BBC Voices

Conversation in Birmingham about accent, dialect and attitudes to language.

  • Add a note
    Log in to add a note at the bottom of this page.
  • All notes
  • My notes
  • Hide notes
Please click to leave a note

The British Library Board acknowledges the intellectual property rights of those named as contributors to this recording and the rights of those not identified.
Legal and ethical usage »

Tags (top 25):
(No tags found for this item)

What is this? Log in to add a term that describes this item and help make it easier to find.

  • Type

    sound

  • Duration

    01:07:04

  • Shelf mark

    C1190/42/05

  • Recording date

    2005-04-28

  • Is part of (Collection)

    BBC Voices Recordings

  • Recording locations

    Birmingham

  • Interviewees

    Alfu, Miah, 1973 Dec. 14- (speaker, male, youth worker), Khatun, Apsana, 1981 Oct. 30- (speaker, female, Nessa, A., 1980 Aug. 31- (speaker, female, Rahman, Aftab, 1970 May 20- (speaker, male, Uddin, Johar, 1968 March 10- (speaker, male

  • Interviewers

    Maistry, Devan, (speaker, male)

  • Producers

    Asian Network

  • Abstract

    [00:00:00] Discussion of words used to describe EMOTIONS. [00:07:38] Discussion of words used to describe CLOTHING. [00:09:16] Discussion of words used to describe ACTIONS. [00:11:39] Discussion of words used to describe PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES. Speakers mention where they are from. [00:15:13] Discussion of words used to describe WEATHER AND SURROUNDINGS. [00:16:55] Discussion of words used to describe PEOPLE AND THINGS. [00:20:42] Discussion about their identity, importance of language, use of English/Sylheti, loss of mother tongue over generations of family. Dominance and power of English as world language, language as important part of culture. The language she thinks in, children being bilingual, languages spoken at home. [00:34:19] Continuation of discussion about their identity, the term ‘British Asian’, how they would define their identity, being English. Dissatisfaction with British foreign policy, Iraq war, involvement of religion, media reporting. [00:44:50] Discussion about their experiences of living/growing up in England, politics of immigration. Being considered an immigrant, being English, having combined heritage. [00:49:46] Discussion about dissatisfaction with the BBC not catering for Sylheti community. How it’s cool to be Asian now, Asian music/clothing/culture being fashionable. [00:57:04] Discussion about feeling powerless about world politics, British politics, world economics. Hope for the future, what needs to change for the BBC to represent Sylheti community properly. Mention how different communities live together in Leicester.

  • Description

    BBC warning: this interview contains language which some may find offensive. Recording made for BBC Voices project of a conversation guided by a BBC interviewer. The conversation follows a loose structure based on eliciting opinions about accents, dialects, the words we use and people's attitude to language. The five interviewees are all second generation Bangladeshi youth workers.

  • Metadata record:

    View full metadata for this item

Conversation in Birmingham about accent, dialect and attitudes to language.

Please log in to update your playlists.

Can you tell us more about the context of the recording? Or can you share information on its content - timings of key sections or important details? Please add your notes. Uninformative entries may not be retained.

Please log in to leave notes.