Rhotic r in American, non-rhotic r in British
Rhotic speakers will pronounce the r in
barn,
park,
cart,
fart, whereas non-rhotic speakers won�t, making no distinction between
barn and (
auto)
bahn. Most of America is rhotic, with the notable exception of the Boston area and New York City. SE Britain is apparently the source of non-rhotic. England is non-rhotic, apart from the SW and some ever-diminishing northern areas. Scotland and Ireland are rhotic. In the movie
The Princess Bride, the bishop (Peter Cook) over-emphasized the non-rhotic accent by loudly announcing �
mawidge� (
marriage), and Americans often joke about eastern New Englanders who �pahk the cah in Hahvahd yahd�.
In Britain, the non-rhotic accent gives rise to linking �r�s, where an otherwise unpronounced �r�, in �clear�, is pronounced if followed by a vowel, �clear away�. An intrusive �r� is an �r� added in such a situation where none actually exists, so �law and order� becomes �law ran order�. In some cases, there is even hypercorrection, such as adding an �r� (Louisa ® Louiser), especially when a non-rhotic person moves to a rhotic area. But if Clair hears the �r� she�ll correct you.
In contrast, in the North and Scotland, r�s roll stronger. Even d�s can be r�d. I�ve been called a /bluhreeiree?/ (bloody idiot) a few times.
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