Has Meghan Markle's accent changed since she came to live in the UK? Ever since the Duchess of Sussex stepped foot on British turf, rumours have been rife that her softly-spoken Los Angeles way of speaking has altered. If it is the case, can we really be shocked? After all, marrying an English person, moving over to England and spending all of your time in England surrounded by his friends and family has got to take some effect, huh?
However, after months of speculation, the vote has finally been put to the speech experts. Has the former actress been getting tips from Grandma Liz on RP? Many of them sure seem to think so!
Phonetics and pronunciation specialist Dr Geoff Lindsey told the BBC that there is "something" in the idea that the 37-year-old's speech has changed, claiming that "there are occasional vowels which sound a bit more British" - but added it was hard to come to a firm conclusion [[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/Ed59029780/status/1063020874436100097]]
One example he pointed out was Meghan's British pronunciation of the word "all" when she greeted crowds in Cheshire in June 2018, a month after her wedding to Harry [[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/ThePerezHilton/status/1015034534000132096]]
Dr Lindsey also stated that her intonation is more British than American when asking the yes/no question "did you make that for us?" as she greeted well-wishers in Birkenhead in January [[instagramwidget||https://www.instagram.com/p/BsnkaKUH4Az/]]
Another expert who supports the accent theory is Marisa Brook, assistant professor in linguistics at the University of Toronto, who told the BBC the duchess has "developed a style that sounds very English-aristocratic for interacting with the public" [[youtubewidget||https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-tpBJWx_Y8]]
Phonetics professor Jane Setter, from the University of Reading, agreed that there was some difference in the former Suits star's vowel pronunciation in public, but insisted it wasn't "huge" [[youtubewidget||https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UzpGy7nO4MU]]
Professor Setter also pointed out that being around crowds "will make a difference" because of 'accommodation' - when participants in a conversation adjust their accent, diction, or other aspects of language according to the speech style of the other person [[youtubewidget||https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bwkCHC5jP34]]
Professor Paul Kerswill wasn't convinced though, telling the BBC that "there really isn't much to go on" and claiming Meghan was "consistent" in her accent [[youtubewidget||https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZQiB1ChLAQ]]
Many people on social media have defied the experts and insisted they can hear it however [[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/rarees3/status/1015563761346723840]]
Some even flat-out named her accent "English" [[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/kreativekonnect/status/1084806795082825728]]
But, as others have pointed out, in the grand scheme of all worldly things - i.e. famine and war - is it a problem that a woman moved to a different country and began speaking ever so slightly differently? Probably not! [[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/osnapitzlyndsey/status/1045333661804048384]]
In other bizarre royal news, there are some creepy Meghan Markle and Prince Harry live wax dolls that are horrifying the internet at the moment.
