Lena Torres
Native American English, also known as the Reservation Accent, is a diverse collection of English dialects spoken by many American Indians and Alaska Natives. Native American accents are tied to an identity rather than a geographic location, and there is significant heterogeneity in the grammatical structures and prosodic features used. For example, in some varieties of Native American English, initial /θ/ and /ð/ are replaced with /t/ and /d/, respectively. The prosody, or stress, intonation, and rhythm of speech, of Native American English are thought to be influenced by Native American languages, many of which are tonal. While there is no definitive explanation for why Native American accents did not intermingle, it is likely related to the discrimination and negative stereotypes associated with Native Americans.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Native American English | Reservation Accent |
| Native American languages | Diverse collection of dialects; many are endangered or extinct |
| Native American music | Traditional, powwow, drums, jazz, rock and roll, blues, country, folk, gospel, rap, hip-hop, new age, norteño, reggae |
| Grammatical structures | Less use of plural and possessive markers |
| Phonetics | Th-stopping, glottal replacement of t, t- and d-glottalization, lower pitch fluctuation, absence of rising intonation in questions |
| Prosody | Higher pitch on post-stressed syllables, use of high-rising/mid/high-falling intonation at the end of sentences, vowel lengthening at the end of sentences, syllable timing |
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What You'll Learn
Native American English is tied to identity, not location
Native American English, also known as the Reservation Accent, is a diverse collection of English dialects spoken by many American Indians and Alaska Natives. It is not tied to a specific geographic location but rather to an identity. Native Americans do not all speak in the same way, and their accents are influenced by their indigenous languages, many of which are tonal.
The Rez Accent almost sounds tonal, and sentences are structured differently. For example, a Native American English speaker asking a question will use a more even tone than other American speakers, who usually use upspeak. This is often portrayed in American popular culture as a monotone, subdued, or emotionless sound quality. However, this is a stereotype, and accurate representations do exist, such as in the 1998 film Smoke Signals, where the character Thomas Builds-the-Fire has a distinctive speech pattern with a "sing-song" quality.
The differences in Native American English can be attributed to the various indigenous languages spoken across tribes. The Navajo language, for example, is the most spoken Native American language, with over 200,000 speakers in the Southwestern United States. Other indigenous languages with a significant number of speakers include Southern Quechua and Guarani, each with around six to seven million speakers.
The diversity of Native American English can also be influenced by the history of forced assimilation in boarding schools. Children would have learned English in a specific way and brought that way of speaking back to their reservations, contributing to the development of a new accent. Additionally, the lack of intermingling between Native American accents and other American accents can be attributed to discrimination against Native Americans.
In conclusion, Native American English is a diverse and understudied aspect of the American accent landscape. It is tied to the identity of Native Americans rather than a specific location, and it encompasses a variety of dialects and speech patterns that are influenced by indigenous languages and historical factors.
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Grammatical structures vary
Native American English, or the Reservation Accent, is a diverse collection of English dialects spoken by many American Indians and Alaska Natives. It is important to note that Native Americans do not all speak in the same way. There is a wide variety of indigenous languages spoken by Native Americans, of which only a few are in daily use.
Native American English shows a great deal of variation in grammatical structures. For example, it tends to use plural and possessive markers less frequently than standard English. Grammatical gender in pronouns (such as she, her, him, etc.) may not always align with the natural gender of the referent, particularly at the ends of sentences. This has been observed in Mohave and Cheyenne English. Mohave and Ute English may even omit implied pronouns altogether.
Another grammatical variation is the use of th-stopping, which is common in Cheyenne and Tsimshian English, as well as other Native American English varieties. In th-stopping, initial /θ/ and /ð/ sounds are replaced with /t/ and /d/, respectively. For example, "Brad fed the wet cat" may sound like "Bra' fe' the we' ca'''.
Differences in prosody, or the stress, intonation, and rhythm of speech, also contribute to the unique sound of Native American English. For example, Native American English speakers tend to use a more even tone when asking questions, unlike other American speakers who typically use upspeak, or raising the pitch at the end of a sentence. Native American English also exhibits higher pitch on post-stressed syllables, the use of high-rising, mid, or high-falling intonation at the end of sentences, vowel lengthening, and syllable timing. These prosodic features are used for emphasis, irony, or playfulness in casual peer interactions and are thought to tap into a shared "Native" identity.
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Prosody, stress, intonation and rhythm
The "Rez Accent" is a term used to describe the shared patterns of pitch, rhythm, and intonation in the speech of Native American and Canadian First Nations communities. These communities speak different English dialects, but the "Rez Accent" is a common thread.
The Rez Accent is an example of prosody, or the "music" of language, which includes the stress, intonation, and rhythm of speech. Native American English speakers tend to have a more even tone than other American English speakers, who usually use upspeak (where the pitch rises at the end of a sentence). In contrast, Native American English speakers tend to end their sentences on a middle or high pitch.
A 2016 study of various English-speaking indigenous North Americans found that they used unique prosodic features for occasional emphasis, irony, or playfulness in casual peer interactions. These prosodic choices are thought to be a way for speakers to tap into a shared "Native" identity. The documented sounds of this "Pan-Indian" identity include higher pitch on post-stressed syllables, the use of high-rising, mid, or high-falling intonation at the end of sentences, vowel lengthening at the end of sentences, and syllable timing.
