Reaction To Newfoundland English (Newfinese)
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- Опубликовано: 18 сен 2023
- Reaction To Newfoundland English - How to Speak Newfinese | Canada Accent and Language
In this video I react to Newfoundland English - How to Speak Newfinese | Canada Accent and Language
In this video I react to Newfoundland English accent and dialect, and how it is spoken in the Canadian province of Newfoundland
#canada #language #reaction
Original Video - • Newfoundland English E...
Once when I was in a Chinese restaurant, there was a gentleman from Newfoundland and a gentleman from Quebec sitting at the next table. The gentleman from Quebec spoke English but it was obvious his original spoken language was French. When the server came to take their order, it was obvious her original spoken language was Mandarin. That had to be one of the funniest things I ever heard. The Newfy had to act as a translator even though everyone was speaking English.
Oh man I had to do this at work with a man from the Philippines and another from China. We were all speaking English, but I had to translate between them.
My god, a Newfie translating English…
What a clown show that must’ve been eh?
That's hilarious! What a great experience to have lived, hahaha!
Yes! I had this experience talking with a Nigerian lady, years ago, recent immigrant to Canada. Throughout our conversation, her Nigerian husband would literally repeat what I had just said, exactly word-for-word. And she would understand completely!
Some people really struggle hearing past an accent.
this is part of what i love about english. everyone has their own way of talking, and youre lying if you say it doesnt take some getting used to to understand a new accent. so many people choose to be ignorant and never improve their understanding of accents and vice versa, many with accents dont try to emphasize what theyre saying or pronounce it properly, and not learning that only hurts them.
As a Newfoundlander - I really appreciate you taking the time to review our quirky dialect.
Eh, b'y.
Missed the part where Newfies will argue politics until the boats come home.
@@normanmccollum6082i legit came here to say that. Eh b'y
same here!
I have never been to Newfoundland but I do live in Canada (Alberta). I worked with many Newfoundlanders over the years so I got used to their accents. They are easier to understand in person and are some of the nicest, funniest people I have ever worked with. I absolutely love it when American channels, especially news outlets, used closed captioning when people from the Maritimes and especially Newfoundland speak. On an side note it is nice to see someone interested in Canada. This is such a beautiful and interesting country and I enjoy your channel.
I used to live in Alberta too, and I noticed that there were so many Newfoundlanders working in the oilfields that even the local rig workers were picking up Newfie slang.
Though I've heard the trade off is that a lot of Newfies go back home with Alberta attitudes...
I'm from Nova Scotia, and have been to Newfoundland a few times, it's the Labrador folk that are hard to understand, Newfie's are (maybe its just living so close) pretty plain by comparison
@PenneySounds Alberta attitudes. What's that? I'm a newfie in BC so I'm curious what that means.
Thanks :)
@@colette6984 Albertans tend to be competitive ladder-climbers, conservative, and kind of egotistical. Basically every negative trait of Americans is also common in Alberta.
@@PenneySoundsNot all of us are like that. Grew up here and spent time in BC, Europe and the US and I think Albertan's as a whole are pretty darn nice lol.
I'm a Newfoundlander and my boyfriend is from Ontario. When we first met, I always used my 'customer service' voice but I upped my pronounciation even more to hide my accent. He recently just visited again and we stopped to meet my best friend at her boyfriend's hockey game. We were talking in the parking lot for a long time after, and one thing to know about her is that she is from the Burin Peninsula- their accents are crazy. So, being around her has definitely strengthened my accent in some ways, and he heard what I actually sound like for the first time in 2 years😂He was dying laughing, couldn't believe I hide it so well lol. I was always mocked for my accent when gaming which is why I began hiding it, but I'm now very proud of being from here and I love my accent!
I had a coworker who was a Newfie. The sweetest guy you could ever meet. A typical story from him sounded like “She hears a noise, so I goes downstairs to see what she was… I couldn’t see nothin’, and so I calls up to the wife and I says “I don’t sees nothin”, so I goes back upstairs and I climbs in me bed and I says “if ya hears something again, you’se checkin’ “
Exactly like that! :) I've had a lot of Newfie friends, love the way they tell a story, but when they speak fast with each other I'm totally lost. I have a lot of Irish friends and doesn't take too long to understand how the cadence is amazingly similar
Cute, nearly perfect, except with the last line, "if ya eaars somethin' agaiin, you're gonna be checkin,' would be more proper. 😀
Yous means the plural of you. A proper way to say it would be, "where are yous goin?"
Yeah I would say "yous is checking". - Newfoundlander
@@bradlanger Really? Sounds wrong to me now. Maybe, I’ve been away too long.
I worked with someone from Newfoundland. She slowly taught us Newfinise by sharing a meme with us “Newfie word of the day”. They were hilarious. I am from Ontario and people from NL are highly regarded here for their niceness and hospitality.
Awesome sense of humor, and not a shy one in the bunch.
All through my grandmother's funeral service I kept thinking, "Where I did they find an Irish Anglican in Toronto?" Later I learned that he was from Newfoundland.
spot on haha
My father's people were of Irish descent and were Anglicans. They were from northern New Brunswick. I guess you meant the accent though. the accent wasn't as Irish as the Newfoundland accent is. Some weird pronunciations though.
Used to work with a fellow from Newfoundland, thought he was Irish for almost a year 😂
I am from Newfoundland and I absolutely LOVE this video! Our dialects (and yes, there are several) vary in different parts of Newfoundland where the original settlers hailed primarily from Ireland, England, France, Wales, and yes, some some hints of influence from Scotland . As with much of North American settlement by Europeans, the land and fishing rights were fiercely fought over between the English and French for centuries, with England eventually winning. French is still the first language in some areas of the west coast of Newfoundland, and there remain two islands off the south coast which are actually a French principality, St. Pierre et Miquelon. The people there are of French nationality, you will pass through France Customs office and you need a passport to travel there from Canada.
