I'm noticing more and more people speaking bizzare, they start a sentence at the normal pitch and with each word they increase they pitch.

The result is someone speaking to you as if they are explaining something.

Kinda like "This one time, at band camp"

Has anyone else noticed this or am I going mad


[educating marmalade] Hick donk wallop-poop [/educating marmalade]
(come on who remembers that line )

 

Hello

You may be going mad, but not because of this.

I have noticed (and in fact am guilty of) this peculiarity.

Mine started when I lived in Austalia for a while so I sort of have an excuse!

Steve.

www.GetEdenbridgeBroadBand.co.uk

 

Rising intonation. Annoying, isn't it

 

Ahh, that'll be the latin name for it

 

It's a Southern thing IMHO

Us Northerners just miss vowels out etc - a'reet

DW

 

to much neighbours and home and away!

 

Linguists (I don't know if they are cunning or not) have given this an official term.

It's called the "Antipodean Interrogative" or "AI" intonation -- it has the effect of 'underplaying' or reducing the impact of the statement just made by the person.

I.e. "I though that was really good" with normal intonation is a statement. In the "AI" intonation, it becomes:

"I thought that was really good ...?"

I soooooooo don't like it

[Edited by brickboy - 7/26/2002 9:41:08 AM]

 

bb, you just beat me to it. It is indeed known as the antipodean or australian interrogative intonation

Everything becomes a question. Starts you wondering if the person speaking actually has any confidence in what they're saying. Nothing comes across as fact.

Linguistic hate number 2, anyone

 

My pet linguistic hate is people who talk in pronouns - "he said xxx to him " etc, I always lose track of who HE is , drives me nuts

Bill

 

Chiark, I'm sooooooo with you on that

Bill / SuffolkScoob: don't worry, it's only the ladies that use pronouns, blokes use names ...

 

Use of "goes" instead of "said" anyone?

 

"know what i mean..?"

 

Hello

One of my less politically correct friends, said that all Australians speak like that because they are a bunch of criminals and always think they are in the wrong.

Hence questioning every statement that they make.

Steve.

 

Jonny_mega, this has been going on for years!

The Mole and I are always laughing at the way people use buzz words and phrases

The latest that I have noticed is; a question is asked then the reply is "oh right ok"....it really gets me now.

A little while ago it was the Americanism "right now"...it was eveywhere, the BBC news! even Eastenders for Gods sake!!!

"I havnt got time for this right now"

People subconsciously 'pick up' these traits? The Australians are pretty good at this?

Youre not going mad

 

Boxst,
probably why peeps from Bristol speak the same!

 

Its also known as "Australian Rising Speech Expression".
Known in linguistic circles as A.R.S.E. the shortened version means instead of saying "he talks through his Australian rising speech expression", they can "he talks through his A.r.s.e."

Alan

 

talking of buzzwords, do any of you play buzz word bingo in meetings? The best ones are where you pick a word that a selected person says too often, and then tot that one up (of course that person, usually your boss, doesnt know the game is in motion). The meeting can end with a bunch of suposedly adult profesionals pissing themselves for no aparant reason.

 

johnfelstead, Yes I have, we had a Project Manager who ALWAYS used these..."I havnt got a problem with that" and "They need to come to the party"....we were always smirking, wonder why?

albob, LOL very clever.

 

John, Mole's Dad, here's something for you to print and take to your next meeting. http://www.deakin.edu.au/~amsm/bingo.html

 

very good Jack, have added to favourites.

shunty

 

Yep,definitely a southern thing.Then when the northerners that aren't so poor and covered in coal that they can afford to go to university,come back home talking like it.
Do southerners at northern universities come back speaking proper like?

 

The answer the question above is a resounding 'NO!!'
Watford-Newcastle back to Watford area and still can;t work out wht is a question or a statement

 

Boo, that link disna work

 

I love a woman with a Geordie accent....just can't understand them.

 

Jack...very very good

I 'deal' with lots of Northern lads in the construction industry, and Ive been doing this for 20 yrs....still have trouble with some of the 'proper geordies', I make 'em laugh though with my take offs

We had lots of Yorkshire lads on my previous job, they kept saying "now then"...I thought they were about to say something!

Its hard to put this into type!! (specially when youve had a drink).

 

I dislike the uplift at the end of a sentence, gets very irritating.

I just want to strangle people who do that I do resist though at times

 

Hey Chelle, if you're going over to Oz, yer better get used to it!
They speak like that here in NZ although not so strongly or as irritatingly as the the Aussies.
They also end every sentence with 'ey', ey!

edited cos I dunno what 'stringly' means!

[Edited by Dracoro - 7/29/2002 7:25:10 AM]

 

I will soon put em right

I am still unhappy about them changing the name of football to soccer Who do they think they are? American?

 

Are they originally from Canada eh?

 

Whyaye