Dialects and accents

[Svrtnsse]

Whenever someone speaks another language, how much is their accent influenced by their dialect?
Let's say two Russians are equally skilled at speaking English but are from widely different parts of Russia with wildly different dialects. When speaking English they'll have a decidedly Russian accent, but will their accents be different enough that they're from different parts of the country?

 

[Graylorne]

I'd say it does. Their Russian will have different accents too. What language do they speak at home? Russian or a local language (there are Russian republics were hardly anyone speaks Russian at all)?
Even here in the Netherlands you'd hear the difference. Someone from Amsterdam sounds very different from a Limburger and you'd hear that in his English. Unless, ofc, both speak with a fluent BBC accent. A clear example: a Moroccan immigrant in Antwerp speaks Dutch (Flemish) with a local accent. His brother, who went to Rotterdam, sounds really really different. And they live some 30 miles apart.

 

[Svrtnsse]

Thanks for the reply. It agrees with what I assumed myself. Just wanted to check I wasn't entirely off the chart with my assumptions.

Also, it's not actually Russian in the story, but it's a better example than using fictional nations that no one is familiar with (and that have yet to be named).

 

[ShortHair]

Another factor to consider is where the person learned the new language, or more specifically, whence came the person who taught him. A person from Indonesia who learned English from an British person will speak English with a British accent, while the same Indonesian who learned English from an American will have an American accent.

 

[JadedSidhe]

I worked with a couple of people Russia and their accents were distinctly different.

 

[CupofJoe]

Education and affluence can play a role too.
Someone educated in the best schools and universities will probably have a different voice to someone who learnt what they needed from "the streets" even if the fluency of their languages is comparable.

 

[SeverinR]

Think about the question in reverse.
If someone in Boston and Someone in California learn Russian from different teachers, they will have a different accent unless the teachers are very strict in pronunciation. This will also be modified by who they speak the language with after learning, if they speak to someone that came from one area they will pick up the dialect that their instructor didn't teach them.

I learned Spanish in Arizona, I spoke it alittle with Mexican friends, so I would not speak the same spanish that they speak in Spain.