Because of isolation of small fishing villages around Newfoundland, many of our people had little contact with people other than those in their own and a few neighbouring villages easily reached by boat. There were often no roads to these communities, and the people's dialects remained basically the same as the counties from which their original settlers hailed for hundreds of years. Local dialects have softened significantly since the arrival of radio and movie theaters in the early decades of the 1900s. The advent of confederation with Canada in 1949 brought many changes, such as construction of roads to many towns and villages; television into the 1950s and 1960s; resettlement of tiny communities into larger towns and urban centres to facilitate ease of providing government services (or more modern government-subsidized services) such as connecting highways and sideroads, ferry or coastal supply boats to surrounding island communities, police and legal services, schools, medical and dental services, electricity and communication services such as telephone, radio and television. Exposure to media from the rest of Canada and the saturation of entertainment and news media giants from the U.S.A. have also heavily influenced our culture as a whole, especially in terms of the loss of local dialects. Immigration from other nations, emigration of Newfoundlanders to other countries (and their almost certain return to retire in Newfoundland) are also having an effect on the language used in our province. Like you said in the video, Mert, you find yourself softening your dialect to more generic form of English so as to make yourself more easily understood. As more foreigners arrive in Newfoundland and Labrador, we are adopting a more generic North American accent so that people whose first language is not English will have an easier time communicating with the friendly and welcoming locals.
The folks in colourful costumes/disguises are known as Mummers (also called Jannies in some areas). The practice of "mummering" (or "jannying") comes from an old English tradition and occurs during any or all of the 12 Days of Christmas, where disguised people knock on your door and come inside to entertain with singing, dancing, recitations or storytelling with disguised voices. In return for the entertainment, the delighted homeowners provide them with refreshments (food, liquor, beer, etc.). Part of the fun is people guessing who is behind the mask of each Mummer or Janny! The group then move on to the next house in the community, picking up newly-costumed characters from the houses they visit (or dropping off members of the group who have had too much drink to keep going!). Everyone from children to the most elderly members of the community join in the fun (with the young ones enjoying soft drinks or cordials/syrups instead of alcoholic beverages, of course)!
Edited to correct a number of grammar/punctuation errors. Sorry! ☺️
Wow, that alone is a fantastic lesson in Newfoundland lore and cultural change. I’ve learned so much from your comments, and I’m sad that Newfoundland has lost some of its unique vocabulary and strong dialect. I love listening to Newfoundlanders accents. I grew up in Alberta and now live in BC, but my father’s’ heritage is Newfie (I hope that’s not offensive to you, please advise). He and his two sisters went back to Newfoundland to discover their heritage and meet relatives. When my Dad went to a shop for directions, the locals thought he was his cousin, the resemblance was so close. They loved their time there.
@janmitchell641 Thank you for your lovely comment! How thoughtful of you to ask about whether I feel using the word "Newfie" is offensive. I have chosen not to use the word, not because I personally find it offensive, but because so many people have used it in a hurtful way to insinuate that Newfoundlanders are stupid and ignorant, some people feel it demeans them. We, as a group, clearly are no more or less intelligent than any other group of people. Rather than use a word that is hurtful to some, though your use of it is obviously not intended to be, I chose to use the word Newfoundlander.
I was amused to read about the strong physical resemblace between your dad and his cousin. I've noticed a similarity between my siblings' children and their cousins even two or three generations removed! Good genes, I'd say!
@carolmurphy7572 My mum and dad both are from Nova Scotia they moved out west before I was born, so anytime I can spend time enjoying someone from around home I adore it. Your information and kindness reminds me why I love it so much. You make me proud of where I came from and honestly a little homesick. 💛🧜♀️💛
@@pomona.remembers Aww, what a lovely thing to say! Thank you so much! 💞
I was really glad you gave the explanation of the mummers. I was disappointed it didn't come up in the video, since the picture was used. Very informative comments.
I worked an entire summer in the deep woods with long periods isolated with another young man and two older Newfoundlander prospectors. I barely understood what they were saying even when they were singing songs I knew! But they were the friendliest, most hardworking and funniest characters I ever met. With that said when the summer came to an end my parents were shocked I had a bit of a Newfoundland accent for the next few weeks. I could understand them well by the end and still think of them and that time in my life very fondly.
They maybe the punchline of many jokes but they are the most generous people you will ever encounter. They will literally give you the clothes off their backs and open their homes to make you feel welcome.
The reason they're usually in the punchline is because they write most of the jokes!
Agreed. 👍🏻
truth, newfies were the only regiment to be given the royal prefix in world war 1. You think any of them was ashamed of the word Newfie? get on wit ya sillyness
I was drinking with a Newf friend and he wondered where the stereotype came from in the first place. I offered my theory: Who else would leave such a beautiful place surrounded by the most amazing, kindest friendliest people you could ever hope to meet in order to come to a s-hole filled with pricks like this (Ontario) or Alberta for money? His reply: "A dumb Newfie like me!"
I am from Newfoundland and I had a job in Alberta. Modifying the way I speak was something I definitely had to do. The cadence of the conversation was sometimes painful. They speak much slower and announce every syllable. I would find myself finishing both sides of the conversation in my head.
Now that is hilarious!!
We speak at an average, normal pace bud, you guys speak way too fast. Slow it down eh, what’s the friggin’ rush? And we don’t pronounce every syllable all the time. When we’re being formal we dry it up, but when we’re crackin’ cold ones and hackin’ darts with a couple buddies out in the bush, we have a pretty good ‘Berda accent that comes out.
When I travelled down to Panama for vacation I met an elderly English couple and after chatting at the resort bar for a while they asked me if I was Scottish. I don’t sound anything like a Scot. On the way hope I had a layover in Vegas for a couple of days and when I was chatting with a local ticket booth lady while I was buying tickets for a show, she asked if I was Irish. I don’t sound anything like a Potato. People say we don’t have an accent, but when the English think we’re Scottish and the Yanks think we’re Irish I’d damn we’ll say we fuckin’ do, and nobody outside of Canada has any clue what it actually sounds like.
@@JesusFriedChristWhy ya bothered about that?😂 fucking keep up!
Except they hate when you pronounce Calgary "Cal-gary" instead of "Calgry"! I do it just to pizz em off! People in Toronto mostly pronounce it "Tronno", but don't really care how anyone else says it. Quebec is the best though! They prefer the pronunciation to be "Kay-beck", will let you get away with "Ka-beck", but call the place "Q-beck" or "Kwee-beck" and their blood starts to boil!
I was born and raised in Newfoundland and have lived here most of my life. There’s a game commonly played when you get a bunch of people together from across the province (orientation day at uni for example) where everyone tries to guess what specific little town everyone else is from because you can always tell by their speech.
