Postby leavingforgood » March 20th, 2023, 10:01 am
There are some regions in Trinidad where for the life of me I cannot understand what they are saying without asking them to repeat or slow down. I know people try to say it's a grammar thing but there's so much more to it.
I think when people/foreigners think of a T&T accent they think of the Arima/East accent. This accent is the prominent T&T accent that I believe has lasted through generations and can be clearly heard on old recordings and tv shows.
The "affluent" West accent is watered down with North American influences due to the population comprising a disproportionate amount of foreigners and citizens who have lived abroad. I think this accent had to be watered down in order to be understood by a broader audience. I classify the West accent as the News Anchor accent.
The "not-so-affluent" West accent is broken up into two categories. One is a mix of the East and West accents. The second is a broken version of the East accent which makes them sound like a watered-down Jamaican. The second accent is harsh on the ears and sounds like they are delayed...developmentally. I struggle to understand them especially when they are working customer service jobs.
The East Indian central accent is usually high-pitched with some Hindi words mixed in. This accent is harsh on the ears and sounds like nails on a chalkboard. I struggle to understand them but thankfully they dilute it when working in customer service positions.
The African central accent usually reflects where the person grew up which is usually not in Central.
The south accent sounds like a mild Jamaican accent to me. The more affluent south people sound like a watered-down version of the West accent.
The Tobagonian accent sounds like a straight-up Jamaican accent to me. I struggle to understand a word they say.