Cot–caught distinction: The/ɔ/ vowel sound (in words liketalk,law,cross, andcoffee) and the often homophonous/ɔr/ incore andmore are tensed and usually raised more than inGeneral American, varying on a scale from[ɔ] to[ʊ][10] while typically accompanied by aninglide that produces variants like[oə] or[ʊə].[11] These sounds are kept strongly distinct from the/ɑ/ in words likelot,dot,bot, andhot; therefore,caught is something like[kʰoət], andcot is something like[kʰɑ̈t].[12]
Father–bother variability: Linguistically conservative speakers retain three separate low back vowels:LOT[ɑ],PALM[ɒ(ə)], andTHOUGHT[oə], thus with words likefather andbother not rhyming as they do for most other Americans. Among such conservative speakers, descendants ofMiddle English shorto with certain or, perhaps, any and all[13][14] final voiced consonants (e.g.,cob,cod,cog,lodge,bomb) normally take on the roundedPALM sound;[15][11]Labov et al. report that which words fall into theLOT class and which words fall into thePALM class may vary from speaker to speaker.[14] Aside from such speakers with this relic feature, however, a majority of Metro New Yorkers today exhibit a father–bother merger.[16]
Short-a split system: New York City English uses a complicated short-asplit system in which all words with the "shorta" can be split into two separate classes on the basis of the sound of the vowel; thus, in New York City, words likebadge,class,lag,mad, andpan, for example, are pronounced with an entirely different vowel sound than are words likebat,clang,lack,map, andpatch. In the former set of words, historical/æ/ israised and tensed to an inglidingdiphthong of the type[ɛə~eə] or even[ɪə]. Meanwhile, the latter set of words retains a more typical lax and low-front[æ] sound. A strongly related (but slightly different) split occurs likewise inPhiladelphia andBaltimore accents.
^abcdIn New York City and Philadelphia, most function words (am, can, had, etc.) and some learned or less common words (alas, carafe, lad, etc.) have[æ].[22]
^In Philadelphia, the irregular verbsbegan, ran, andswam have[æ].[23]
^In Philadelphia,bad, mad, andglad alone in this context have[ɛə].[22]
^abThe untensed/æ/ may be lowered and retracted as much as[ä] in varieties affected by theLow-Back-Merger Shift, mainly predominant in Canada and the American West.[30]
^In New York City, certain lexical exceptions exist (likeavenue being tense) and variability is common before/dʒ/ and/z/ as inimagine,magic, andjazz.[32] In New Orleans,[ɛə] additionally occurs before/v/ and/z/.[33]
Conservative/oʊ/ and/u/:/oʊ/ as ingoat usually does not undergo fronting; instead, it remains[oʊ] and may even have a lowered starting point. Relatedly,/u/ as inGOOSE is not fronted and remains a back vowel[u] or[ʊu], although it may be more fronted following acoronal consonant, such as inloose,too, andzoom.[34] This general lack of fronting of/oʊ/ and/u/ also distinguishes New York City from nearbyPhiladelphia. Some speakers have a separate phoneme/ɪu/ in words such astune,news, andduke (historically a separate class). The phonemic status of this vowel is marginal. For example, Labov (1966) reported that certain Metro New Yorkers regularly contrasted[du]do with[dɪu]dew but that certain others used the pronunciation[dɪu] for bothdo anddew. Also, Labov et al. in 2006 reported thatyod-dropping had diffused as a characteristic among the rest of New York City English's speakers (in which the vowel indew anddo is pronounced very far back in the mouth).[6]
Backed/aɪ/ and fronted/aʊ/: The nucleus of the/aɪ/ diphthong is traditionally a back and sometimes rounded vowel[ɑ̈~ɑ] or[ɒ] (mean value[ɑ̟])[35] (ride as[ɹɑɪd]), while the nucleus of the/aʊ/ diphthong is a front vowel[æ~a] (the mean value is open front[a])[35] (out as[æʊt~aʊt]). The sociolinguistic evidence suggests that both of these developments are active changes.[35] The fronted nucleus in/aʊ/ and the backed nucleus in/aɪ/ are most common among younger speakers, women, and the working and lower middle classes.[36]
Pre-/r/ distinctions: New York accents lack most of themergers that occur with vowels before an/r/, which are otherwise common in other varieties of North American English. There is typically a three-wayMary–marry–merry distinction, in which the vowels in words likemarry[ˈmæɹi],merry[ˈmɛɹi], andMary[ˈmeɹi]~[ˈmɛəɹi] do not merge.[37] The vowels infurry[ˈfɝi] andhurry[ˈhʌɹi] are commonly distinct. Also, words likeorange,horrible,Florida andforest are pronounced with/ɒ/ or/ɑ/, the same stressed vowel aspart, not with the same vowel asport as in much of the rest of the United States.[37]
