English Accent: British Accent 📺

British accent.

what's the exact locality of their accent?

Received Pronunciation (aka BBC Pronunciation)

Received Pronunciation (RP) is regarded as the standard accent of Standard English in the United Kingdom, with a relationship to regional accents similar to the relationship in other European languages between their standard varieties and their regional forms.[1] RP is defined in the Concise Oxford English Dictionary as “the standard accent of English as spoken in the south of England”,[2] although it can be heard from native speakers throughout England and Wales.[3][4] Peter Trudgill estimated in 1974 that 3% of people in Britain were RP speakers.[5]

Although nothing intrinsic about RP marks it as superior to any other variety, sociolinguistic factors have given RP particular prestige in parts of Britain.[6] It has thus been seen as the accent of those with power, money, and influence, though it has in recent times been perceived negatively as associated with undeserved privilege.[7][8] Since the 1960s, a greater permissiveness towards allowing regional English varieties has taken hold in education[9] and the media in Britain.

Some linguists have used the term RP, but expressed reservations about its suitability.[17][18][19] The Cambridge-published English Pronouncing Dictionary (aimed at those learning English as a foreign language) uses the term “BBC Pronunciation” on the basis that the name “Received Pronunciation” is “archaic” and that BBC news-presenters no longer suggest high social class and privilege to their listeners.[20] The name “BBC Pronunciation” has been used by other writers.[21][22]

—Received Pronunciation