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More than 5000 entries on the history, culture and life of Britain (published in 1993 by Macmillan, now out of print)
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Received Pronunciation
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(RP) A standardized form of educated southern English, without regional variations in vocabulary or pronunciation. A neutral accent of this kind, which came to be considered an indicator of class, was made possible by the *public schools in the 19C, bringing together upper-class boys who would otherwise have spoken in their own regional voices. For some decades such an accent was considered essential for advancement, being used by all announcers on the BBC and by many who had grown up speaking with other vowels. Fortunately this snobbery has ended, and accents of almost impenetrable authenticity can now be heard on radio and television. RP is also called standard English, and a somewhat affected extreme was the *Oxford accent.
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