Back vowelchain shift before/r/:/ɔr/, as inTory,bore, orshore merges with a tongue movement upward in the mouth to/ʊər/, as intour,boor, orsure. This is followed by the possibility of/ɑr/, as intarry orbar, also moving upward (with rounding) towards/ɒr/~/ɔr/. In non-rhotic New York City speech, this means thatborn can be[bʊən] andbarn can be[bɒən]. This shift also applies to instances of/ɔ/ not before/r/, socaught can be[kʊət]. However, unlike the firmness of this shift inPhiladelphia English, the entire process is still transitioning and variable in New York City English[38] and may be stigmatized and reversing among some younger speakers.[39]
Up-glidingNURSE: Among the various stereotypes of New York City speech is the use of a front-rising diphthong in words with/ɜːr/, or theNURSE vowel. This stereotype is popularly represented in stock phrases like "toity-toid" forthirty-third. The phonetic reality of this variant is actually unrounded[əɪ], thus making[ˌt̪əɪɾiˈt̪əɪd] the true pronunciation of the popular phrase. The unrounded[əɪ] sound has also been used for the vowel/ɔɪ/ sometimes. As a variant of/ɜːr/, however, it may only occur when followed by a consonant within the same morpheme, so, for example,stir may be[stʌ(ː)~stʌə] but never[stəɪ].[7][8]William Labov's data published in 1966 indicate that this highly stigmatized diphthongal form of/ɜːr/ was recessive even then. Only two of Labov's 51 speakers under age 20 used the form, in contrast to his speakers age 50 and over, of whom 23 out of 30 used the non-rhotic form.[40] Younger Metro New Yorkers (born since about 1950) are consequently likely to use therhotic[ɝ] sound (as in General American) for thediaphoneme/ɜːr/ when preconsonantal (as inbird), even if they use non-rhotic pronunciations ofbeard,bared,bard,board,boor,buttered, or evenburred ([bʌ(ː)d~bʌəd]).[41] Still, Labov considers that the stigmatized variant "lingers on in a modified form." In other words, Labov believes that the rhotic[ɝ] of many Metro New Yorkers today remains slightly raised compared to that of other Americans.[42] In addition, despite the near-extinction of the diphthongal, up-glidingNURSE variant, Michael Newman in 2014 found[əɪ] variably in two of his research participants, one born as late as the early 1990s. Related to the non-rhotic variant as used for/ɔɪ/, a form ofintrusiveR has as well been reported inCHOICE words whereby/ɔɪ/ might occur withr-coloring in the same fashion as/ɜːr/ (e.g.,[ˈt̪ʰɝɫɨt]toilet,[ɝɫ]oil), apparently as a result of hypercorrection.[43][44][45]
While the following consonantal features are central to the common stereotype of a "New York City accent", they are not entirely ubiquitous in New York City. By contrast, the vocalic (vowel) variations in pronunciation as described above are far more typical of New York City–area speakers than the consonantal features listed below, which carry a much greater stigma than do the dialect's vocalic variations:
Pronunciation of/r/: The consonant/r/, when pronounced, is usuallypostalveolar[ɹ̠] and is often stronglylabialized[ɹ̠ʷ] in New York City English, particularly when it appears as the first consonant in a syllable.[46]
Non-rhoticity (orr-lessness): The traditional metropolitan New York accent isnon-rhotic; in other words, the sound[ɹ] does not appear at the end of a syllable or immediately before a consonant. Thus, there is no[ɹ] in words likehere[hɪə],butter[ˈbʌɾə],layer[ˈɫeɪ.ə], orpark[pʰɒək] (with the vowel rounded due to the low-back chain shift, though[pʰɑ̈ək] for earlier twentieth-century speakers). However, modern New York City English is variably rhotic for the most part; in fact, the New York accent can vary between pronounced and silenced[ɹ] in similar phonetic environments, even in the same word when repeated.[47] Also, while a significant number drop r-coloring from the schwa/ə/ and most other vowels at least some of the time, as inbutter, most current speakers retain r-coloring in the sequence/ɜːr/ (e.g.,worker[ˈwɝkə]), as detailed in the previous section.[46] Non-rhotic speakers usually exhibit alinkingR and frequently an intrusiveR as well, like speakers of most other non-rhotic dialects.[48][49][50]
Rhoticity (orr-fulness): In more modern times, the post-vocalic/r/ has become more prominent, with many current New York City speakers using rhoticity to at least some degree. When Metro New Yorkers are more conscious of what they are saying, the/r/ typically becomes more evident in their speech. In terms ofsocial stratification, the lower class of New York City tends to use rhoticity less than the middle and upper classes. Also, rhoticity is noticeably based on age since younger generations are more likely to pronounce/r/ in coda position.[51][49][50]