I did live in Alberta for a time and people in the prairies speak so much slower. It was…painful at times trying to keep myself from just replying to what I knew they were going to say before they finished saying it.
As for dialect switching, most Newfoundlanders are masters at it for sure. I can speak standard English and you’d never know I was from NL except for the slight lilt in the way I say “ar” sounds like in car, but as soon as I’ve had a few drinks or I’m talking to someone else from NL or if I get excited it comes on strong as anything 😂
Fun Fact: we’re the only place outside of Ireland to have our own distinct dialect of Gaelic though it is a dead language today.
If you mean Irish Gaelic, yeah absolutely. There's still ~2,000 people in Cape Breton that speak their own distinct dialect of Scottish Gaelic as well though.
@@JeremyLeviand two of them have moved to Qualicum Beach Vancouver Island and are the only two people I know of on Vancouver Island that speak Gaelic, but Yep they're from Cape Breton
I lived in Alberta for a year as well. Jesus Mary and Joseph those folks talk slow. (No offence to our western neighbours).
@@adamjchafeWe talk at an average normal pace, you guys talk way too fast. Slow it down eh, what’s the rush?
@@JesusFriedChrist I got places to be!
I'm from Cape Breton Island. Like Newfoundland it has its own dialect which sounds very similar but is different. We have a Gaelic college, highland games and celtics festivals. Heavy French, English and Celtic roots there.
Yes thats right. My mom from there too.
And the Gaelic in Cape Bretton has a very old pronunciation.
Don't forget the Mi'qmak influence as well
Sometimes it can be hard for us newfies and cape bretoners to tell each others accents apart too. So similar.
There’s a Gaelic College!
A Newfie walks into a lumber yard and says, "I's building an 'ouse bye' and needs me some a dat der too be far."
The clerk says "You mean 2 by 4?"
The Newfie says "Yes bye', dat's da stuff."
The clerk asks "Well how long do you need it?"
The Newfie with a puzzled look responds "Well bye', I's buildin an 'ouse wit it so I's gonna need it for awhile."
😂😂😂❤
It was early in the new year up in Sn'Antny and the town was goin round picking up da Christmas trees. Buddy heard a knock on he's door and when he answered one feller said "Hi dere, we're da tree people."
Buddy looks around right stunned & responds "But dere's only two a ya?"
Best ... 💯
I'm Australian. I spent a couple of weeks in St Johns 20 years ago. The language amazed me. One rainy afternoon I walked past a woman at a bus stop. She asked me a question which I didn't understand. In my confusion I just said I was going to a shop. Ten minutes later I realised that she had asked me whether the number three bus had gone past yet.
It's one of the most interesting places I have ever been.
So glad you had a great time! Maybe it’s time to come back to visit! We love come-from-aways :)
@@DaniHMcV I'd love to do so, but I now live in New Zealand. Newfoundland is as far away as it is possible to be.
@@brucekercher45 Yes, it really is on the opposite side of the planet, but also very beautiful too. :)
I dated a girl from Newfoundland. One on one I could understand most everything with her or any member of her immediate family. Large family gatherings with multiple generations, was a different beast!! I sat in silence most of the time attempting to gather enough information to have even the slightest understanding.
I learned to smile and nod. These were now my in-laws.
Yes, that's when the old language and dialect would be full force, and it would not resemble standard English.
In the 1980's I used to work with girl from Newfoundland at a company I worked at before. She was friendly but when she spoke Newfie English I could not understand anything she said.
We Newfoundlanders especially appreciate it when people (you too Mert!) actually pronounce the name of our province correctly...Newfoundland rhymes with Understand (same emphasis on last syllable). It is NOT Newfinlund.
I live in Ontario and it annoys me when people mispronounce it as well. I'll give foreigners one chance, then I'll correct them, but if they continue to say it wrong it bugs me. Especially when they say "New Found Land" with the emphasis on "found".
@johnp5990 same and I'm from berta
The annoying thing is you can look up instructional videos on how to pronounce it, and they always go with the "New Finland" version, treating it as the "official" pronunciation, even though no Newfoundlander and almost no Canadian would ever say it like that.
I’m an Ontarian, never even been to Newfoundland and it drives me NUTS when people pronounce it Newfinlin or even worse, New-FOUND-lin
I’m Canadian. West Coast. AND I have NEVER heard
Newfinlund?!?! That would drive me out of my mind! Cheers to the East Coast!!! Maybe one day I’ll make it there. ❤
One of my favourite Newfoundland bands is Great Big Sea. Check out the live version of "Lukey" where you can also see the love, fun & noise Newfoundlanders can make.
Excellent suggestion! I would follow up with "England" which, ironically given it's title, is quintessentially Newfoundland.
@@dbadilotti Great idea....a beautiful GBS song!! I was also thinking about Great Big Sea's version of Mari Mac, as with it's Scottish background I think Mert would love it.
Great Big Sea sucks!!!!!! I was born and raised on the Island and I cannot stand them…..
Their cover of REM's End Of The World and their own song Mari-Mac are some of the best and a true skill to pull off live.
I can understand one Newfoundlander, but if you put more than one in the room, it's over!
Was born in NL. Mother a Newfoundlander and Father a French Canadian. Was on a plane at six months old to Europe (military). Accents have always been a part of my life, and I love it. Dialects and accents are beautiful - just listen! My husband is Croatian-Canadian, another accent which my ear adapted to easily. Don't judge, just listen.
“Don’t judge, just listen”. I think that’s really good advice.
I have a really good ear for accents and manners of speaking and have to consciously stop myself from falling into them for fear that people will think I'm imitating them. Spent three weeks in Louisiana when I was a teen and when I returned home, all my friends asked, "Why are you talking like that?" I had no idea and have been very careful since. 😅
😘
My husband also has a Newfie Mom and a Quebecois Father. I was born and raised in Newfoundland. I say he was brought up in the best of both worlds and he is very lucky. ❤❤
I'm from Newfoundland, and it's so great to see a video that explains our dialect. A little footnote on that: depending on where in the province you visit, the accent kind of changes as well. For example, if you go down the Southern Shore/Irish Loop area, the accent is very much closer to your Cork/Killarney Irish accent. But if you go out to the West coast by Saint George's or the Port au Port Peninsula, the accent becomes more French-derived. There's just so much diversity within the dialects of our province, while also being diverse in itself from everywhere else in North America. It's kind of amazing.
