Weekend Musings | Talking Culture

Happy Sunday!

This has been a topic on my mind since moving here, and I finally have enough thoughts on it to create a 'musings' post. British people speak very differently than Canadian people. I know, duh, right?! Let me expand.

So, both countries speak English. And we already know there are a number of different colloquialisms and accents when comparing Canada and England. But, beyond the different words and the different sounds of same words (e.g. 'tom-a-to' vs. 'to-mah-to'), there is a stark difference in the way people communicate using the English language.




One of the first things I noticed was the way people wrap up a telephone call. In Canada, there seems to be an accepted rhythm of 'have a nice day, bye' and 'you too, bye now' or something along that line. When it comes to getting off a call here, British people employ a sense of urgency and competitiveness, where suddenly every single parting word and farewell is said into the phone in an increasingly higher pitched tone. The first phone call I had with my London-based recruiter ended with me saying 'Ok, thanks for everything, bye!' and hearing this in response 'Alright, bye now, talk to you later, cheers, buh-bye!' Yelled out all in one breath, with the dwindling oxygen causing a hugely high-pitched last bye before she drew a giant breath in and hung up.

I was mildly offended at first, thinking that she had been so desperate to get off th phone with me that she felt the need to belt out farewells as assurance I couldn't get a word in or continue the conversation. But, within a month or so of more phone calls with Brits, and after working in an office and signing off calls increasingly often, this style holds true across almost all phone calls I've ever had. If nothing else, at least it's given me full exposure to all British farewell lingo - they really do say 'Cheerio'....

Another difference is the use of verbal communication that is devoid of any words. I'm talking the throaty, guttural, thoughtful noises that are usually emitted through a closed mouth. Lots of 'hmmms' and 'mmmm hmmmm' and 'grunts' (I can't figure out how to describe though with only consanants....). I've never heard so many hmmms in my life, as people use it to confirm they are listening, with you in agreement, or strongly disagreeing. It's a noise of solidarity, possibly a placeholder or introduction for them to then get a word in next?

Finally, the meanings of particular conversational filler words are pretty varied here too. Take 'fine' for example. In Canada, 'fine' is usually anything but fine, sort of like a 'whatever, if you have to then do that but it's not ideal'. In UK, 'fine' is used so often that initially I was worried people were just constantly disappointed and very unimpressed. But, in fact, 'fine' is literally 'okay', used in isolation to mean the exact same thing you would use it for in a sentence (e.g. "I'm totally fine with it").

These are the things that have been standing out for me since moving here, maybe I'm alone?