The accent of the south, shaped by Occitan underneath it. The nasal vowels are not fully nasal: the mouth closes on an ŋ at the end. The schwa that Paris deletes is pronounced — 'petite' has three syllables — and the mid vowels have no open/closed contrast, so 'rose' has the vowel of 'bonne'. The melody swings.
Where: Marseille, Provence and the south
Anything the spelling engine can transcribe, the accent can move. Slow it down to hear the shape.
The famous sing-song: pitch swings up and down inside the phrase, the final syllable is lengthened, and the schwa that Paris drops gets a full beat — 'une petite maison' has seven syllables here and five in Paris.
In the order the mouth applies them. Every before-and-after is playable — click the IPA. The pattern is the rule as the engine runs it, for the curious.
ɛ̃ → ɛŋHow: Say a plain 'è' and close on the ng of 'sing'.
Southern French keeps the nasal consonant that the north absorbed into the vowel in the Middle Ages. The vowel is only lightly nasal; the ŋ carries the rest.
| Word | Reference | Accent | |
|---|---|---|---|
| pain | |||
| vin | |||
| bien |
ɑ̃ → ɑŋ| Word | Reference | Accent | |
|---|---|---|---|
| blanc | |||
| dans | |||
| enfant |
ɔ̃ → ɔŋ| Word | Reference | Accent | |
|---|---|---|---|
| bon | |||
| maison |
œ̃ → œŋMarseille never merged brun with brin. Four nasals, all with a consonant on the end.
| Word | Reference | Accent | |
|---|---|---|---|
| brun | |||
| un |
o → ɔHow: The o of 'bonne' everywhere — jaw open, lips loosely rounded.
The south has one o, and it is the open one. 'Côte' and 'cote' are the same word.
| Word | Reference | Accent | |
|---|---|---|---|
| rose | |||
| beau | |||
| chose |
ø → œHow: The vowel of 'peur' everywhere.
| Word | Reference | Accent | |
|---|---|---|---|
| peu | |||
| deux | |||
| heureux |
e(?![̃]) → ɛOne e-sound rather than two — the same collapse as the o's.
| Word | Reference | Accent | |
|---|---|---|---|
| été | |||
| chanter |
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