From Newsgroup: sci.lang
HenHanna@NewsGrouper <
user4055@newsgrouper.org.invalid> posted:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VQ_oHa07oo
Can YOU Find the Radius of This Circle? -- (Her Accent?)
------------- Nice Problem!!!!
She has a lovely accent.
Just from listening to her (in the first 30 seconds),
is it possible to guess what her 1st language is?
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Today is Transfiguration Sunday --- Somehow fitting that Feb2 --> Feb22
"transubstantiation" seems a notion that ever-present in FW.
---------------- "transubstantiation" (Catholic doctrine where bread/wine's substance fully changes to Christ's body/blood at consecration, while appearances remain)
----versus---- consubstantiation (Lutheran view of coexistence).
No Protestants use "substantiation" as a formal term here.
Nice Math problem!
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VQ_oHa07oo <-- Is she English? Where is she from? What is her accent like?
one AI says>>> She is English, and she speaks with a fairly standard Southern British (nearrCaRP) accent, probably from somewhere in England rather than Scotland, Wales, or Ireland. [youtube](
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hTpov3IMV0)
Her vowel quality, nonrCarhotic /r/ (no strong /r/ after vowels), and overall intonation pattern align with mainstream educated English speech, not with American, Australian, or regional UK accents like Scouse, Geordie, or strong Estuary. Her accent sounds moderately polished and rCLneutralrCY by contemporary British media standards, with only light regional colouring if any. [youtube](
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hTpov3IMV0)
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-------- I would NOT describe hers as (nearrCaRP) accent at all!
You are right to push back; rCLnearrCaRPrCY was not a good label for her.
From the video, her accent sounds like a contemporary **Southern** English urban accent with noticeable rCLEstuaryrCY/London influence rather than classic or nearrCaReceived Pronunciation. Features that point away from RP include a looser, more conversational vowel system, more glottalization, and intonation patterns that feel closer to current London/Home Counties speech than to older BBCrCastyle prestige norms. So: English, Southern, fairly educated, but definitely not the traditional RP you hear in midrCa20thrCacentury broadcasts. [youtube](
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hTpov3IMV0)
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-------- Near the beginning, her R was so noticeable that I thought she might be Slavic, or Eastern European ----- but she seems completely fluent --- Her 1st language must be English.
**No, she's GermanrCorCorCorCorCorCorCorConot English or Slavic.**
The speaker is Susanne (also called Anna in the intro), creator of the "Math Queen" English channel and "@MathemaTrick" German channel, who explicitly states she's from Germany. [youtube](
https://www.youtube.com/@MathQueenSusanne/playlists)
Her first language is clearly German, with native-level English fluency but telltale non-native markers like stronger /r/ sounds (uvular or rolled /-U/, common in German rather than English's approximant /+|/), occasional prosodic quirks, and precise but slightly "textbook" phrasing that can mimic Eastern European L2 accents at first listen. The /r/ prominence you noticed is a classic German-English interference trait, not Slavic-specific (e.g., Polish/Russian rolled /r/ tends rougher). [youtube](
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hTpov3IMV0)
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-------- OK... that makes sene. A particularly attractive (appealing) German accented English was spoken by the Love-interest in the 1st Bourne-Identity movie.
Yes, you're spot-on. The love interest in the 2002 Bourne Identity film is Marie Helena Kreutz, played by Franka Potente.
Potente, a German actress from M|+nster, delivers that captivating German-accented EnglishrCosmooth yet distinctly non-native, with a melodic lilt and subtle /r/ strength that echoes the Math Queen speaker's style. [youtube](
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hTpov3IMV0)
Her chemistry with Matt Damon amplified the accent's allure, making it a standout in spy thrillers.
-------- In the movie, is she trying to Tweak her natural accent in some way? Does she speak French?
No, Franka Potente did not deliberately tweak or suppress her natural German accent for her role as Marie Kreutz in *The Bourne Identity* (2002).
Her performance features her authentic M|+nster-born German accent in English, which the filmmakers embraced as fitting for a character portrayed as a free-spirited German expat living in SwitzerlandrConeither fully Americanized nor French-inflected. Some viewers and critics noted minor inconsistencies in her delivery (one review griped she "can't seem what accent she wants"), but this stemmed from her natural L2 English rather than intentional modification. [americanhorrorstory.fandom](
https://americanhorrorstory.fandom.com/wiki/Franka_Potente)
Potente is multilingual and speaks fluent French, as evidenced by roles like in *Anatomie* (2000), but Marie's character has no French dialogue or need for it in the film. [americanhorrorstory.fandom](
https://americanhorrorstory.fandom.com/wiki/Franka_Potente)
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