The Rez Accent has been popularised by certain characters in film and media, such as Thomas Builds-the-Fire in the 1998 film Smoke Signals, who speaks in an exaggerated version of the accent.
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Influence of boarding schools
Native American English or American Indian English refers to a diverse set of English dialects spoken by many American Indians and Alaska Natives. There are several phonemic differences between these dialects and standard English. For example, Navajo English may have KIT–DRESS, FACE–DRESS mergers, particularly medially within words. In the English of all Colorado River Indians (namely, Mohave, Hopi, and Navajo), front vowels tend to shift, often one degree lower than standard English vowels. Cheyenne and Tsimshian English exhibit th-stopping, replacing initial /θ/ and /ð/ with /t/ and /d/, respectively.
Between 1869 and the 1960s, hundreds of thousands of Native American children were removed from their homes and placed in boarding schools operated by the federal government and Christian churches. The first of these boarding schools were set up in the mid-19th century, and initially, the government forced many Indian families to send their children to these schools. Later, some Indian families chose to send their children to boarding schools because there were no other schools available. At these boarding schools, Indian children were separated from their families and cultural ways for long periods, sometimes exceeding four years. The children were forced to cut their hair, give up their traditional clothing, and take English names. They were taught to speak English and were punished for speaking their own languages. Their traditional religious practices were forcibly replaced with Christianity, and they were taught that their cultures were inferior. The boarding school era represented a deliberate policy of ethnocide and cultural genocide, resulting in intergenerational trauma that is still felt by current generations.
At schools like the Carlisle Indian School, established in 1879 in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, students were stripped of their culture and taught the "white man's" way of doing things. Students wore standardized uniforms, had their hair cut in Western styles, were forbidden to speak their native languages, and were made to adopt Christianity. Disciplinary punishment in the form of beatings, starvation, and isolation was common at these schools. Many survivors of these boarding schools experience what is called Boarding School Syndrome, or PTSD, including recurring intrusive memories, nightmares, flashbacks, detachment disorder, and deficient knowledge of traditional culture and skills.
However, not all boarding school experiences were negative. Many Indian students made friends for life and acquired knowledge and useful skills that helped them later in life. Additionally, the military-style discipline and organization of these schools made it easier for some students to adapt to life in the American military.
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Stereotypes and media representation
Native Americans have historically been stereotyped and misrepresented in the media, with harmful consequences on public perception and the Native American community's self-perception. Native Americans are often portrayed in the media as living in the wilderness and on reservations, while in reality, a significant number live in cities and elsewhere across the globe. This misrepresentation extends to the portrayal of Indigenous men as warriors and medicine men, and Indigenous women as objects of desire. This "maiden stereotype" can be found in product labels and promotions, Hollywood representations of "Pocahontas", and Gwen Stefani's controversial portrayal of an Indigenous princess in No Doubt's 2012 music video for "Looking Hot".
The "stoic Indian" stereotype, perpetuated by the pictures of Edward Curtis in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, depicts Indigenous people as unsmiling and speaking few words, painting them as one-dimensional and incapable of experiencing or displaying emotions. This is in stark contrast to the reality shared by Adrienne Keene, who notes that Natives joke, tease, and laugh more than anyone she knows.
The "good Indian" and "bad Indian" stereotypes, popularized by merchants to advertise and market merchandise, depict Native Americans as either helpful or resistant to Europeans. This dual portrayal masks the realities of tribal nations struggling to maintain their populations, lands, resources, and sovereignty. The warrior stereotype is also problematic as it obscures the family and community life, spirituality, and intricacies inherent in every human society. Hollywood often portrays Indigenous people as tomahawk-wielding savages, engaging in barbaric practices such as scalping and sexually violating white women. These representations contribute to the objectification and high rates of sexual assault suffered by Indigenous women, often perpetrated by non-Indigenous men.
The lack of accurate representation is exacerbated by the low interaction between the average US resident and Native Americans, with only 14 states having American Indian populations exceeding 100,000. Native Americans make up about 2% of the US population but are severely underrepresented in the media, with less than 1% of children's cartoon characters and 0.09% of video game characters being Native American. This underrepresentation and negative portrayal have harmful psychological impacts on Native American youth, resulting in poorer self-esteem, mental health, and the development of cultural biases.
To address these issues, campaigns such as "Proud to Be: The Campaign to End Harmful Indian Mascots" have emerged, advocating for the retirement of Native American mascots, images, symbols, and personalities by schools, colleges, athletic teams, and organizations.
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Frequently asked questions
Native American English, also known as the Reservation Accent, is a diverse collection of English dialects spoken by many American Indians and Alaska Natives.
Native American English shows enormous heterogeneity in terms of grammatical structures. For example, grammatical gender in pronouns (she, her, him, etc.) does not always align with the natural gender of a referent, particularly at the ends of sentences.
Native American English is different from other American accents because it is tied to an identity, not a geographic location. Native Americans do not all speak the same way.
The documented sounds of the "Pan-Indian" identity include higher pitch on post-stressed syllables, use of high-rising, mid, or high-falling intonation at the ends of sentences, vowel lengthening at the ends of sentences, and syllable timing instead of stress timing.
This sound is not universal among Native Americans across North America. However, there was likely a universal sign language in place so that distinct tribes could communicate when needed.
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