UK Woman Recovers from Stroke, Gets Jamacian Accent

Perhaps this lady can start churning out Reggae albums?

http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_1902140.html

Geordie gets Jamaican accent

A Geordie woman woke up in hospital after suffering from a stroke - with a West Indies accent.

Linda Walker of Westerhope, Newcastle, suffered from the minor stroke at her home and was transferred to the local hospital/

She was shocked when she spoke to family from her hospital bed that she sounded like she was from Jamaica.

Doctors diagnosed foreign accent syndrome, where a stroke or knock on the head affects the brain's voice control centre.

After intensive speech therapy doctors think Linda may keep her Jamaican accent for ever.

According to The Sun Linda said: "I just don't sound like me. Not only did I have a stroke but I got lumbered with this accent too. I don't feel the same person.

"Everybody asks where I'm from and, if I say Newcastle, they just laugh. They think I'm lying. A neighbour asked if I was drunk as my speech is slower and often slurred. I just want my own voice back."

Linda is assisting Newcastle University experts who are researching the rare condition.

Dr Nick Miller, senior lecturer in speech language sciences, said: "Foreign accent syndrome has a lot to do with control of the lips, tongue, vocal cords and breathing, which are all affected by neurological damage. As a result a person's speech becomes severely distorted."

Foreign accent syndrome was first discovered in Norway in 1941 when a young woman spoke with a German accent after an air raid.