With respect to that point you made about us having to articulate to speak better with people from other parts of the country, I 100% feel that. If I'm talking to someone in a professional manner over the phone, or to one of my relatives from out of the province, I find I have to articulate a lot more than when I'm just hanging out with the b'ys.
We also love visitors! If you're going to come here for a visit, the best time of year I find is between the summer and fall. Summer if you want to feel comfortable, fall if you want to see how beautiful everything is when the colours change on the trees.
My late wife was from Deer Lake Newfoundland.When we were together(we lived in Ontario),she spoke with no accent.But when she was on the phone with her sister who lived on the Rock,then the accent came out very strongly.When you visit the Rock,you can’t help but eventually talk like the Newfs.”Oh go on with you now”,lol.
Me too! My young daughters used to stand around and listen to my phone conversation with my family in NL slip right back to NL dilect
I lived in goose bay, Labrador for w years. A saying they had was “Oh me nerves!” I loved it!
Yep mine comes and goes too. When I get around my sister it realllllly comes out. Lol
Yes b'y!!! 💯
I've been married to a newfy for over 5 years and have spent my fair share of time in newfoundland. I have to say each small town, sometimes only separated by a few kms the dialect is different and can make you question what exactly you just heard. In all honesty it's a lot of fun and a great way to communicate.
I’m from Nova Scotia but when I lived in Toronto people thought I was from da rock.
My dad and his siblings are from Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia and they all say 'Right Quick'.
The funny thing is the fella in the first part of the video lives about a 5 minute minute walk from me.
That’s so cool
As a Cape Bretoner ( we are the island just south of Newfoundland ) I can testify that Newfinese is widely spoken here too . Most folks here are of Scottish / Irish descent , I’m guessing it is something brought from the motherland .
I gotta say, I've mistaken a few of ye for us Newfies before. Even got as far as asking what town they were from lol
yup
Jeet yet?
Cape Breatoners are just Newfoundlanders who rowed over to Nova Scotia and decided "this is far enough."
We are basically cousins.
Hey caper!
My dad lived in St. John's when I was a teenager, and whenever I hear the accent I get nostalgic for a place I'm not actually from. Every time i went back to Toronto after a summer in Newfoundland it took me a month to remember that cars weren't going to stop for me (or offer me a lift) if I was trying to cross the street.
I love that story! We have much to learn from our Newfie cousins.
My dad used to live in Ontario so I did the opposite. I’d go to Ontario for the summer and when I came home it was always shocking how different the two places were and still are. And mudder would get right rotted with my Ontario accent lol.
If I remember correctly, those folks in Newfoundland in the costumes were taking part in their version of a Mummer's festival. As for understanding and speaking Newfinese when you are a visitor to that province. There is a direct correlation between your ability to speak and understand the language and the amount of screech you have consumed during your stay!😁🍁
The people dressed up were considered "mummers". Often seen around Christmas time. People dress up in ridiculous homemade costumes and go door to door, kinda like halloween but in this case usually the homeowner would invite you to have a kitchen party and good ol cup of tea.
There is a song that talks about it which is very popular in Newfoundland and I reference it every week when I hear a door knock.
ruclips.net/video/D8OPy7De3bk/видео.html&pp=ygUMbXVtbWVycyBzb25n
You're spot on about the screech. As for the costumes, we just call it mummering. Used to be very popular but unfortunately, not so much anymore. BTW, mummering and screech (or any liquor, lol) go hand in hand.
Yes, they are “mummers”, about to perform “mummering”. A Christmas to New Years tradition of visiting homes and trying to disguise yourself (you speak by breathing inward while vocalizing) until someone guesses who you are. It is also sometimes called “jannying”.
Alcohol absolutely fuels the neurones responsible for parsing Newfy. An alcohol fuelled haze of learning is the best type of learning when on the big island.
I moved back and forth from Toronto to Newfoundland.. I’m a born newfie and we are a very proud people .. we have held onto our heritage pretty strong and it’s a good wholesome way of life back home, most Newfies return home to retire and the others wish they could 😊 it’s not only a beautiful island but the people are beautiful too😉
also honest and funny 😌
I love Newfoundlanders. Everything about them - talk, humour, smarts, kindness, impish nature. The Mummers in the masks are a good example. This video was a great find. You're teaching me about my own country. Thanks!
My aunt was a war bride and was married to an American WWII Airforce officer. I remember they visited us in 1971 and I acted as the interrupter for my uncle. He had a problem understanding our unique style of speaking here in Newfoundland. I was eleven at the time. I also was their GPS when they were driving around St John's. I think I did a pretty good job. To put it in perspective my Uncle actually flew his own plane from Washington State to Newfoundland but relied on an 11 year old to navigate around St John's.
I grew up in Newfoundland. I moved to Ontario when I was 21, and got a job with a telecommunications company, talking to customers on the phone. So adjusting my accent and dialect to be able to communicate was essential. But I feel like I would quickly adopt the accent and dialect of any area. But as for the picture in this video of people dressed in masks and costumes, it's a tradition called Mummering. Basically holloween for adults, but done during the twelve days of Christmas, and instead of getting candy, they get booze. Wiki says its an old English Christmas custom.
I am from Western Canada and worked with several fellows from NL. One was better educated and spoke quite proper English, but get him drinking and he slipped deep into the Newfy accent. Also, when he was with other Newfs, his accent became more pronounced. Love the people. I have been there several times.
I grew up in Fort McMurray, Alberta, where thousands of Newfies moved in the 70s for work after the fisheries collapsed, so I went to school with so many of their children that they were actually the majority there. To this day, I'm actually still reasonably able to understand Newfie jib.
They knew things were in rough shape, but the collapse didn't happen until 1992. July 2nd, to be exact. 30,000 people lost their jobs overnight.
@@b.w.6535it sure was. My family was one of many that were affected by the collapse of the fishing industry. It was devastating to so many fishing communities.
I moved from Newfoundland to Ontario and let me tell you it was not easy trying to speak to people. I have lost most of my accent until I visit or talk to people from home. My mainlander husband after a week in Newfoundland returned to his work in Ontario and everyone thought he was a Newfie. He picked it up right quick.
