Southern charm, it turns out, isn’t a myth — Americans rate accents from Southern states as the friendliest in the US.
In a study, over one in three (38 percent) Americans ranked the Southern accent — most commonly associated with Louisiana, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Texas and South Carolina — as the most welcoming, with the Hawaiian accent coming second (34 percent).
In the Censuswide poll of 2,000 Americans, commissioned by Answering Service Care, the Texan twang was specifically voted third, with 31 percent of respondents finding it pleasant.
At the other end of the table are the accents from New York City and Brooklyn, which are jointly the most hated American accents (15 percent).
The New Jersey accent is marginally less liked (third from bottom, 16 percent), with the Chicago accent fourth from bottom (17 percent).
The research also reveals America’s top low-annoyance destinations accent-wise, with the way people speak in Alaska, Utah and the Mountain West rated least annoying by travelers.
The Americans who sound the most soothing are Hawaiians, who come top with 20 percent of the vote.
New Yorkers, meanwhile, sound the most confident (24 percent), followed by Texans (21 percent).
Voice Coach Molly Parker explained that someone’s accent can be just as impactful as what they’re saying.
She explained: “Accents are everything when it comes to first impressions.
“Different consonants and vowels shape the way we feel about a speaker, even before we process their actual words.”
She added: “The way someone sounds can completely shift how they’re perceived — whether they come across as confident, polite, impatient, or unsure.”
The US accents Americans like to hear the most — and the least
1. Southern |
9. Alaskan |
17. Southern Californian |
2. Hawaiian |
10. St. Louis |
18. Northeastern |
3. Texan |
11. Utah |
19. Boston |
4. Midwestern |
12. West Coast |
20. Chicago |
5. Southwestern |
13. Appalachian |
21. New Jersey |
6. Florida |
14. Pacific Northwest |
22. Brooklyn |
7. Mountain West |
15. Californian |
23. New York City |
8. General American |
16. Mid-Atlantic |
Source: Answering Service Care |
