Wales and Essex are both included in the list — but at very different ends of the scale (Image: BBC/Toffee International Ltd./Tom Jackson)
The “friendliest” and “most relaxing” accents in the UK have been named — and there’s one clear winner.
Over 1,500 participants were asked their opinions on various accents, rating them on factors such as relaxation, comprehension and friendliness. The “Welsh” accent topped the list, with 38% of respondents finding the accent relaxing, followed by Yorkshire and Cornish accents.
So it may well be that The Traitors’ contestant Charlotte — who adopts a faux Welsh accent in the new series, claiming it to be more trustworthy than others — is on to something.
At the other end of the scale, Cockney and Essex accents ranked lowest. On a global scale, the Italian accent was deemed the most soothing. The study was carried out by SpaSeekers.com and Dr Chris Montgomery, a dialectology expert from the University of Sheffield, reports .
The UK’s 10 most relaxing accents in order
- Welsh
- Yorkshire
- Cornish
- Northern Irish
- King’s English
- Scottish
- West Country
- Geordie
- Lancashire
- Norfolk
The Welsh, Yorkshire, and Cornish accents also topped the list of the “most friendly” accents in the UK, with researchers noting that perceptions of “friendliness” and “relaxation” often coincide. The lowest five on the list were Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham, Cockney and Essex.
The researchers revealed their findings, stating: “It is the warm and friendly Welsh accent which takes first place as the most relaxing accent in the UK, with over 38% of respondents reportedly finding this accent soothing. The Welsh accent is instantly recognisable to most people from the UK and is often described as being a ‘singsong’ accent, because Welsh speakers often stretch their vowels, and their intonation typically travels from a high to low pitch. For this reason, this melodic accent may help listeners to tune in and really relax when listening to Welsh accents.”
Thanks to the Gavin and Stacey Christmas special, nearly 20 million people will have heard at least one version of the Welsh accent since Christmas day (Image: Tom Jackson/BBC/PA)
However, it’s important to note that there isn’t just one “Welsh” accent. The accents of individuals in Caernarfon, for instance, are vastly different from those in Carmarthen or Cardiff.
And within Wales, locals can usually identify whether someone is from Newport or the South Wales Valleys if they have a strong accent from that area. Thanks to the Gavin and Stacey Christmas special, nearly 20 million people will have heard at least one version of the Welsh accent since Christmas day. The show has become the most-viewed scripted programme since records began.
Charlotte in the new The Traitors adopts a Welsh accent, hoping it makes her more trustworthy (Image: PA)
Dr Montgomery commented: “There are a number of different factors that can affect how relaxing we perceive an accent to be – using this research as one example, we can begin to see that there are patterns in how ‘relaxing’ an accent is, compared to how ‘friendly’ it is, or how ‘difficult’ it is to understand.
“We associate people from different places with different characteristics, so the accent associated with each place will also be linked with these characteristics as a result. For example, the ‘received pronunciation’ dialect is often seen as ‘posh’ or associated with those who are highly educated, which can trigger certain emotions and feelings.
“We know that people find some accents more pleasant to listen to than others, so it’s been great to quantify this. Anecdotally, it does seem that a lot of people enjoy Italian accents, so seeing this accent emerge as the most relaxing in this survey is quite interesting. The fact that it ranks above any regional UK accents is also surprising, as we could easily assume that accents that are more familiar to us may have a more soothing effect.”