Where does Nadia G's accent come from? Some of you may be kept awake at night with this burning question. You may feel angry, confused and alone... If this is the case, you need help my friend. But if you're just wondering about the accent, here's the deal:
Nadia G(iosia)'s parents immigrated from Italy to Montreal, Quebec in the 1950's. Her father came from Guglionesi, Campobasso, where they speak a dialect of 'Mulise'. Her mom hails from Torrice -- a small town in Frosinone where they speak their own dialect of 'Torriciano'.
Fast forward a coupla decades, and G is born in Montreal, Quebec, a French-Canadian city. But make no mistake, the French spoken in Montreal is a far cry from the gutteral French one hears in France. "Quebecois" is to Parisian French what the Southern Drawl is to British English. Onwards.
When G was little, she grew up speaking Italian. She then went to English school, but took quite a few bi-lingual courses (that's how we roll in Mtl). And to this day, she speaks 3 languages: English, French and Italian.
Now, here comes the fun part: G grew up in St. Leonard, an Italian neighbourhood where folks don't just have a peculiar Italian-Montreal accent, they created a whole freakin' language, bro! A dialect which is colorful, and at times cringe-worthy. St. Leonard is a burough where back yards aren't gardens, they're tomato factories. Its a town where Civics were the vehicle of choice in the 90's, and 'Rhythm is a Dancer' blasted through the souped-up speakers (...which were worth more than the car). Its a town where people named Joe, Mary, Tina and Gino eat cutlet "sangwiches" and live with their parents until they're 40. Where the boys are clean shaven, and in certain cases we wish we could say the same for the girls.
Anyways, the point is: when Nadia speaks you'll hear glimmers of these influences: French, Italian, 'St. Leonard-ese', depending on how flustered she is. ...And sometimes, if you listen really closely, you can also hear dolphins cry. It's a beautiful thing.
Now, here comes the fun part: G grew up in St. Leonard, an Italian neighbourhood where folks don't just have a peculiar Italian-Montreal accent, they created a whole freakin' language, bro! A dialect which is colorful, and at times cringe-worthy. St. Leonard is a burough where back yards aren't gardens, they're tomato factories. Its a town where Civics were the vehicle of choice in the 90's, and 'Rhythm is a Dancer' blasted through the souped-up speakers (...which were worth more than the car). Its a town where people named Joe, Mary, Tina and Gino eat cutlet "sangwiches" and live with their parents until they're 40. Where the boys are clean shaven, and in certain cases we wish we could say the same for the girls.
Anyways, the point is: when Nadia speaks you'll hear glimmers of these influences: French, Italian, 'St. Leonard-ese', depending on how flustered she is. ...And sometimes, if you listen really closely, you can also hear dolphins cry. It's a beautiful thing.
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