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- DictionaryReceived/rəˈsēvd/
adjective
- 1. widely accepted as authoritative or true: "the myths and received wisdom about the country's past"
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What is Received Pronunciation (RP)?
What is Received Pronunciation?
What does'received pronunciation' mean?
When did'received pronunciation' become a 'Conservative RP' accent?
For the distinction between [ ], / / and , see IPA § Brackets and transcription delimiters. Received Pronunciation ( RP) is the accent traditionally regarded as the standard and most prestigious form of spoken British English.
- Overview
- History and reification
- Phonetic features of Received Pronunciation
- Variety and usage of Received Pronunciation
Received Pronunciation (RP), standard speech used in London and southeastern England. It has traditionally been associated with the middle and upper classes and as a mark of public school education. Received Pronunciation (RP) is sometimes referred to as the “Queen’s English,” the “King’s English,” “BBC English,” or “Oxford English.”
The term received pronunciation was coined by phonetician A.J. Ellis in 1869 to refer to an accent used “all over the country, not widely differing in any particular locality…as the educated pronunciation of the metropolis, of the court, the pulpit and the bar.” The definition of received in his use of received pronunciation conveyed the word’s adjectival meaning of “accepted” or “common,” as in the expression received wisdom.
The development of RP is associated with British public schools, including Eton College, Winchester College, Harrow School, and Rugby School, as well as the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge. In fact, “Public School Pronunciation” was the term that phonetician Daniel Jones used to refer to the upper-class accent in his English Pronouncing Dictionary (1917) before he adopted the term “Received Pronunciation” in the second edition (1924) of the work. When the British Broadcasting Company, Ltd., (later renamed the British Broadcasting Corporation; BBC) was established in 1922, it selected the RP accent as its broadcasting standard.
There are many notable phonetic features of RP that differentiate it from other English accents in the United Kingdom, including but not limited to the following:
•RP speakers only pronounce the r sound in words when it is followed by a vowel sound. For example, the RP pronunciation for butter is /ˈbʌtə/, but for buttery /ˈbʌtəri/ the r sound is retained. Other examples of words that drop the r sound include far /fɑː/, mother /ˈmʌðə/, and weather /ˈwɛðə/.
•RP speakers pronounce the h sound at the onset of words, whereas speakers of some other British accents do not. For example, the RP pronunciation for happy is /ˈhæpi/ and not /ˈæpi/, as it is with other accents. Other examples of words with the vocalized h sound include house /haʊs/, help /hɛlp/, and hello /həˈləʊ/.
•RP speakers lengthen the short a vowel before some fricative or nasal consonants in a subset of words. This lengthening is referred to as the trap-bath split because trap is pronounced as /træp/ (with short a), but bath is pronounced as /bɑːθ/ (with long a). Words such as back /bæk/, cat /kæt/, and dad /dæd/ retain the short a vowel in trap, but other words that lengthen it in RP include dance /dɑːns/, laugh /lɑːf/, and grass /grɑːs/.
Generally speaking, dialects and accents tend to differ over time and due to geographic and social factors. The RP used today, for example, sounds different from that used by speakers on BBC broadcasts in the early and mid-1900s, which now comes off as particularly old-fashioned and outdated. Although the RP accent originated in southeastern England, it has been regularly adopted by upwardly mobile individuals throughout the United Kingdom. It is therefore considered regionally unmarked, although some speakers do incorporate regional features into their use of RP.
RP varies somewhat, however, by age, occupation, and lifestyle. The conservative RP variety is associated with older generations and aristocracy. General, or mainstream, RP is a neutral accent in regard to age and social status, but it does mark advanced education. Advanced, or contemporary, RP is an accent that includes features typical of younger speakers from the upper classes.
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May 25, 2022 · Learn how RP, the standard British accent, evolved from a regional variety to a prestige voice of the British Empire and the world. Discover how RP has changed over time and how it is used today in different contexts and media.
Feb 26, 2021 · What is Received Pronunciation (RP)? Well, the first myth to bust is that it is a single accent. Jonnie Robinson is an expert on spoken English at the ‘British Library’. He divides Received Pronunciation (RP) into three categories. Conservative RP. This is the old-fashioned ‘posh’ accent.
Learn the sound-by-sound pronunciation of received in British and American English, with examples of how to use it in a sentence. Find out the definition of received and the difference between Received Pronunciation and other regional varieties of English pronunciation.
Jul 28, 2009 · Learn about the once prestigious variety of British English spoken without an identifiable regional dialect, also known as British Received Pronunciation, BBC English, or posh accent. Find out how RP emerged, how it differs from other dialects, and how it has changed over time.
