Emile Wauters
Some say beauty is in the eye of the beholder—but it looks like that might apply to the ear of the beholder as well. To one person, a mighty Scottish accent might have them swooning (think Groundskeeper Willie from The Simpsons yelling "Och aye the noo!" or perhaps a Ewan McGregor Obi-Wan Kenobi monologue). To others, a Texas drawl may be the hottest thing they've ever heard. A simple “Y’all” or “I’m fixin’ to make supper” with a West Texas dialect could really get those fires stoked, so to speak.
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The sexiness of accents is subjective, of course. Though, according to polls, some fare better than others. In an article on Euro News, David Mouriquand references a 2017 poll conducted by the language tutorial app Babbel. He shares that they “polled more than 15,000 people, who named French the ‘sexiest accent.’” However, when about 6,000 people in the US, UK, France, Spain, Italy, and Germany were polled by Babbel just last year, there was a new favorite in town.
There was a slight variation in the polling question. In the more recent case, people were asked what they believed to be the “sexiest language.” More specifically, the languages they found “most sexy, most romantic, and most passionate.” "The findings stated that Italian was perceived by the highest number of people to be both the 'most sexy' and the 'most romantic.'" (Interestingly, “British English was found to be the ‘most polite,’ while German won the top spot for ‘most direct.’”)
Still, the sample size was relatively small and only Western countries were surveyed, which is a distinction worth noting. To that point, Mouriquand shares this interesting tidbit: in 2017, linguist Patti Adank, a professor of speech perception and production at University College London, noted that “English speakers are drawn to the ‘melody’ of a language such as French or Italian.”
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For a larger sample size, Reddit and TikTok have entered the chat with their views on “sexiest” dialects. And once again, the answers seem relative to the origin country of the commenter. On a subreddit thread, one person asks "What accent do you find the most attractive?" A Redditor answers, “I, an Australian with a very heavy accent, traveled to rural Scotland several years ago and good grief, we spoke the same language yet understood nothing the other said.” So, Scottish might be out of the running—for them.
Another brings up the Mid-Atlantic dialect popular on the East Coast from the 1800s through the mid-1940s (This accent was made extra famous by American movie stars in the '30s and '40s). Someone responds: “Funny thing—that in Slavic countries, we basically LEARN this accent as an ideal, excellent accent. I had a teacher who tortured me with some cuts from films to repeat NOTE TO NOTE.”
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This person is not conflicted. After pointing out that of all the places they’ve been—“England, South Korea, Japan, Ireland, Scotland, Australia, and Germany”—there’s a clear winner: “Aussie women win.”
One Redditor doesn’t just love an accent—they love everything about the culture: “I love French wine like I love the French language. I have sampled every language—French is my favorite. Fantastic language. Especially to curse with. It's like wiping your arse with silk.”
Plenty chose German, but Scottish is higher on the list than one might think. One user says, “Move over, French. Looks like Scottish is the new sexy accent.”
On another Reddit thread, the question of the sexiest accent was followed by a clarifier: “What’s the sexiest accent in your opinion—and what nationality are you?” Again—Scottish is climbing the charts. “I’m Filipino and think Scottish accents are very sexy.”
The English often find Irish lilts, French accents, and American accents of all kinds appealing. One comments that they find American accents sexy because: “You just know they are s---ts for British men.” And to that point, one Redditor asks, “With the ‘Sexiest Accent’ thread going on, it got me wondering—does anyone consider American accents to be sexy?”
An American responded that the Irish seemed to find their accent super appealing. Turns out they were from Southern Illinois. Again—it’s all relative.
@irishdaily Top 5 most attractive accents according science! Are you surprised by this?🤔 Is the Scottish accent really more attractive than the irish accent☘️?🤔☘️😄 #irishaccent . . 📸👉 @twobrokechicks_ 👏☘️😊 #irishdaily #tiktokoftheday #scottishaccent #irishhumour #science #irish #ireland #accent #scotland #spanish #french #italian #fyp
Over on TikTok, many weighed in and there was lots of dissent after Scottish was revealed as the sexiest accent This TikTok user gets right to the point: “Scottish…. Loooooooooool where did you do that poll? In Glasgow?”
Also in the comment section, Arabic, Indonesian, and Russian get some love. And last—but far from least—are the accents within Spanish-speaking countries. An entire YouTube video is dedicated to finding out "Which Spanish accent is sexiest?" (Spoiler alert: they all are.)
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There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
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Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."