Story: Speech and accent

Colture and scolpture

Alterations in the way vowels are pronounced before /l/ is a widespread and long-standing change in New Zealand English. In 1939 Arnold Wall noted that 'result' had become 'resolt' and such pronunciations are commonplace in the early 2000s. Listen to Ryan Mulcock and former Wellington mayor Kerry Prendergast say 'colture' (culture) and 'scolpture' (sculpture).

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Youtube: Kerry4mayor's channel

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How to cite this page:

Elizabeth Gordon, 'Speech and accent - Sound changes in speech', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/interactive/40136/colture-and-scolpture (accessed 18 April 2024)

Story by Elizabeth Gordon, published 5 Sep 2013