Can you get an accent at 17?

This is the developmental stage in which we acquire our language and the accent for our native language. As we get older, developmentally, we have acquired our early language and pronunciation and so our language listening centre isn’t as open as when we are younger.

How long does it take for an accent to develop?

If your English is fluent, and you grew up speaking it, or learnt to become fluent in it, keep on reading. If you engage in accent reduction classes, your accent will start changing in 3-4 weeks. In about 6 months, you will notice a huge difference in clarity and speech.

Can you develop a different accent?

Foreign accent syndrome (FAS) happens when you suddenly start to speak with a different accent. It’s most common after a head injury, stroke, or some other type of damage to the brain. Although it’s extremely rare, it’s a real condition.

Can adults pick up accents?

Adults can most definitely pick up accents. More or less depending on how much they want to “fit in” or how closely they guard their previous speech patterns.

Can you pick up an accent?

What age do adults start picking up accents?

The ability of an adult to “pick up” or mimic an accent is almost entirely determined by their exposure to other accents, other languages roughly before the age of 7 (or 8). The largest portion of our language acquisition happens by this time, both in your native tongue and potentially in others.

Why do some people learn new accents quickly?

Musically minded folk are much quicker to adopt a new accent. Scientists believe that being able to tune into the sounds and rhythms of music are not dissimilar to being about to pick up the intonations in language.

When does a child’s accent become permanent?

My wild-eyed guess would be that an accent becomes fairly permanent around five- to six-years of age. A child’s acquisition of the syntax of their first language starts around two, and ends around five or six.

Why can’t I pick up the Brooklyn accent?

If you’ve spent most of your life living in the Yorkshire Dales and then move to Brooklyn, New York, you’re unlikely to pick up the Brooklyn accent as most of your life you’ve been practicing the specific Yorkshire intonations. Phonological deafness can also make it difficult to imitate a new accent. It’s a condition we find in older people.