With a population of around 11.5 million, the Dominican Republic is a tourist destination widely known for its stunning beaches, diverse geography, vibrant culture, and lively music scene. The country is on the island of Hispaniola, which it shares with Haiti, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea.
The Dominican Republic’s history is one of colonization, independence struggles, and periods of political upheaval. While Spanish is the official language, there are distinct regional varieties shaped by geography, history, and influences from other peoples and countries. This can make accent softening a necessity in call center across industries.
Let’s look at the most common accents across the country and dive into the linguistic history behind them.
What is an Accent?
Let’s start there. An accent is how someone pronounces a language. It can reveal the speaker’s ethnic, socioeconomic, and geographical background.
Think you don’t have an accent? Think again, as we all have one. If you’re from Massachusetts, for example, imagine how you must sound to someone living in Mississippi.
The Linguistic History of the Dominican Republic
Christopher Columbus claimed the island, originally inhabited by the indigenous Taino people, in 1492. Following centuries of Spanish rule, it gained independence in 1821, but was soon annexed by Haiti.
While Dominican independence was ultimately achieved in 1844, the country faced more challenges, including a brief return to Spain rule and U.S. occupations. During the 19th century, the Dominican Republic frequently engaged in conflicts involving the French, Haitians, and Spanish.
Thus, the different varieties of Dominican Spanish are influenced by West Africa, the Canary Islands, indigenous Taíno, and even Haitian Creole. English, French, and other languages are taught in schools and spoken by immigrant communities.
Three predictions, for contact center executives to consider, on how AI will shape the future of contact centers
How AI will Transform Contact Centers in the Next 5 Years
The Top Five Accents in the Dominican Republic
There are several regional accents and dialects that are unique to the Dominican Republic. Those include:
Cibaeno
This accent, spoken largely in the north, is characterized by a distinct word pronunciation, some unique vocabulary, and a slower pace. The most notable feature is the tendency to supplant the consonants “l” and “r” with a high front vowel, turning “animal” into “animai,” for example.
Also, words that end in -er, like “comer” (“to eat”) are pronounced as “comei,” and “beber” (to drink) becomes “bebei.” Cibaeno also commonly omits the “s” at the end of words or syllables, and the “d” between vowels is typically dropped.
Dominican-Haitian Creole
This dialect combines elements of Haitian Creole and Spanish and is largely spoken by the Haitian community and their descendants in the country’s southwestern region. Haitian Creole speakers mostly live in parts of Santo Domingo, border regions, and the North-Western Cibao valley.
Essentially, the dialect is a broken form of Spanish with a Haitian accent that is often stronger than Haitian Creole itself. Haitian Creole maintains a core grammatical structure and vocabulary derived from French-based Creole influence.
Oriente
Spoken primarily in the country’s eastern region, this accent is known for its use of specific grammatical structures as well as its softer pronunciation. Oriente has distinctive characteristics primarily influenced by Caribbean Spanish traits, including the softening or omission of the “s” sound, especially at the end of words or syllables, usually replaced by a subtle “h” sound.
Also, the accent omits the “d” between two vowels, particularly in -ado endings, changing “abandonado” into “abandona’o.” Further, pronunciation of the letter “r” at the end of sentences or words is often softened or replaced with an “I” sound.
Samanense
This English-based dialect, primarily spoken on the Samana Peninsula, has a distinctive sing-song quality and incorporates vocabulary from the Taino indigenous language.
The Samana Peninsula is home to a large population of descendants of Black immigrants from the United States who speak Samana English, derived from African American Vernacular English with influences from African Nova Scotian English.
Capitalino
As the name suggests, this accent originated in the capital city of Santo Domingo and is considered more formal than other regional accents. It reflects influences from the capital’s diverse population but tends to be closer to standard Spanish, compared to other Dominican accents.
The accent also features the influence of U.S. urban slang and some Puerto Rican accent traits, including pronouncing the final “r” as “l,” especially in words ending in “or,” “er,” or “ar.”
Accent Reduction, Call Centers, and Tomato.ai
The Dominican Republic’s rich mosaic of accents notwithstanding, people often judge others by how they speak. That’s just reality. It’s also common for those who have “unfavorable” speaking patterns to find their accent a barrier to employment.
That is especially true for roles that require a lot of verbal communication. The position of call center agent is a prime example. For many offshore representatives, English is a second, third, or sometimes even fourth language. Callers often consider such accents “foreign” or undesirable. Consequently, they often treat agents impatiently and rudely, and sometimes even question their competence. That’s where accent reduction can come into play.
With its accent softening tool, Tomato.ai has the answer. Its AI linguistic filter clarifies offshore agents’ voices in real time, changing words into those that sound to callers like a language’s native speaker. The result of accent neutralization is improved customer experiences, perceived intelligibility, and call center performance.