《中英對照讀新聞》Cows have regional accents like humans,language specialists have confirmed 語言專家證實，牛像人類一樣有口音

They decided to examine the issue after dairy farmers noticed their cows had slightly different moos.

酪農業者注意到他們的牛哞哞聲有點不一樣後，專家決定探究這個議題。

John Wells, Professor of Phonetics at the University of London, said regional twangs had been seen before in birds.

倫敦大學語音學教授威爾斯說，地區口音過去曾在鳥類身上看到。

The farmers in Somerset who noticed the phenomenon said it may have been the result of the close bond between them and their animals.

注意到這種現象的索莫賽農民說，這也許是因為他們與所飼養的動物之間關係緊密的結果。

Farmer Lloyd Green, from Glastonbury, said, "I spend a lot of time with my ones and they definitely moo with a Somerset drawl. I’ve spoken to the other farmers and they have noticed a similar development in their own herds."

來自格拉斯頓伯里的農民葛林說：「我有很多時間跟我養的牛在一起，他們肯定是以索莫賽慢條斯理的方式哞哞叫。我跟其他農人談過，他們也注意到，他們的牛群有類似的情況。」

"The closer a farmer’s bond is with his animals, the easier it is for them to pick up his accent," he said.

「農民與他的動物關係越緊密，牠們就越容易學到他的口音，」他說。

Prof Wells said： "This phenomenon is well attested in birds. You find distinct chirping accents in the same species around the country. This could also be true of cows."

威爾斯教授說：「這種現象在鳥類身上得到很好的印證。你發現國內各地，同種鳥類的啁啾聲各有不同腔調，這可能也適用於牛。」

新聞辭典

twang︰名詞，（某些方言的）鼻音；帶鼻音的方言。例句：He spoke with a nasal twang.（他講話時帶著鼻音。）

drawl︰名詞，慢吞吞拉長調子的說話方式。例句：She speaks with a Southern drawl.（她講話帶著美國南方人慢慢的語氣。）

attest︰動詞，證實，證明。例句：Her success attests to her ability.（她的成功證明了她有能力。）