About 15 years ago some clever linguists noticed that one of the world's most famous women had rather helpfully given speeches a year apart, every year, for over fifty years.
You couldn't ask for better grounds for a longitudinal study.
They discovered that her voice and pronunciation changed quite noticeably over the decades, and that the "Queen's English" of today was not the same as the "Queen's English" when she first came to the throne.
We celebrate the Queen's Birthday on the 6th of June - which is a bit odd since she was born on the 21st of April. Since this is the day we acknowledge events in the Queen's life that didn't actually occur on this date, why not take the opportunity to watch a few of her Christmas speeches?
Even better, why not record one of your own? Have your friends and family record a "Queen's Christmas Message" and keep it somewhere for posterity. In a few decades time, it could be interesting to listen to the messages again and note how much your voices have changed.
You can read the original studies of the Queen's speeches here:
By the way, did you know the Queen visited our library?
True fact.
You couldn't ask for better grounds for a longitudinal study.
They discovered that her voice and pronunciation changed quite noticeably over the decades, and that the "Queen's English" of today was not the same as the "Queen's English" when she first came to the throne.
We celebrate the Queen's Birthday on the 6th of June - which is a bit odd since she was born on the 21st of April. Since this is the day we acknowledge events in the Queen's life that didn't actually occur on this date, why not take the opportunity to watch a few of her Christmas speeches?
Even better, why not record one of your own? Have your friends and family record a "Queen's Christmas Message" and keep it somewhere for posterity. In a few decades time, it could be interesting to listen to the messages again and note how much your voices have changed.
You can read the original studies of the Queen's speeches here:
- Harrington, Palethorpe, & Watson; Does the Queen speak the Queen's English?
- Harrington, Palethorpe, & Watson: Monophthongal vowel changes in received pronunciation: An acoustic analysis of the Queen's Christmas broadcasts
But you may find it easier going (and more entertaining) to read this article from The Telegraph, instead:
By the way, did you know the Queen visited our library?
True fact.
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