Laminalalveolar consonants: Thealveolar consonants/t/,/d/,/n/, and/l/ may be articulated with the tongue blade rather than the tip. Wells (1982) indicates that this articulation may, in some cases, also involve affrication, producing[tˢ] and[dᶻ]. Also,/t/ and/d/ are often pronounced with the tongue touching the teeth instead of the alveolar ridge (just above the teeth) as is typical in most varieties of English. Such an articulation may be used in the cluster /tr/, producing possible homophones such asthree andtree[t̪ɹ̊i],[52] and may even appear intervocalically, including when/t/ or/d/ ispronounced as a tap[ɾ], according to a report from the mid–twentieth century.[53] As in other American dialects,/t/ may beelided[54][55] orglottalized following/n/ in words likepainting[ˈpʰeɪnɪŋ] andfountain[ˈfaʊnʔn̩]; glottalization, in particular, is reported to sometimes appear in a wider range of contexts in New York City speech than in other American dialects, appearing, for example, before syllabic/l/ (e.g.,bottle[ˈbɑ̈ʔɫ̩]).[56][57] At the same time, before a pause, a released final stop is often more common than a glottal stop in New York City accents than in General American ones; for example,bat as[bæt̪] rather than[bæʔ].[58]
The universal usage of "dark L",[ɫ], common throughout the U.S., is also typical of the New York City accent. Newman (2014) reports/l/ even in initial position to be relatively dark for all accents of the city except theaccents of Latinos.[59] However, in the mid–twentieth century, both dark and "not quite so 'dark'" variants of/l/ were reported. The latter occurred initially or in initialconsonant clusters and was pronounced with the point or blade of the tongue against thealveolar ridge, though this variant was not as "clear" as in BritishReceived Pronunciation.[60]
Also,/l/ is reported as commonly becomingpostalveolar before/j/, making a word likeWilliam for some speakers[ˈwɪʎjɨm] or even[ˈwɪjɨm].[60]
Vocalization of/l/:L-vocalization is common in New York City though it is perhaps not as pervasive as in some other dialects. Like its fellow liquid/r/, it may be vocalized when it appears finally or before a consonant (e.g.,[sɛo]sell,[mɪok]milk).[61]
Th-stopping: As in many other dialects, the interdental fricatives/θ/ and/ð/ are often realized asdental oralveolarstop consonants, famously like[t] and[d], or affricates[tθ] and[dð].[62] Labov (1966) found this alternation to vary by class, with the non-fricative forms appearing more regularly in lower- and working-class speech. Unlike the reported changes with/r/, the variation with/θ/ and/ð/ appears to be stable.[50] Historical dialect documents suggestth-stopping probably originated from the massive influence of German, Italian, Irish, and Yiddish speakers who immigrated to the city starting in the mid–nineteenth century.[63]
Pronunciation of⟨ng⟩: Some speakers might replace/ŋ/ with the sequence/ŋg/ categorically or at least use[ŋg] as an optional variant of/ŋ/, as stereotyped in thepronunciation spelling "Lawn Guyland" for "Long Island" ([ɫɔəŋˈɡɑɪɫənd] rather than the more General American[ɫɔŋˈäɪɫənd]). This pronunciation occurs most strongly amongLubavitcher Jews but has also, at least in the past, been used in the speech of Italians,[64][65] and it has become a stereotype of the New York City accent in general.[66] Speakers with and without this feature may realize/ŋ/ as[n] in unstressed-ing endings.[61]
Reduction of/hj/ to/j/: Metro New Yorkers typically do not allow/h/ to precede/j/; this gives pronunciations likeyuman/ˈjumən/ andyooge/judʒ/ forhuman andhuge.[61]
Despite common references to a "Bronx accent", "Brooklyn accent", "Long Island accent", etc., which reflect a popular belief that different boroughs or neighborhoods of the New York metropolitan area have different accents, linguistic research fails to reveal any features that vary internally within the dialect due to specific geographic differences.[67][3] Impressions that the dialect varies geographically are likely a byproduct ofclass or ethnic variation, and even some of these assumptions are losing credibility in light of accent convergences among the current younger generations of various ethnic backgrounds.[3] Speakers fromQueens born in the 1990s and later are showing acot–caught merger more than in otherboroughs, though this too is likely class- or ethnic-based (or perhaps even part of a larger trend spanning the whole city) rather than location-based.[68] The increasing extent of the cot–caught merger among these Queens natives has also appeared to be correlated with their majority foreign parentage.[69] A lowering of New York City's traditionally raisedcaught vowel is similarly taking place among younger residents ofManhattan'sLower East Side. This is seen most intensely among Western European (andJewish) New Yorkers, fairly intensely amongLatino andAsian New Yorkers, but not amongAfrican-American New Yorkers. Therefore, this reverses the trend that was documented among Western European Lower East Siders in the twentieth century.[70]
