Regional accents

An accent referes only to differences in the sound patterns of a specific dialect. A dialect is a specific variety of English that differs from other varieties in three specific ways
- Lexis (vocab)
- Grammar (Structure)
- Phonology

Received Pronunciation is an instantly recognisable accent often described as 'typically British'. RP is not a dialect, also regionally non- specific. It reveals a lot about people's social and/ or educational background. 2% of the UK population have an RP accent. It is important in language studies used in phonemtic transcriptions in dictionaries which are based in an RP accent, it is also used widely for teaching English as a forgeign language. Instituations in the south- east midlands such as London, Oxford and Cambridge helped develop high social status of RP. It was chosen as the 'BBC accent' in 1922 believed to be the most widely understood variety of English, they thought choosing a regional accent might alienate some listeners.

There are three different types of RP
- Conservative RP which is a more traditional RP accent
- Mainstream RP which is extremely neutral
- Contermporary RP which is typically a young speaker