Same here my Newfoundland born and raised husband had no accent anymore. But as soon as he lands in Torbay it’s back on.
I lived in Newfoundland for 6 years through high school. A few years after I moved I was talking to a good friend from Newfoundland and had difficulty understanding her, so much so that I had to ask her to slow down and we both had a good laugh.
The dialect of Irish spoken in Newfoundland is said to resemble the Munster Irish (Gaelainn na Mumhan) of the 18th century.
Mixed with West Country English. When in Dorset, the people sounded like Newfies, except every 3rd, or 4th word was said the standard "British" way instead.
@@klondikechris Well, I'd recommend you listen to the way that people from Wexford in Ireland speak, and things might drop into focus. Some of those 'West Country' things are common in certain parts of Ireland that have had longstanding English-speaking populations, like Wexford. To my ear, they sound like Wexford people with the odd Canadianism thrown in.
true, I am a Newfoundlander. My Irish ancestors came from Dungarvan, Co Waterford (Munster) and my English ancestors came form Dorset/Devon (West Country). It's not an uncommon mix of ancestry.
@@talideon I’ve also heard many Irish folk mention Newfie sounding like Kilkenny accents.
The dressed up characters with the pillow cases over their heads are called “mummers”. It’s a Christmas tradition where people would dress up and have a quick unexpected visit with neighbours of the community. They would ask to come inside then play music, dance around, and have a drink. There is a traditional mummers song that you could listen to, so you could see what it’s all about.
A lot of people get the Newfoundland pronunciation wrong, but the quicker you say Newfoundland, the more authentic it sounds.
The fastest and with the least enunciation possible. New'f'lan'.
The tradition comes from Ireland
Anyone who ever visits there will feel like “I finally got ‘home’!” God Bless Newfoundland!
( Scottish/Irish 3rd generation Canadian!)
♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️
My daughters were "down East" before covid, they said it felt like home, and had the same experience in Ireland.
I love the Newfoundland accent, the people even more. In Saskatchewan, I notice that I speak like a pirate, pronouncing every 'R' like it's capitalized. I lean into them.
Lmao so true, every syllable spoken very slowly. Tis painful, by
I worked with a guy who came to Ontario from Newfoundland, and one year at a Christmas party we had some drinks. As he drank his whisky and coke, the more he drank the clearer his English got better, soon he had hardly any accent.
Are you sure it wasn't the more you drank?
@@pageyjjj I’m sure, I wasn’t the only one to notice it was happening.
A friend I met in first year of college was from somewhere out in the country in NF. I'm from Southern ON. Between the accent, phrasing, speed and unfamiliar sayings/words.....for me it was a weird mix of completely understanding one sentence only to be baffled by a foreign language the next. It took weeks for me to fully understand him. He had zero issues going the other way. One of the nicest, friendliest and funniest dudes I've ever met.
Here is a chuckle for you. My husband is Finnish and we live here and he has a Finnish accent peppered with Newfinese. He loves it here.
I would love to hear that. the Finnish accent is really lovely but to my ears its so much different than newfinese. the mixture of the two must sound really interesting.
Lucky bugger. :)
Perrrrrrrrkele saatana paska der b’y.
I would like to hear that
@@JesusFriedChrist Are we on the tram in Helsinki... LOL
I had a buddy was from Newfoundland. He spoke Standard English and you couldn't tell he was a Newfie until you got him around his family. Then, the accent came out full force. It was pretty funny to hear him make the sudden switch as soon as he heard another Newfie.
My husband always makes fun of me for turning into a Newfie every time I am around my family lol
All the people I know who visited Newfoundland came back with HUGE smiles and cool stories. They also told me how very nice and welcoming people are. I wish I go one day. If a tourist ask me where to go In Canada, I would say Newfoundland. I'm from Québec.
I'm from New Brunswick and I would say the same.
@@reneedoiron7560 I have worked in New-Brunswick a few times. We were setting-up light and sound system in bars in Moncton, Fredericton, Bathurst and half a dozen more... Sweetest people I met. Can't say the same about Ontario.
@@ludwigvanzappa9548 Thanks for the great feedback!
My two sisters live in Orleans, and they also perceive a difference between Ontario and NB. When they come back home, they sometimes they get uptight about stuff (i.e. being quick in traffic and at the cash register, and getting to a reservation at a restaurant) and I have to remind them that "it's not like that here."
That being said, they also have some very kind and supportive neighbours in Orleans.
The English West Country, especially Devonshire and Dorset, was also a big contributor to Newfoundland English. If fact, most of the earliest settlers were from the southeastern counties of Ireland, and from Devonshire, with a sprinkling of Welsh, Cornish and Scots. When people say that Newfoundlanders "talk like pirates," it's usually the Devonshire influence they are referring to. When we think of pirates, we think of the actor Robert Newton, who used his own thick West Country accent to portray Long John Silver in the film Treasure Island. The places Newfoundlanders originally came from were always maritime ones, the haunts of sailors and fishermen. Historically, quite a few famous pirates were from Newfoundland or spent a good deal of time there. Seafaring tied Newfoundland to the Caribbean. Newfoundlanders are rum-drinkers.... their notoriously powerful "screech" is a blend of Jamaican rums bottled in Newfoundland. In exchange, Newfoundland sends salt cod to Jamaica. I once lived in an apartment (= flat) in Toronto, with a Newfoundland family on one side of me and a Jamaican family on the other. Both of them regularly boiled salt cod for supper, making it the most pungently aromatic floor in the building. Fortunately, I was raised on fish myself, so it was all good with me.
I'm from the Connaigre peninsula where our accent, cadence etc was heavily influenced by Somerset etc. Further that with an occupational/class dialect of fisherpeople.
@@Daniea3 we are your people. 😀
Loves it! ❤️ I was born and raised in Newfoundland, but now live in British Columbia. It was definitely a culture shock when I moved here in 2019. I absolutely do hide my real accent on a daily basis, but it's effortless for me to switch back. Especially when I call back home to my family, it comes out pretty fast! At work, whenever people find out I'm a Newfie they'd say "You're from Newfoundland??!? But you don't have an accent!!" because of how I hide it all the time... But the thing is, if I HAD the accent, they'd barely understand me lol. They also may not take me as seriously in my professional career because of the "silly" sounding accent. Years ago we were looked down on, nicknamed "goofy Newfies", so there's still some lingering sentiments in Canada, particularly with older gens. Thankfully, most people find it endearing nowadays!
