I’ve always loved languages. It was always interesting to hear someone express themselves so fluently in a language that’s not their own, and I always wanted to learn. I’d enjoy listening, reading, writing, and yet it wasn’t always comfortable for me to speak. I’d get scared. Of saying the wrong thing. Of sounding funny. Of not speaking the language the way it “should” be spoken.

Growing up around communities where English was specifically more common, I’d find people being judged for not speaking “good English.” For not having more of an American accent, basically. It somehow said something about their cultures, their social standards, their lifestyles. Or so I was taught to believe. I’ve personally been mocked on several occasions for not pronouncing certain words the “right” way. And so I mostly grew up avoiding situations where I had to speak English in public. I was scared of being judged, too. Because I knew I had an Egyptian accent.

Until I started traveling. I started coming across people from different countries of very different languages. And only then was I able to realize how each group of people, in fact, have their own special “accents,” and how there’s so much beauty in that. I remember when I first moved to Dubai specifically, there were certain nationalities I always felt anxious talking to, because I was never used to hearing their accents. And so I had to ask them to repeat what they said so many times before I could grasp what they were trying to convey. And none of them tried editing anything about the way they spoke. It was me, who evenutally got used to their accents. Just like they got used to mine. And that’s when I started appreciating it all.

I started being able to identify where a person’s from, solely from the way they spoke. I started being able to communicate a lot better with people, when I realized that there’s so much out there in the world, more than what my ears are only used to hear. I started becoming more confident about the way I spoke, I don’t even think it crosses my mind anymore. Because the purpose of a language, at the end of the day, is to be able to communicate. To send your ideas across. And if that’s achieved, it truly does not matter “how” it’s done.

The only thing an accent can tell about a person is: they speak another language. (or maybe more than one!) They come from a different place. They have a different story. And a lot more often than not, it’s one that’s so worth listening to. So I’m just glad I’m now able to understand a fair portion of the accents of the world.

Whenever someone tries correcting the way I speak now in a judgmental tone, I can honestly only smile. Because I have an Egyptian accent, and it tells a story about me, too.

February 15, 2020