For many people, learning a new language other than their mother tongue can be quite difficult, and will require a lot of effort and commitment.

Apart from the basic nuances that go into learning the language, one aspect that draws immediate attention is the accent in which that particular language is spoken. While it is true that speaking a language with a natural accent makes a learner sound more like a native speaker, it need not be the case all the time and in several cases the conscious use of accent can turn into a liability. For instance a student of English will find that although he may sound very much like an American after mastering the accent he is totally alien to the "Southern Drolle", an accent heavily used around the Mississippi area and in the South of the United States.

While attempting to learn a language, it must be kept in mind that national and regional differences exist in the vocabulary and that in turn reflects on the accent. Even though an accent helps in passing off as a native speaker of the language, it requires considerable effort to pick up the correct accent as exhibited by a native speaker himself. While native speakers of that language know how to adjust to these variations, a learner might find it utterly confusing.

Learning to speak with an accent starts as early as trying to learn the language itself although the student may not be aware of it consciously. While learning new words of a language and the pronunciations, grammar students of a language often make the mistake

of trying to speak those words in the original accent of the words of that language. One must realize, however, that accent alone does not constitute the actual learning of the language itself. While learning a new language, one must understand that it is

correct grammar and clarity of speech that are more important than the accent, the result of which is an effective and engaging communication. It is suggested that one can attempt to pick up an accent only after the student has mastered the language thoroughly and is able to speak fluently. The other simple trick is to wait for the accent to happen naturally.

A constant trap many students fall into is when trying to learn a new language they think it is best to sound like a native speaker rather than a foreigner. Sometimes an accent is also used as a cover to hide inadequacies the speaker has while speaking a foreign language. However this is a tactic not to be used as the heavily and artificially accented words can leave the listeners confused and may even result in offense.

Thus, while learning a new language it is important to concentrate on the basic learning procedures that are associated with it while accent helps to only provide that icing-on-the-cake-touch. An accent merely helps to identify the region from which the speaker

hails from and has nothing to do with the grammar or the vocabulary of the language. It is of no use concentrating heavily on an accent while getting the grammar all wrong!

Sometimes a foreign language spoken in your own native accent can sound beautiful and authentic too. Imagine Jackie Chan, Salma Hayek and Penelope Cruz speaking English perfectly the American or the British way. Do you think they would sound any adorable as they do now?