A speech delivered in Ireland’s parliament has unexpectedly gained traction in the Caribbean after viewers in Jamaica said the speaker sounded strikingly familiar.
A clip of Sinn Fein TD Thomas Gould speaking began circulating on Jamaican social media in recent days, with users commenting on similarities between his thick Cork accent and Jamaican speech patterns. One Jamaican X user shared the clip, writing: “If you nuh careful u think a Anju him a cuss. This is an Irish Politician Thomas Gould. The influence the Irish have had on the Jamaican accent is uncanny lol.”
Other users echoed the reaction. “I’m confused… this was the next video in my feed and I heard it before I saw who was speaking. I looked at the screen with intensity because I was certain I could hear Jamaican (I’m Jamaican) and I could hear Irish, but saw this gentleman. Soooooo confused.”
Another commenter added: “Isn’t it Cork specifically as well? That’s probably the closest out of all accents.”
Speaking to Red FM, Gould said the reaction was unexpected. He described the viral moment as “actually unbelievable” and said while he has occasionally been teased about his strong northside Cork accent, he is proud of where he’s from.
During the same broadcast, Stevroy Steer, chairperson of Jamaicans in Ireland, said there is “a lot of connection between Jamaica and Ireland.” He added, “I mean, this is the closest similarity in terms of the Jamaican accent I’ve ever heard,” before asking Gould whether he had any Jamaican heritage.
“No, absolutely none at all,” Gould replied, noting he has since received invitations and media interest, including contact from the Jamaican Observer about a potential interview.
Linguists have long observed similarities between certain Irish regional accents, particularly from Cork, and Caribbean English varieties.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, significant numbers of Irish and Welsh indentured servants were transported to the Caribbean under British colonial rule. Many settled in islands such as Jamaica, Barbados, and Montserrat.
These migrants brought distinct Hiberno-English speech patterns, including rhythm, vowel pronunciation, and sentence structure.
Over generations, these features blended with West African linguistic influences and English colonial dialects, contributing to the development of Jamaican English and Jamaican Patois. Some phonetic traits, such as intonation patterns and certain vowel sounds, are still noted by researchers as overlapping between Cork English and Jamaican speech.
A clip of Sinn Fein TD Thomas Gould speaking began circulating on Jamaican social media in recent days, with users commenting on similarities between his thick Cork accent and Jamaican speech patterns. One Jamaican X user shared the clip, writing: “If you nuh careful u think a Anju him a cuss. This is an Irish Politician Thomas Gould. The influence the Irish have had on the Jamaican accent is uncanny lol.”
Other users echoed the reaction. “I’m confused… this was the next video in my feed and I heard it before I saw who was speaking. I looked at the screen with intensity because I was certain I could hear Jamaican (I’m Jamaican) and I could hear Irish, but saw this gentleman. Soooooo confused.”
Another commenter added: “Isn’t it Cork specifically as well? That’s probably the closest out of all accents.”
Speaking to Red FM, Gould said the reaction was unexpected. He described the viral moment as “actually unbelievable” and said while he has occasionally been teased about his strong northside Cork accent, he is proud of where he’s from.
During the same broadcast, Stevroy Steer, chairperson of Jamaicans in Ireland, said there is “a lot of connection between Jamaica and Ireland.” He added, “I mean, this is the closest similarity in terms of the Jamaican accent I’ve ever heard,” before asking Gould whether he had any Jamaican heritage.
“No, absolutely none at all,” Gould replied, noting he has since received invitations and media interest, including contact from the Jamaican Observer about a potential interview.
Linguists have long observed similarities between certain Irish regional accents, particularly from Cork, and Caribbean English varieties.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, significant numbers of Irish and Welsh indentured servants were transported to the Caribbean under British colonial rule. Many settled in islands such as Jamaica, Barbados, and Montserrat.
These migrants brought distinct Hiberno-English speech patterns, including rhythm, vowel pronunciation, and sentence structure.
Over generations, these features blended with West African linguistic influences and English colonial dialects, contributing to the development of Jamaican English and Jamaican Patois. Some phonetic traits, such as intonation patterns and certain vowel sounds, are still noted by researchers as overlapping between Cork English and Jamaican speech.