Another little tidbit, we have a really strong sense of cultural identity, no matter if we still live on the island or not. For example, when a Newfoundlander happens to cross paths with another Newfoundlander on "the mainland" (the rest of Canada), there's an instant connection and sense of community, despite being total and complete strangers!
If you think our accent slaps, you should check out our music! 😁
Newfie here;
The costumes just after the 2 minute mark is from traditional "mummering". Newfoundlanders are a very festive people, especially around Christmas. It used to be tradition for groups of people in a community to dress up in whatever they had; wearing clothing that was too big, other peoples, other gendered, stuffed with bags/paper etc. they would visit houses in the community for a drink and a dance and see if anyone could figure out who they were. There are many songs written about mummering...worth a listen really.
Sadly, as time went on, some were taking advantage of the disguise and using it for less savory purposes. Random mummering was soon banned and related to a festival each year instead.
I'm sure I am not the first people to mention this, but we pronounce Newfoundland as you would "understand". So more like New-fin-land, with emphasis on the "a" in "land".
As for the gradient of dialect. 100%. I work in a professional environment where my speak is rather plain and "correct". Get out around the bay with a few beers in me and I can barely understand myself.
My son (from New Brunswick) worked in a mine as an engineer in Newfoundland. His surveyor was Mongolian who also spoke Mandarin and Cantonese. The only English he learned was from his time in rural Newfoundland.They used written notes a lot.
My father was of Newfoundland heritage, and I was lucky enough to go there on my college choir tour. They were the most generous and welcoming of any of the Canadian and American families we were billeted to, and yet they were some of the poorest. We sang in small churches all across the province, and one church group gave us an enormous lobster feast, which I’m sure they could ill afford. I’ll never forget my time there.
Our best friends are a wonderful couple where the wife was born and raised in Newfoundland and the husband was born and raised in Jamaica. Their day-to-day English is easily understood and tinted with their respective accents. However, once they get drinking or start speaking from someone back home, the accents and dialects come on thick! We love our Jamfie friends!
Love, love, love the Newfie accent. It is very distinctive from the rest of Canada. Cape Breton is also heavily accented. The rest of the Maritimes has an Irish lilt but not like the Newfoundlanders or the Cape Bretoners.
What's interesting is Cape Breton has a heavier Scottish influence culturally than Irish, but there's hardly any Scottish in the accent.
You’ll also find the irish a lot stronger in rural areas of the maritimes similar to the newfie accent, like rural NS and PEI have a noticeable accent but Halifax is fairly neutral. Then NB gets a lot of french influence especially north. I love the nuances of canadian accents deeply
As a Newfoundlander, I find it really funny when people from Ontario talk about our accent. They have such a crazy strong accent and weird dialect. When people poke fun at Canadian english they are really just talking about that weird southern Ontario/Midwest sound. No one else says "a-boot".
Cool to see so many different ways of speaking across Canada really.
@@adamjchafe They say it more like "abiwt", and so do most Newfoundlanders.
@@PenneySounds I can't really say I have heard it that way here in NL. "Ahb-out" would be closer.
But it still varies from town to town I imagine.
Mummers. They go house to house in disguise having drinks
It's true. I am a Newfoundlander. Newfoundland was originally called Talamh an Éisc. The accent is called Hiberno-English. The costumes are called Mummers.(Mummering) The dialect within Newfoundland depends on the region. In some places the Irish settled and became the dominant local dialect. In other places where English settled, you are more likely to hear an English dialect (from England). There are also French Acadians, European French (the islands of St Pierre et Miquelon remains a part of France). There are also Indigenous Peoples there, too.
Most of the French communities along the west coast of Newfoundland was from France, not Acadian French. We have little to negligible Acadian French in Newfoundland, not originally at least. When I went through french in elementary and high school in Newfoundland (we didn’t have middle school back then, high school started in Grade 7), we learned Parisian french because the french associated with Newfoundland was from Europe, not Acadia or French Ontario.
Hi@@DaniHMcV New France once encompassed all of the modern Maritime provinces along with the island of Newfoundland. De facto, the original French settlers of Newfoundland came from the same place in France as all of the other French Settlers. Of course they all started as European French colonists and over time, the remaining French, those that were not ethnically cleansed after the English won the French/English wars, became known as Acadians. Those that went to America became known as "Cajuns"
I don’t believe it was originally called it, it I was the Irish name for it.
@@Pkeats817 Named “Talamh an Éisc” (the Land of the Fish) by the many Irish fishermen who arrived on its shores in the 18th Century, Newfoundland is the only place outside Europe that has an Irish language name. It reiterates that within the museum in St John's called The Rooms. I am sure it has had many names and the Indigenous People of Newfoundland certainly had their own name, too. So I was referring to the most recent wave of Settlers, the Irish
@@scotttizzard8526 Yes, I meant it wasn’t the official Name of the island. It was their reference. That’s what I was trying to say. 🙂
I live and was born in the south east part of Alberta, Canada. My Dad came from Ireland and became a farmer. I didn't hear his accent. My friends couldn't understand him at times so I'd have to translate. I went to Newfoundland on a holiday. Newfoundland people were so very nice and kind. Trying to get in a pub for dinner and because they had a band. No empty tables but the patrons I didn't know came over and had me sit at their table. I would do that for someone but I don't know how many other people would in Alberta.
The people at the start who are all dressed up in colourful outfits (the masks are pillow cases usually) are called Mummers. They go around to houses during or near the holidays and ask to be let in "Any mummers 'loud in?!" and as far as I remember they sing songs, dance, joke around, and just carry on in general for a while. They can look scary, for sure, but the entire idea is rooted in spreading joy to others. I'm originally from Newfoundland, and while I don't go back there nearly as often as I'd like, it'll always be home to me. It's a beautiful place!
- Andrew
Was born in Cape Breton, but moved away. Had to adapt to the place I live in because people could not understand my accent, yet when I go back for vacations and such, the accent slips on like a nice sweater. especially talking to Newfies. Some of the best people in Canada. Great music also.
