. Phonetical features that differ from RP a)Vowels: - [i:]  [i:] ([mi:]  [mi:]) -  [u:]  [u] ([du:]  [du]) -  [e]  [] ([get]  [gt]) -  [ı]  [e] ([ıf]  [ef])

3. b) Diphthongs: - [a]  [a]/ [] ([mal]  [mal]) -  [e]  [] ([pep]  [pp]) -  [a]  [:] ([tan]  [t:n])  tendency to centralise back vowels and diphthongs and a tendency to rounding (“nasalisation”)

4. c) Consonants: -  ‘h’- dropping (‘ouse) -  ‘g’- dropping word finally (doin’) or pronounced as a ‘k’ in words such as “nothink” -  intrusive ‘r’ (“Maria Ann”  “Maria ran”) -  old Cockney: interchange of ‘w’ and ‘v’ (“wery cold vater”) -  glottaling of ‘p’, ’t’, ’k’ word- medially and –finally (“What a lot of little bottles”  [w] -  ‘th’ is pronounced as ‘f’ (voiceless) and ‘v’ (voiced) or word initially as ‘d’ in pronouns like “this” or “those” ( My farver finks dis) -  omission of ‘w’ in unaccented position and compound words (somewhat  summat) -  ‘l’ is pronounced as a semi- vowel /w/ when it is followed by a Velar /l/ (milk  [mıwk]) omission of unaccented syllables (‘sted, ‘cause, fam’ly)

5. Some characteristic grammar of Cockney: -  Double negation (“ I don’t know nothing about it”) -  3rd person sing. ‘s’ attached to other persons ( similar use of ‘is’ and ‘was’  “The blokes is goin’ to de pictures”) -  use of unorthodox superlatives (“worser”) -  Adjectives used as Adverbs (“it must be done quick”) -  Possessive pronouns modelled on ‘mine’ (“ourn”, “theirn”, “hern”) -  Reflexive pronouns modelled on ‘myself’ (“He thinks a lot of hisself”) -  ‘that’ is replaced by ‘what’ in phrases like “ a bloke what I knows” rhyming slang (“Britneys” = beers)

6. Some characteristic Cockney vocabulary - stretchers = lies -  beak = nose -  chap = friend -  swop = exchange -  choaker = tie -  screwed = drunk to mug = to rob