What is Foreign Accent Syndrome?

In 1941, the brain of a Norwegian woman was injured by shrapnel in a German bombing run. When she improved from her head injury, she started speaking her local Norwegian language with a heavy German accent. The doctors were unable to determine the cause of this phenomenon, though some villagers started suspecting that the woman was a German spy. She was ultimately shunned by the other villagers, and she never salvaged her normal Norwegian accent. Her enormously rare condition was entered into the medical books as Foreign Accent Syndrome.

Causes of Foreign Accent Syndrome

Foreign Accent Syndrome is very rare, so there are less than 20 cases registered in the world since 1941. No one knows what exactly causes Foreign Accent Syndrome to occur. However, almost all cases of Foreign Accent Syndrome have occurred after a serious brain injury, stroke or aneurysm. The patient suffering from Foreign Accent Syndrome can recover from the initial trauma, but he/she may speak in a foreign accent for a number of weeks or months after recovery has taken place. A number of medical professionals first assumed that the foreign accent syndrome was an emotional condition; however, further research explained that nearly all victims experienced damage in a specific section of the brain which controls language.

Individuals having Foreign Accent Syndrome are frequently troubled with its surprising onset. Family and friends, as well as the media, usually become totally captivated by the unexpected accent transformation. Medical and language researchers may desire to put the patient through a battery of tests. Some patients suffering from Foreign Accent Syndrome recover their original accents; however, many don't.

Theory relating to Foreign Accent Syndrome

One theory relating to Foreign Accent Syndrome is that the sufferer isn't in fact speaking in a foreign accent, but the listener is actually hearing new inflections of the person's voice. A number of Americans, speaking in a British accent, diagnosed with Foreign Accent Syndrome had never been to the United Kingdom. Some of the people speaking in a British accent live in New York; their accent should be New York accents, and not British. Many researchers, studying Foreign Accent Syndrome, think the patients are speaking the way they do due to the primary injury to the brain's language center. The listeners hear what they think is an abrupt British accent, but it is actually damaged Americanized speech.

Conclusion

Foreign Accent Syndrome isn't considered a life-threatening situation; however those who endure it can feel plenty of social anxiety. Some people with Foreign Accent Syndrome are so troubled that they become agoraphobic due to the fear of being made a spectacle of. Communication is a very important part of everyone's quality of life; therefore, those who are diagnosed with Foreign Accent Syndrome may feel annoyed when they can no longer identify with the sound of their own voices. To see and hear a person suffering from Foreign Accent Syndrome click here.

Sources:

Wisegeek.com

ABC News 2008