Commonwealth English

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[[File:Sb email22 - British English.PNG|thumb|"Shouldn't you have some kinda unnecessary vowel at the end of your name?"]]
[[File:Sb email22 - British English.PNG|thumb|"Shouldn't you have some kinda unnecessary vowel at the end of your name?"]]
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'''Commonwealth English''' is English as it is spoken and spelled in the Commonwealth countries, a collection of former British territories. This form of English dialect is noticeably different from that which exists in the United States, and the two have been compared for many years. Throughout the [[Homestar Runner (body of work)|Homestar Runner]] body of work, this form of English has been mocked or parodied in at least some form.
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'''Commonwealth English''' is English as it is spoken and spelled in the Commonwealth countries, a collection of former British territories. This form of English dialect is noticeably different from that which exists in the United States, and the two are commonly the subject of comparison for linguists, grammarians, and comedians the world over. Throughout the [[Homestar Runner (body of work)|Homestar Runner]] body of work, this form of English has been mocked or parodied in several forms.
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==Examples==
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==Appearances==
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*[[Fan Stuff]] — The caption of one image asks if a new character is the viewer's "flavourite", a [[portmanteau]] of the Commonwealth spellings of "flavor" and "favorite".
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*[[Fan Stuff]] {{--}} The caption of one image asks if a new character is the viewer's "flavourite", a [[portmanteau]] of the Commonwealth spellings of "flavor" and "favorite".
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*Email [[sb_email 22]] — [[Strong Bad]] remarks that the sender, Mark, should "have an unnecessary vowel at the end" (he changes the name to "Marke"). This reflects spelling differences between American and British spellings of such words as "annex/annexe" and "ax/axe". Also mentioned is the substance "treacle", which is an archaic and Old English sounding name for "molasses".
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*Email [[sb_email 22]] {{--}} [[Strong Bad]] remarks that the sender, Mark, should "have an unnecessary vowel at the end" (he changes the name to "Marke"). This reflects spelling differences between American and British spellings of such words as "annex/annexe" and "ax/axe". Also mentioned is the substance "treacle", which is a Commonwealth English name for sugar syrups such as molasses.
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**The email also features Strong Bad responding to his controversial email by saying "screw all y'all". In response to the gasps of the audience, a voice with a Liverpool accent remarks "I can't believe he said that.", reflecting a [[The Beatles]] controversy and especially mocking their accent (especially that of drummer Ringo Starr).
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*[[3 Times Halloween Funjob]] {{--}} [[Homestar Runner]] scolds [[the Poopsmith]] for giving him "bum candy". "Bum" as a synonym for "buttocks" is primarily Commonwealth.
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*The [[Old-Timey]] era mocks Commonwealth English to some extent by using old fashioned words and phrases. Such vocabulary often includes Commonwealth spellings and is typically viewed by Americans as "archaic".
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*Email [[do over]] {{--}} [[Coach Zed]] uses the Commonwealth name for the letter Z, pronounced Zee in the US.
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*Email [[interview]] — Strong Bad provides a description of the [[Kerrek]] using an Old English [[font]], commonly associated with Medieval and Gothic England, a parody of which is the setting for [[Peasant's Quest]] (where [[Trogdor]], mentioned in the description, is a main character).
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*[[Teen Girl Squad Issue 10]] {{--}} [[Cheerleader]] is caber tossed, with the thrower upset that it was thrown "only 23 metres", using the Commonwealth spelling for "meter" (as caber tossing is a Scottish sport).
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*[[The King of Town's Character Video]] — [[The King of Town]] says that he "lives in [[The King of Town's Castle|yon castle]]".
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**[[Disk 4 of 12 - World Games]] {{--}} The "only 23 metres" line is reused, retaining its spelling.
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*[[3 Times Halloween Funjob]] — [[Homestar Runner]] scolds [[The Poopsmith]] for giving him "bum candy". "Bum" as a synonym for "buttocks" is primarily Commonwealth.
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*Email [[environment]] {{--}} "Bum" is one of the mother-approved synonyms of "butt".
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*[[Thy Dungeonman]] series — The games are written in a mock form of Elizabethan English in an attempt to sound medieval, also relying upon the American view of such English vocabulary as "archaic".
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*[[Marzipan's Answering Machine Version 15.2]] {{--}} Marzipan's "questionable surgeon" pronounces "advertisement" as "ad-VER-tiss-ment", and then calls attention to the fact that he had done so.
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*Email [[radio]] — Strong Bad tells Frasier not to bow and "giveth [him] instead $7.50". The -eth suffix was used in English during Elizabethan times as a form of the second person.
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*[[SBCG4AP Advertisement]] {{--}} The [[Generic Announcers|announcer]] pronounces "advertisement" as "ad-VER-tiss-ment".
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*Email [[long pants]] — Homestar wants "light globes", which is a common Australian name for light bulbs.
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*[[Hooked on Decemberween]] {{--}} The [[Toons|description on the Flash version of]] the [[TV Time Toons Menu]] description read "ALL your holiday flavourites".
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*Email [[do over]] — [[Coach Zed]] uses the Commonwealth name for the letter Z, pronounced Zee in the US.
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*[[Stinkoman 20X6]] ([[Stinkoman 20X6 Walkthrough|Level 10]]) {{--}} The main villain is [[Z Sabre]] whose name is spelled with Commonwealth spelling as opposed to "Z Saber".  
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*Email [[more armies]] — Strong Bad uses the Australian English words "bonzer" and "dinkum".
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*Email [[environment]] — "Bum" is one of the mother-approved synonyms of "butt".
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*[[Marzipan's Answering Machine Version 15.2]] and [[SBCG4AP Advertisement]] — An [[Generic Announcers|announcer]] pronounces "advertisement" as "ad-VER-tiss-ment".
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*Email [[love poems]] — Strong Bad uses Elizabethan English as an example of how to write a love poem. He also references how such English is highly regarded as poetic.
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**The example of Elizabethan English mocks the -th suffix used in English for the second person at the time.
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*[[Hooked on Decemberween]] — The [[TV Time Toons Menu]]'s description uses the word "flavourite".
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[[Category:Word running gags]]
[[Category:Word running gags]]

Current revision as of 22:59, 25 July 2024

This article may need to think of a better commando name. If you have a suggestion, or if you would like to comment on one that may have already been proposed, please see the talk page.
"Shouldn't you have some kinda unnecessary vowel at the end of your name?"

Commonwealth English is English as it is spoken and spelled in the Commonwealth countries, a collection of former British territories. This form of English dialect is noticeably different from that which exists in the United States, and the two are commonly the subject of comparison for linguists, grammarians, and comedians the world over. Throughout the Homestar Runner body of work, this form of English has been mocked or parodied in several forms.

[edit] Appearances

Retrieved from "http://www.hrwiki.org/wiki/Commonwealth_English"
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