Talking of Wine...

I very clearly remember my Mum saying that if she turned up in Oz to visit and found I'd picked up an Aussie accent she'd disown me!!  I took that comment with a small pinch of salt, but despite my usual involuntary ability to lapse into the accent of whoever I'm talking to, I seem to have remained resolutely unaffected by the Aussie twang since I arrived.  At least, that's what I thought until a few nights ago!

I'm very lucky to have met some great people since I arrived and even luckier to count a number of them as good friends.  One such friend, on reading my messages about my stressful week, suggested I pop round for a drink Friday night, despite the fact that I wouldn't get there until 11pm after my late bus journey back from Canberra.  It turned out to be a cathartic unwind session, but as I moved onto my 3rd glass of wine, it suddenly dawned on my that the more I drink, the more Australian I sound!!  Why is this? Would I naturally be talking like an Aussie by now if I didn't subconsciously 'try' not to?  After all, we're at our most relaxed when we've had a couple of glasses of alcohol!  I'm wondering whether it's only me who noticed my deteriorating accent - my friend certainly didn't mention anything so maybe it's just all in my imagination!  This led me on to contemplating why it is some people seem to pick up the accent and others don't.  A lot of the people I know out here are (or were) British (let's face it, most 'Australians' originate from somewhere else and a large proportion from Europe!) and there is a wild difference between those who remain resolutely British with their distinctive received pronunciation and those who sound as if they were born downunder.  I'm fascinated to know what causes that... does it depend on the willingness of the person to adopt a new accent or does it have more to do with their musicality and their ability to unconsciously absorb the cadences of a different style of speech, morphing it into their own?  If there are any linguists out there with an answer, please let me know!