Newfies and Cape Bretoners are truly the kindest folk.
@@FernBlackwood1995 stop it, you’re embarrassing me.🤪
Best examples of Newfinese is by the music/comedy Buddy Whassisname and the other fellers.
On another note, when the Irish movie The Commitments came out it was subtitled in Canada, but my Nfld friends thought that was ridiculous because they understood every word!
I like your comment. "Everyone has their own way of speaking. No one is more right than anyone else."
One of the weird parts of being from Newfoundland is that there are many words I STILL, at age 32, am finding our are just Newfoundland words, only way to really find out it by speaking to people on the mainland and realizing that they have no idea what I'm talking about hahaha.
The photo of the costumes at the beginning of the video was our Christmas tradition called "Mummering" where you go out as a group, dressed up in these costumes with the intention of disguising yourself as best you can (adding pillows to disguise your shape etc) and go visiting people in their homes during Christmas. Part of the fun is trying to guess who each person is, but there is also a lot of music, dancing, and drinking involved. In the last 15-ish years it has taken over as a more public all-ages daytime event called the "Mummers Festival" which still involves the dressing up, music, and dancing, but it also involves a parade through town and a couple of weeks of workshops/events to keep the tradition alive. I've heard differing stories of where this comes from, but I watched a BBC documentary a couple of years ago about Christmas in England in the 1500s and I noticed they had a similar tradition back then called "Mumming" where people would dress up at Christmas and go to peoples houses looking for sweets! Kind like a combo of Halloween and Mummering lol
Hard to not like the province and the people, lovely bunch
I am a Newfoundlander. My dad met my mom when he was in the Navy, stationed in Halifax. Dictation is a big thing for my mom. I still (at 56) get the glare of death if I slip and call her Mudder .😂
(I think you meant diction, not dictation.) Might have been an autocorrect thing.......
I am from Newfoundland. Growing up we used to say "Me Mudders and Fadders" as if we had multiples of parents but we only meant our mother and father.
My wife and I moved to Newfoundland 15 years ago and 2 our our children are born here. The scale of dialect ‘thickness’ is spot on. Even we do it, having picked up much of the vernacular over the years.
I'm from Nova Scotia, and even just being beside Newfoundland we take a lot of inspiration from the newfies in how we talk and act. Even then, I remember not too long ago watching a play where they spoke in a heavy dialect and I couldn't understand them 😂 But much love to our neighbours ❤
My husbands family came from newfoundland. We live in Ontario. My knowlege about this most unique province is mostly from tv. This hour has 22 minutes. Rock Solid builds. Just for laughs. Amazing people. Amazing culture. We are very proud of our Newfie countrymates and count ourselves blessed and enriched by their inclusion in our very diverse country.
I have been to Newfoundland. I live in British Columbia but grew up in NSW Australia. It reflected,to me,the same Irish influence with which I grew up. In fact, I would go so far as to say that I felt that I was at home among these “ Newfies” as we affectionately call them. They are truly wonderful people and, if I had to choose another Canadian province to live in, I’d choose Newfoundland, apart from the winters, that is😂. I had no trouble understanding them.
Please be aware that some Nfldrs detest being called "Newfies", however affectionately.
Winter there can be brutal. I grew up in Quebec, and while winter could be tough and nasty, it was rarely murderous.
I am a Newfoundlander, I don't mind a bit of slagging. It's all good craic after all, luh. In ireland if they don't like you they are very polite to you. If they like you, you will be slagged. I think being called a Newfie is not worth gettin' your knickers in a twist@@hilariousname6826
I work many years with a guy from Jamaica.When dealing with the trades I often had to be the interpreter because I worked with him for years
I grew up on the west coast, but between the Newfies I’ve met and from TV, I’ve always loved the dialect. It definitely gets easier to understand the more you listen to it!
A few words/phrases have migrated in some parts, but definitely not everywhere. Could’ve just been that I grew up near a large Navy base, so we always had Canadians from every part of Canada.
There's a lot of the same type of stuff in most of the Atlantic provinces, most notably Nova Scotia. I find folks from NS and folks from Newfoundland & Labrador have a really easy time understanding each other.
We do but there’s no doubt that most Scotians absolutely don’t sound newfie unless around cape breton.
Can confirm as Nova Scotianer. The closer you get to the south shore the less you find that, though.
Agree entirely! @@FernBlackwood1995
The masked people are mummers. You need to check that out next. lol
My boyfriend from Newfoundland with a strong accent and I'm from Saskatchewan, cree/saulteaux native, yes we fight alot😅😅
I relate to this so much. I'm not from Newfoundland, but I'm Acadian, which makes use of a wide array of French. So switching between the way I speak at home and how I speak when I need to use "proper French" is very different. If you're interested, look up "chiac". It's somewhat similar to cajun French, because many Acadians were deported to that area in 1755, but also very different.
As a final note, I just wanted to say we also end some of your sentences with "luh", which, for us is the word "là" which is French for "here" which I always assumed is where the Newfoundlanders took it from since there is also French influence in their dialect. It can be used in more direct fashion when saying something like "As-tu vus ça, là" which translates to "Did you see this, here?" where the "here" is redundant, or in one of my favourite examples, "bein, là" which I can't really directly translate because it's used as a reaction which varies depending of the context.
In any case, this was a fun video! Thanks for sharing. :)
if you think the newfie accent is a treat, wait until you hear some of the anglophone dialects from northeastern quebec. that newfie drawl with a very consonant-forward french twang, it’s absolutely wild.
I grew up in Brampton near Toronto which has a huge Newfoundland population. It was interesting to hear the dialect explained. Most of the kids growing up hid it as much as possible as it was looked down upon.
I am French Canadian and I live in a small city up North of Montreal. I speak Canadian English Ontario style (close to American standard English) I have never visited that province and I plan to do so soon! Thank you for what I just learned from your podcast. Very interesting! 🫶🏻🌸
We spent four years in eastern Canada when our kids were just babies. We moved home after 4 years and our kids couldn’t understand a word anyone said. They were convinced it was a different language and asked why we would move to a place where we didn’t speak the language 😂 couldn’t understand a word the teachers at school were saying! But given a few weeks they understood and another few weeks had the accent down pat 😂 well almost … it was fun hearing them speak it for the first time.
