Dialects Of Ontario
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 Ontario, please go to Yahoo's website at dir.yahoo.com/Regional/Countries/Canada/
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 display the various 'save' options, PC users should right-click on the desired sample below; Mac users should press the Control key while clicking. A high-speed connection to the Internet may allow you to play the file simply by clicking it once or twice.| Sound Sample | Basic Information | Text Files |
|---|---|---|
| Ontario One | White, female, born 1971, tutor, lifelong resident of Windsor, Ontario. | Ontario One |
| Ontario Two | White, female, 20 years old, student, Canadian-Italian from Woodbridge, a Canadian-Italian suburb of Toronto, Ontario. | Ontario Two Transcription |
| Ontario Three | White, male, born Sarnia, 1956 | Ontario Three |
| Ontario Four | White, female, born Point Edward, 1959 | Ontario Four |
| Ontario Five | White, male, born Sturgeon's Falls, Ontario, 1958. French-Canadian | Ontario Five |
| Ontario Six | male, Afghan-Canadian, born Toronto, 1983 | Ontario Six |
| Ontario Seven | male, 27, born Southern Ontario | Ontario Seven |
| Ontario Eight | female, 29, born 1978 in England of Asian parents, emigrated as small child to Toronto | Ontario Eight |
| Ontario Nine | female, born 1961 in Hanover, raised in Kincardine | Ontario Nine |
| Ontario Ten | male, born 1961, raised London, Ontario, music teacher | Ontario Ten |
| Ontario Eleven | caucasian female, born 1988, raised Fergus, Ontario, teacher | Ontario Eleven phonetic transcription |
| Ontario Twelve | causcasian female, born 1961, raised St. Thomas, teacher | Ontario Twelve |
| Ontario Thirteen | caucasian female, born 1971, raised St. Thomas, Ontario, provincial offenses officer | Ontario Thirteen |
| Ontario Fourteen | male, born Toronto 1961, raised Carlisle, Ontario, teacher | Ontario Fourteen |
| Ontario Fifteen | caucasian female, born London Ontario 1990, raised Hanover, Ontario, cashier | Ontario Fifteen |
| Ontario Sixteen | caucasian female, born Montreal 1977, raised Ottawa, Ontario, teacher | Ontario Sixteen |
| Ontario Seventeen | caucasian male, born Mattawa 1960, raised Capreol, Ontario, teacher | Ontario Seventeen |
| Ontario Eighteen | caucasian male, born 1959, raised Hamilton, Ontario, engineer | Ontario Eighteen |
| Ontario Nineteen | male, born 1955, raised Hamilton, Ontario, public health inspector | Ontario Nineteen |
| Ontario Twenty | caucasian female, born 1953, raised Guelph, Ontario, health promoter | Ontario Twenty |
| Ontario Twenty-one | caucasian female, born 1964, raised Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, risk management coordinator | Ontario Twenty-one |
| Ontario Twenty-two | caucasian female, born 1956, raised Cobourg, Ontario, clerk | Ontario Twenty-two |
| Ontario Twenty-three | male, born 1971, lawyer | Ontario Twenty-three |
| Ontario Twenty-four | caucasian female, born 1954, raised Kitchener, Ontario, law clerk | Ontario Twenty-four |
| Ontario Twenty-five | female, born Scarborough 1963, raised Richmond Hill, Ontario, health promoter | Ontario Twenty-five |
| Ontario Twenty-six | caucasian female, born 1983, raised Burlington, Ontario, communications | Ontario Twenty-six |
| Ontario Twenty-seven | female, born 1975, raised Hamilton, Ontario, environmental specialist | Ontario Twenty-seven |
| Ontario Twenty-eight | caucasian female, born Brockville 1978, raised Brampton, Ontario, health inspector | Ontario Twenty-eight |
| Ontario Twenty-nine | female, born Bowmanville 1950, raised North Bay, Kitchener, Burlington, Ontario, public health inspector | Ontario Twenty-nine |
| Ontario Thirty | male, born Newmarket 1973, raised Bradford, Ontario, technician | Ontario Thirty |
| Ontario Thirty-one | female, born Hamilton 1953, raised Burlington, Ottawa, Toronto, Ontario, theatre designer | Ontario Thirty-one |
| Ontario Thirty-two | Greek female, born 1965, raised Toronto, Ontario, administrative assistant | Ontario Thirty-two |
| Ontario Thirty-three | female, born Red Deer 1963, raised Ottawa, Ontario, professor | Ontario Thirty-three |