Though geographic differences are not a primary factor in the internal variation of features within the dialect, the prevalence of the dialect's features as a whole does vary within the metropolitan area based on distance from the city proper, notably innortheastern New Jersey. East of thePassaic andHackensack Rivers (closest to the city proper) and inNewark, the short-a split system is identical to that used in the city itself. West of the Hackensack but east of the Passaic, the New York City system's function word constraint is lost before nasal codas, and the open syllable constraint begins to vary in usage. West of both rivers (farthest from the city proper), a completely different short-a system is found.[71] Furthermore, New York City's closest New Jersey neighbors, like Newark andJersey City, may be non-rhotic like the city itself. Outside of these cities, however, the New York metropolitan speech of New Jersey is nowadays fully rhotic, so the phrase "over there" might be pronounced "ovah deah"[ɔʊvəˈd̪ɛə] by a native of Newark but "over dare"[ɔʊvɚˈd̪ɛɚ] by a native ofElizabeth.[72]
The classic New York City dialect is centered on middle- and working-classEuropean Americans, and this ethnic cluster now accounts for less than half of the city's population, within which there are degrees of ethnic variation. The variations of New York City English are a result of the waves ofimmigrants that have settled in the city, from the earliest settlement by theDutch and English followed in the nineteenth century by theIrish and Western Europeans (typically of French, German, andScandinavian descent) settling. Over time, these collective influences combined to give New York City its distinctive traditional accent;[65]William Labov argued that Irish New Yorkers, in particular, contributed the accent's most stigmatized features.[73]
The manyEastern European Jewish andItalian immigrants who came, for the most part, until theimmigration acts of 1921 and1924 restricted Southern and Eastern European immigration further influenced the city's speech. Ongoingsociolinguistic research suggests that some differentiation between these last groups' speech may exist. For example, Labov found that Jewish-American New Yorkers were more likely than other groups to use the closest variants of/ɔ/ (meaning towards[ʊə]) and perhaps fully released final stops (for example, pronunciation ofsent as[sɛnt] rather than the more General American[sɛnt̚] or[sɛnʔ]), whileItalian-American New Yorkers were more likely than other groups to use the closest variants of/æ/ (meaning towards[ɪə]).[74] Still, Labov argues that these differences are relatively minor, more of degree than kind. All noted Euro-American groups share the relevant features.
One area revealing robustly unique patterns is New York City English amongOrthodox Jews, overlapping withYeshiva English, which can also exist outside of the New York City metropolitan area. Such patterns include certainYiddish grammatical contact features, such astopicalizations ofdirect objects (e.g., constructions such asEsther, she saw! orA dozenknishes, you bought!), and the general replacement of/ŋ/ with/ŋɡ/.[66][61] There is also substantial use of Yiddish and particularlyHebrew words.
African-American New Yorkers typically speak a New York variant ofAfrican-American Vernacular English (AAVE) that shares the New York accent's raised/ɔ/ vowel.[75] Many Latino New Yorkers speak a distinctly localethnolect,New York Latino English, characterized by a varying mix of New York City English and AAVE features, along with someSpanish contact features.[75][76] Euro-American New Yorkers alone, particularly Anglo-Americans, have been traditionally documented as using a phonetic split of/aɪ/ as follows:[äɪ] beforevoiceless consonants but[ɑːɪ] elsewhere.[77] Asian-American New Yorkers are not shown by studies to have any phonetic features that are overwhelmingly distinct.[78]
^Newman, Michael (2014). "Chapter 3."New York City English. Berlin/NY: Mouton DeGruyter. p. 51. "many New Yorkers who are heavy (r-0) users in words likecontender, four, forth, hair, andher, are (r-1) users withNURSE."
^Harris, John; Kaye, Jonathan (September 1990). "A Tale of Two Cities: London Glottalling and New York City Tapping".The Linguistic Review.7 (3): 267.doi:10.1515/tlir.1990.7.3.251.S2CID170993449.
^Robert Siegel (March 12, 2005) [March 12, 1999]."New Yawk Talk".NPR (Podcast). NPR. Event occurs at 4:54.Archived from the original on May 11, 2021. RetrievedJune 19, 2023.
^Labov, William (1973)Sociolinguistic Patterns U. of Pennsylvania PressISBN0-8122-1052-2
^abFought, CarmenLanguage and Ethnicity Cambridge, UK; New York: Cambridge University Press 2006, p. 19.ISBN978-0-5216-1291-3.
Duncan, Daniel (2016)."'Tense' /æ/ is still lax: A phonotactics study"(PDF). In Hansson, Gunnar Ólafur; Farris-Trimble, Ashley; McMullin, Kevin; Pulleyblank, Douglas (eds.).Supplemental Proceedings of the 2015 Annual Meeting on Phonology. Vol. 3. Washington, D.C.: Linguistic Society of America.doi:10.3765/amp.v3i0.3653.
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