American Parents Blame Peppa Pig For Their Kids' British Accent, Expert Says Otherwise

Cartoons are a big part of a child’s development and it can even give children an opportunity to learn. Of course, that depends on the cartoon, some of them can be downright weird. As such, parents should be mindful since children might pick up weird mannerisms, such as Americans adopting a British accent after watching Peppa Pig.

Today is this little man's birthday! It's officially ends the "we have babies at home" era

Best thing that Noah does these days is speak in a British accent b/c of Peppa Pig. 2 days ago, he came to me, & said "Daddy, I want to sit on your lap and use the computer"#PeedMyPants pic.twitter.com/tLWxd954U0
— Clayton Davis (@AwardsCircuit) January 29, 2019

Recently, parents have been taking to Twitter to tell the world of a weird phenomenon concerning their children. Dozens of moms and dads have been reporting that their kids have begun speaking in a Southern British accent after watching Peppa Pig. The reports were quite numerous and it was even named the “Peppa effect.” Here it is in action:

#PeppaEffect yep it happens ???????????? pic.twitter.com/oRS7NFzEIH
— Liz H. Gragg (@lizhgragg) February 17, 2019

Some of the accent nuances were quite noticeable too, with children saying “wie-ard” in of the usual American “weird” and saying “tomatoes” and “zebras” in British accents instead of American. Not that there’s anything wrong with it, some even find it adorable because who doesn’t love a kid with a British accent?

I’d like to thank Peppa Pig for the slight yet adorable British accent my toddler is acquiring. #mum #mummy
— jen rofé (@jenrofe) February 6, 2019

So, why was this happening? According to the parents, Peppa Pig, according to the experts, however, it’s not Peppa Pig, nor is it Hogwarts, you muggles.

“Typically, you would develop the accent of the community around you. You will learn the dialect that’s around you, which is learned by interactions, not by watching,” explains Susanna Levi of communicative sciences and disorders at New York University. Levi did suggest that children do and can pick up individual words that they like from the show and mimic them.