To find this incredibly irritating and rude?

[Whatonearth17]

Name change for this and I’m sure I’ll get flamed…but here we go…

I’m a Welsh speaker living in Wales and have an accent when I speak English. It’s a lovely thing and I love other people’s accents. I’ve just returned from shopping where an older English speaking ‘gentleman’ asked me to get something he couldn’t reach for him. I did him the favour and was polite to him at which point he repeated what I said in an over the top mocking Welsh accent. It is the THIRD time this week that a variation of this scenario has happened. Once at work (which I pushed back on) once when I was in the park with the kids and decided I couldn’t be arsed to say anything and today. Why do people think this is ok? The guy today in particular was patronising and belittling and quite frankly just rude. Would we do this to someone with a German/ Chinese accent? Or any other accent? Heritage? To their FACE? When it has happened at work and I can definitely identify their linguistic background, it tends to be people with one language? Multilingual people tend to do it far far less. I just find it so rude and ignorant.
YABU - it’s just banter
YANBU- let’s stop copying people’s accents shall we?

Yeah, it's rudeness. I am Irish and it happens to me too. Also "funny" Paddy jokes. I wish people would stop doing it, but I can't be bothered using any of my time or energy to educate them. I just walk off if they start.

I would find that so rude. Why did he think that was acceptable? I love accents, I’m a language teacher and I might ask where someone is from, lovely Latvian guy helped me at the tip the other day, but I certainly wouldn’t take the piss. Conversely, when somebody found out where I was from the other day-Newcastle-he found it difficult to wrap his head round why I don’t have the stereotypical accent.

Repeating what someone says is annoying, attempting to use their accent is, imo, offensive. As pp say, if you were BAME/Chinese, would he have dreamt of doing that? I really doubt it.

This.

I used to have to go to the US a lot for work. I would always have my British accent repeated back to me!

It’s rude and annoying. Having a brummie accent is the bane of my absolute life and whenever on holiday, or literally being anywhere outside of Birmingham I have my accent parroted back at me by idiots who think they are funny I rage inside. I don’t think it’s a race issue, it’s a ‘lots of people are twats’ issue.

I've had people put on an exaggeratedly upper class accent around me. I’m not, I just speak RP.
I just smile awkwardly and edge away.

@shrumps it’s so interesting isn’t it? I’ve been trying to think about the motivation (probably overthinking!) I understand interest or novelty. I even get wanting to sound something out (in your own head) but it is sometimes something more. Something to do with difference and class. There’s also the layer of the history of the Welsh language too which makes it more complicated

I'm a Brummie. So used to this it's ridiculous. At least you've got a lovely sounding accent 😂

@Giggorata edging away sounds like a plan but I think I may ask them to repeat it next time? Kinda- do you know how silly and insulting you sound?!

I was going to say the same.

@ScienceFanGirl I absolutely thought about it but he was using a walking frame seat thing and then I thought about the optics of that 😬🥴 Probably still should have anyway …

I got my southern accent mocked incessantly when I lived up north.
So I deliberately changed my accent.
Interestingly the only comment I ever get down south is "where are you from? I can tell it's up north."

It's rude.

I'd have taken the item out of his cart silently and put it back out of reach.

I don't see it as shaming. It's a bit of fun, imitating different accents doesn't mean you dislike the accent or think less of people with that accent.

It’s terrible to echo someone’s accent. Absolutely terrible and shouldn’t be allowed. I think the term “posh twat” is immensely offensive too.

I’ve got an Essex accent and people always make stupid comments. Usually men

I agree with you and think it’s rude. I would have said something.

I meant I totally agree.

Yes people do this to people with accents different t to their own constantly. Always makes me pause too as I have it done to me daily but I realise a lot of people at every socially awkward. Also when I hear aussies speak I do get a bizarre urge to mimic them 😂 no idea why!! And not to make fun!

I'm Australian and it happens to me too all the time. I posted about it under an old user name once as it irritates me. People think it's funny to take the piss out of my accent and mimic me.

That and the jokes about all us Australians being convicts and thieves which also happens rather too often for my liking. (Happening once is too often- it has happened to me a handful of times which is a handful of times too often).

I’m so used to it now, I just don’t react to it. I am often the only one that can speak Welsh within a group and I’m more upset by that than any comment they might make to me!

I tend to respond back in mocking recieved pronociation.

It takes you by surprise and it's only afterwards you think what you could have said back. I'm a northerner and have only had my accent commented on by southerners in the UK. I don't know what people who make these sorts of comments think they come across as or what they are hoping to achieve?

I mean what did the guy you helped expect as a response, "Yes, but only to wind up English people"?

I love the Welsh accent!

But.... I pick up accents when I'm away from work, and even found myself doing the Indian head nod while talking when i came back from a work trip recently. I wasn't being arsy or making fun

I code switch HORRIBLY between 1940s BBC Received Pronunciation and some kind of demented East End Urchin. My own Surrey/West Sussex accent is somewhere in the middle and all over the place. It’s embarrassing and I can’t actually help it; I have worked in hospitality and customer service my whole life which doesn’t help. I catch my self all the time and cringe.

I’m sure a few people have thought I’m taking the piss but I promise I’m not. My Dad was the same as well but his did extend to other regional accents and he genuinely didn’t hear himself do it.