Paul De Decker, a Memorial University linguistics professor, says Newfoundland accents aren’t dying — just changing. (Jonny Hodder/CBC)
Get a Newfoundlander and Labradorian to tell you a story about their nan or pop, and I bet they’ll put on a stereotypically thick and delightfully charming accent while imitating them: dropping h’s and adding affectionate phrases like “me ducky” or “me love.”
Paul De Decker, an associate professor in Memorial University’s department of linguistics, says this mimicking isn’t just for comedic value — it’s actually an act of keeping regional accents and dialects alive.
“These Newfoundland English features, they may be
