Северо-центральный диалект американского английского

English dialect of the American Midwest

North Central American English is an American English dialect, or dialect in formation, native to the Upper Midwestern United States, an area that somewhat overlaps with speakers of the separate Inland Northern dialect situated more in the eastern Great Lakes region. If a strict cot–caught merger is used to define the North Central regional dialect, it covers the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, the northern border of Wisconsin, the whole northern half of Minnesota, some of northern South Dakota, and most of North Dakota; otherwise, the dialect may be considered to extend to all of Minnesota, North Dakota, most of South Dakota, northern Iowa, and all of Wisconsin outside of the eastern ridges and lowlands.

The appearance of monophthongs in this region is sometimes attributed to the high degree of Scandinavian and German immigration to these northern states in the late 19th century. The linguist Erik R. Thomas argues that these monophthongs are the product of language contact and notes that other areas in which they occur are places in which speakers of other languages have influenced such as the Pennsylvania "Dutch" region. An alternative account posits that the monophthongal variants represent historical retentions since diphthongization of the mid vowels seems to have been a relatively recent phenomenon in the history of the English language, appeared within the last few centuries, and has not affected all dialects in the United Kingdom. The monophthongs heard in this region may stem from the influence of Scots Irish or other British dialects that maintain such forms. The fact that the monophthongs also appear in Canadian English may lend support to this account since Scots Irish speech is known as an important influence in Canada. People living in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan (whose demonym and sometimes sub dialect is known as "Yooper," deriving from the acronym "U. P." for "Upper Peninsula"), many northern areas of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan, and in Northern Wisconsin are largely of Finnish, French Canadian, Cornish, Scandinavian, German, and/or Native American descent. The North Central dialect is so strongly influenced by those areas' languages and by Canada that speakers from other areas may have difficulty understanding it. Almost half the Finnish immigrants to the U. S. settled in the Upper Peninsula, and some joined Scandinavians who moved on to Minnesota. Another sub dialect is spoken in Southcentral Alaska's Matanuska Susitna Valley because it was settled in the 1930s (during the Great Depression) by immigrants from the North Central dialect region.

A North Central "dialect island" exists in southcentral Alaska's Matanuska Susitna Valley, since, in the 1930s, it absorbed large numbers of settlers from Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. "Yooper" English spoken in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and Iron Range English spoken in Minnesota's Mesabi Iron Range are strong sub varieties of the North Central dialect, largely influenced by Fenno Scandinavian immigration to those areas around the beginning of the twentieth century. Iron Range English is sometimes called "Rayncher" English (an eye spelling of "Ranger").

English of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, plus some bordering areas of northeast Wisconsin, colloquially known as U. P. or "Yooper" English, or Yoopanese, is a North Central sub variety with some additional influences from Finnish speaking immigrants to the region. However, younger speakers may be starting to align closer to nearby Standard Canadian English, according to a recent study of Marquette County. The accent can be heard from many minor characters, especially those voiced by Sue Scott, in the radio program A Prairie Home Companion. It is also evident in the film New in Town.