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Study Notes

The Sound System of Australian English

Australian English is a non-rhotic variety of English spoken by most native-born Australians.
It is phonologically one of the most regionally homogeneous language varieties in the world.
Australian English is notable for vowel length contrasts which are absent from most English dialects.
The Australian English vowels /ɪ/, /e/, /eː/ and /oː/ are noticeably closer than their contemporary Received Pronunciation equivalents.
Australian English has long vowels, which include monophthongs and diphthongs, that mostly correspond to the tense vowels used in analyses of Received Pronunciation.
Short vowels in Australian English, consisting only of monophthongs, correspond to the RP lax vowels.
There are two families of phonemic transcriptions of Australian English: revised ones and the Mitchell-Delbridge system.
Australian English consonants are similar to those of other non-rhotic varieties of English.
Australian English is most similar to New Zealand English, but there are differences, such as centralised /ɪ/ and the higher short front vowels in New Zealand English.
Australian English lacks some innovations in Cockney, such as th-fronting and h-dropping.
AusTalk is a database of Australian speech from all regions of the country, which includes the voices of 861 speakers with ages ranging from 18 to 83.
The AusTalk database is expected to help improve speech-based technology, such as speech recognition systems and hearing aids.

Description

Do you know about the sound system of Australian English? Test your knowledge with our quiz! Learn about the unique vowel length contrasts, phonemic transcriptions, and consonants of this non-rhotic English dialect. Discover the differences between Australian English and other varieties, such as New Zealand English and Cockney. Challenge yourself and see how much you know about the fascinating sound system of Australian English.