There is no doubt that the people we spend time with have a huge influence on our everyday lives. Varying from outward appearance, beliefs, and attitudes to the language we use on a day-to-day basis. In fact, recent research has suggested that our brains synchronise with those around us (this may be slightly concerning for those of us with questionable friends and families). However, I find this adorable because it means everyone is essentially a mosaic of all the influential people in their lives. Through accent, dialect and even clingy catchphrases, changes in our linguistic register can occur.

An example of accent change can be apparent in day-to-day life for people like me, a northerner with southern friends. Whilst surrounded by accents dominating the south, my Manc accent sticks out like a sore thumb, so much so that I’m constantly hearing the phrases ‘can you repeat that?’ and ‘your accent is so strong!’. Though, when speaking to my friends about it, I appear ‘normal’ because they’re so used to my accent. Could this be due to northern pride or simply the fact they’ve become accustomed to it? This is part of the general debate. Alternatively, their friends and family have hinted to them sounding more northern, and I’m not sure how they feel about this.

Moreover, an example of phrases typical in my dialect include double negatives, such as ‘can’t not’ and ‘haven’t never’. While, yes, I know this is a habit I should probably drop as a linguistics student, I can’t not seem to let it go. As the academic year has progressed and my friendships have grown stronger, my friends have in turn picked it up too. I feel I must take full responsibility; however this is just a single example of where this has occurred.

For me, it will always be daft little phrases that sneak into my speech. My friends used to say ‘fab’ in reference to everything and as a result, I cannot stop. Alternatively, after a recent visit to Spain, I cannot greet a friend with anything other than ‘hola chica!’, it has even become a replacement for a simple ‘hello’ in our friend group. While even I cannot explain why this phrase resonates with me, it’s a clear example of picking up language from those in your immediate circle. I can’t imagine my friends would’ve adopted such a culturally distinct greeting by pure coincidence. Though to be honest, we all love this greeting way more, so I’m not complaining.

While these examples refer to my particular experiences with people around me, the phenomenon can be generalised in a much broader sense, occurring in domains across all cultures and social groups. It may be that you’re completely unaware of its occurrence. So, next time you catch yourself uttering a fun little phrase, stop and think: is this me speaking or a regurgitated version of my best friend?