r/Glasgow Tools

Even the same person; we get taught in school that our natural accents are lower class and undesirable, so people learn to code switch depending on who they are talking to; a seamless switch to a much more clearer, slower dialect when speaking to elders, authority figures, job interviews, etc.

We just wouldn't typically get the formal voice out unless it was a formal setting. The whole thing stems from being told that we shouldn't speak Scots because it's not professional, not attractive, etc. But obviously we disagree, so we are reluctant to speak in anything other than in our natural voices unless we really have to.

Another issue is that everyone here thinks they are perfectly understandable. It blew my mind the first time I went travelling and discovered that I actually barely speak any English, I really had to start thinking about each sentence to make sure I wasn't using Scottish words. Since then I do always try to speak a bit clearer when I know someone has trouble understanding, but it's so easy to forget to keep it up, and by the next sentence I'm back to full Glaswegian brogue without thinking. But on the other hand I've got mates who seem to get even more Glaswegian when talking to a non-native haha. I don't know if they think it's charming or what, but I find it amusing how incomprehensible they must be to some, and how oblivious they are to that.