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What sounds do other cultures use to imitate the English language?

English-speaking nitwits often times try to imitate the sound of a language which they don't know how to speak by throwing together a bunch of nonsense syllables. For instance, they'll go "hawww hawww" when trying to imitate the French language, "durka durka" when imitating Arabic or Urdu, or "wong ching choo" when they try to imitate the Chinese. I've always wondered: What sounds do non English-speaking people make when they try to imitate English?

Update:

Wow! So many good and interesting answers! I can't pick one!

Ar-ar-ar-ation!? HAHA

14 Answers

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  • J.J.
    Lv 4
    1 decade ago
    Favorite Answer

    Filipinos who aren't fluent in English copy the sounds like "tapurchichipalalaptataps....".... Lot's o' "p", "r", "s" and "t" sounds especially when they hear the English speaker talking fast.

  • 5 years ago

    There is no such thing as an American language. The British people are one of the first settlers besides the Native Americans who are the real Americans to reside in America. Their language has crossed over region to region therefore their language is more influential in America. English is still English it is just that Americans try to get their own form of identity by trying to come with their innovations of speaking the English language. That's there is a lot of slang especially in America. That is the reason why people both Americans and Brits say I don't American or I don't speak British. Americans and Brits speak the same standard language it's more of an identity conflict than anything else.

  • 1 decade ago

    Well, the reason people say "woo ching choo" is that they don't know a word of chinese.

    But people tend to know a bit of english.

    Around in the Middle East, when I was in school, people used to imitate english by mixing a few words they knew, like "Hello", "Mister", "Yes", with made-up words. Made up words would generally consist of a few syllables or a native word, with an "ation" added to the end.

    So it would go, "Hello, Mister, toopation, yes, yes, ..." Something like that.

    Really silly, but hey, I guess "wong ching choo" sounds silly to the Chinese as well.

  • Anonymous
    1 decade ago

    I'm actually from a Korean background. My mom, who is full Korean, said that in Korea, they use the phrase "shalli shalli" to imitate English. I guess that's what English sounds like to non-English speaking people. But good question! I was curious myself :)

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  • 1 decade ago

    When we played 'cowboys and indians' as kids during the 50s in Flanders, we shouted all the time "HAN-job!" ('hands up!). We didn't have to imitate, we heard a lot of English in the movies.

  • 1 decade ago

    I was told by a Senegalese man that before he learned english, he thought it sounded like growling and shushing. A lot of rarrarrarr and shushushush.

  • 1 decade ago

    I can't say because I've never really met anyone who hasn't been able to speak English. I guess it would depend on what language the person does speak.

  • 1 decade ago

    shin wachin yoo est tom....Well at least that is waht i used to say when i was back in mex. We just mix a bunch of words or we just add " ...ation" at the end. of any spanish word.

    Source(s): I was raised in Mexico so que qieres que diga???
  • Maya
    Lv 7
    1 decade ago

    French kids use a lot of "w" sounds (which is the closest sound to your "r" for them), "ch" and "ion" : wona woo nuh chion

  • 1 decade ago

    My uncle (who doesn't speak english) says that they sound like they talk with sticks in their mouths!!!!

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