Dialects and Accents of New Zealand
The archive provides:
In a small number of cases, you will also find a narrow phonetic transcription of the sample (see Phonetic Transcriptions for a complete list).
The recordings average four minutes in length and feature both the reading of one of two standard passages, and some unscripted speech. The two passages, Comma Gets a Cure (currently our standard passage), and The Rainbow Passage (used in our earliest recordings), may be accessed from the menu bar to your right.
To access IDEA's sound files and documents, you will need an mp3 player, and Acrobat Reader, available free from Acrobat Reader.
If you are interested in specific information about New Zealand, please go to Yahoo's website at dir.yahoo.com/Regional/Countries/Zealand/
For instructional materials or coaching in the accents and dialects represented here
please go to
Other Dialect Services
Dialect Samples
To properly play a sound sample, you may first need to save it to your own computer. To do so, right-click on the desired sample and save it. A high-speed connection to the internet may allow you to play the file simply by clicking it.| Sound Sample | Basic Information | Text Files |
|---|---|---|
| New Zealand One | Male, 20's, mild educated dialect | New Zealand One |
| New Zealand Two | Female, 20's, mild educated dialect | New Zealand Two |
| New Zealand Three | Female, 40's, mild educated dialect | New Zealand Three |
| New Zealand Four | Female, 20's, secretary, mild educated dialect | New Zealand Four |
| New Zealand Five | Male, born 1962, (Mauri) Maori, hospitality industry | New Zealand Five |
| New Zealand Six | Male, born 1977, restaurant manager, raised Christchurch | New Zealand Six |
| New Zealand Seven | female, European, Christchurch, born 1958, school principal | New Zealand Seven |
| New Zealand Eight | male, European, Darfield, born 1970, student | New Zealand Eight |
| New Zealand Nine | female, European, Dutch ancestry | New Zealand Nine |
| New Zealand Ten | male, Maori, born 1988 | New Zealand Ten |
| New Zealand Eleven | male, Maori, born 1974 | New Zealand Eleven |
| New Zealand Twelve | female, European, born 1989 | New Zealand Twelve |
| New Zealand Thirteen | female, European, born 1989 | New Zealand Thirteen |
| New Zealand Fourteen | female, European, born 1954 | New Zealand Fourteen |
| New Zealand Fifteen | male, Tongan, born 1986 | New Zealand Fifteen |
| New Zealand Sixteen | male, born 1989, Colchester, Essex, England; moved to NZ at age 13 | New Zealand Sixteen |