Canadian English voice overs: what you need to know

Canada is a multilingual nation. English and French are its official languages at federal level. This means that all government services are bilingual, including courts and the legislature. There are varying laws at the state level, too.

English is the mother-tongue of 56% of the population, which is around 19.4 million people. (French mother-tongue speakers make up 20.6% of the population and speakers of other languages – 21.1%.) However, 86.2% of Canadians have working knowledge of English.

In addition to French and English, there are 65 indigenous languages, including Cree, Inuktitut, Mohawk and Ojibwe. And immigrants to Canada have of course brought their native tongues with them.

Language History

Canadian English is the result of immigration and settlement over the course of more than two centuries. It started with a wave of British loyalists fleeing American Revolution. A second wave consisted of British and Irish settlers, invited by the governors of Canada after the War of 1812. Three more waves of immigration have taken place in 1910, 1960 and at the present time, with newcomers from around the world.

While the US won independence from Britain, Queen Elizabeth is still officially the Queen of Canada even now. Not surprisingly, Canadians have adopted a more British-centric approach to language. The process of documenting and analysing Canadian English has taken place only within the last 100 years. And the first Canadian dictionary was only published in 1962.

Close Relations

All variants of English form part of the Germanic family tree. Canadian English has also been uniquely influenced by French and indigenous languages.

Accents and Voice Over Tips

Canadian and American English are grouped together as North American English. It can be difficult for outsiders to tell the difference between a Canadian and American accent. Of course, this isn’t the case for people living in Canada (or the US).

There are five main Canadian accent groups: West, Ontario, Quebec, Maritimes and Newfoundland. Nevertheless, they are mutually understandable.

When it comes to measurements, Canadians use a mixture of metric and US units. For example, the weather forecasts are in Celsius, but people use Fahrenheit for cooking. Confusing, right?

Words per minute

Canadian English speakers average a rate of 150 words per minute. We would advise you to always consider the target audience and project purpose though. The younger the audience and the denser the text, the more your voice actor should slow down.