I speak newfinese lol
It came with the settlers bye.
I live in western Canada (Saskatchewan). Loads of folks from the maritime provinces have relocated to western Canada. Newfs, newfies or newfoundlanders ,in my experience, are very friendly and polite...but I have a hard time understanding their dialect. Sounds like they have a mouth full of marbles. 😂 I understand you, Merc, no problem. To be fair, Ive been told I speak with a southern drawl and sound like a wild west cowboy.
Canada is amazing!
Newfoundlanders are the cream of the crop of Canadians. Kindest folks on the planet. I live in Ontario and have had numerous Newfy friends over the years. Their accents and quirky dialect is what makes them so down to earth and special.
I sometimes have no problem, (maybe my family heritage on both sides of Scotland) with the accent. The people in costume at the beginning were probably "Mummers" I beieve a British Isle custom. There are those who've managed to keep the gaelic language alive also. My mother remembered her grandparents speeking gaelic. Should check out the "Rankin Family's" music.
I was going to say they were Mummers, although having only been to "The Rock" as a tourist once, back in the pre-Covid days, I couldn't say more than that.
Lovely province! We were sorry to see, though, that the very strong traditional accent seemed to be doing out. It was mostly just the older folks that had it; with all the American TV we're exposed to these days, the younger folks seemed to be slipping into more of the American mid-West blandness that pretty much all of Canada is sinking into :/
Yes they are Mummers, an old Middle Ages English pastime. Loreena McKennit wrote the song 'The Mummers' Dance'.
I am from British Columbia and finally got to Newfoundland. I did not really here any Newfie talk. That being said friends of ours are Newfies and when they get together with other Newfies it's a whole different language...The dressing up in costumes they are murmurs.
Mummers or jannies
I know someone from Newfoundland that lives in Alberta... I honestly couldn't even tell she had an accent most of the time. I could always understand 100% of what she said... And then one day her brother, who lives in Newfoundland, came to visit...... Ooooh boy! I could only understand about 10% of his sentences, and her's dropped down to about 50% because she just slid back into her usual accent and dialect. It was great fun though!! A good time was had!!
I am married to a Newfoundlander and just spending so many years around her and her family ive absorbed some of the words and accent. It really is very charming.
Mummering
Love people from "the Rock". I could listen to them talk all day long. I had a tiler from Newfoundland come to do a job at my house. He walked in and asked me "where I be coming to?" Huh? He was tiling my kitchen back splash so I assumed he meant "where is the kitchen?" I am from Alberta and we have a lot of people who came to Alberta when the fisheries collapsed. They are really hard working people. I find the Newfies speak very, very fast in addition to the dialet and accent. I worked in an office with a girl for over a year before finding out that she wasn't Irish, she was from Newfoundland!! 🤩 I have never met a Newfie I did not like. They are so kind, and so much fun.
My fiance is from Newfoundland and I have picked up on lots of the dialect. My personal favorite is "loves it!!" most often when we are eating some great food. Especially during a Jigs Dinner. It would almost be a sin not to tell the cook of a feed of Jig's, "loves it, I do!!
I live in Ontario and have had the pleasure of meeting many Newfies here. I have NEVER met a Newfie that I didn't like. They are the most down to earth people. I hope to visit their province someday.
That was a really good video - clear, succinct, with great examples. And your reaction was pretty good too!
I'm from Newfoundland and spent 22 years in the Army living in different parts of Canada so I had to learn to slow down my speech so people would understand me. I turn my Newfoundland accent off and on now without even thinking about it depending who I'm around.
Newfoundland is a mystical place…the vibe the feel the hospitality of the people.
My grandmother was from Glasgow, Scotland I understand you.
I married a Newfie woman who lived most of her life in Cambridge, Ontario. Many Newfie families moved to the area in the 70s and 80s. She speaks Newfanese and English, and I have picked up a few Newfie words and phrases such as b'y, me son, Mudder, oh me nerves, and a few others. When we first met I couldn't understand her father or her grandmother. 16 years later and I can understand most Newfanese and get jokes that I wouldn't have understood even if they were explained to me.
It depends on where in Newfoundland they are from. The townies vary pretty differently than the rural fishing villages. As a maritimer I can understand the accents when the speaker is sober. Add in alcohol and I'm just as lost as someone who has never heard them speak before. I've lived all over the country and I'm always excited to encounter a Newfie. Some of the nicest people on earth.
"STAY WHERE YOUR AT TILL I COME WHERE YOUR TO" was the first time I heard Newfinese when after I arrived in St. Johns and made a call to a member of the Newfoundland Civil Service.
As with Ireland and the UK, there isn't just one accent or dialect in Newfoundland. Accents and dialects in different parts of the island evolved, due to geographic relative isolation, depending on where in Ireland and the UK the people who populated those areas came from. I grew up on the Burin Peninsula and people 45 minutes away spoke VERY differently than we did. If I were independently wealthy I'd love to study NL linguistics and also get way more into my genealogy. Pro tip: To pronounce it properly, rhyme Newfoundland with understand.😊
I grew up on the prairies. I always knew that Newfoundlanders spoke "funny" but had no idea how differently they spoke until I moved to Fort McMurray, Alberta.
There were so many "Newfies" living in Fort Mac that you could buy a T-shirt that said, "Fort McMurray is Newfoundland's 2nd largest city. I picked up some nefinese. Where you to, Buddy, calling kids youngsters.
Thanks for sharing this, had no idea their accent was so different & sweet!
Newfoundlander here. Livd in Quebec in the 90's, back then they subtitled Newfoundlanders on TV in other provinces. My roomies used to cover the subtitles and get me to translate what I heard.
I am a lifelong, born and raised, Quebecois, but my late uncle moved early in his life to Labrador and, by dint of loving his chosen home, assimilated to the best of his ability and spent a lot of time in Newfoundland. He was such a lovely man and, through him, I got to meet some Newfies, though I will bow down to anyone who takes exception to my calling anyone from Labrador Newfies. I do not know nearly enough to know the cultural distinctions, though anyone with half a brain can imagine island culture is not the same as mainland culture, but I never met anyone associated with my uncle who wasn't kind and welcoming.
The Maritimes can be ROUGH, but we definitely try to be very nice