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Speaking of accents, I remember meeting a guy from Cuba. He was just visiting Canada. His grandmother was Jamaican and he spoke English with a Jamaican accent. 
He translated for the guys in the group who didn't speak English.
Come to think of it, when I was a university, some senior high school students visited for a tour from Mexico. There were 2 Black guys who were born in Mexico but they spoke English with Jamaican accents. They even wore Rasta tams and they stuck together.
I guess if you only speak English with your family, you are going to retain the accent. If you grow up speaking English with your peers, eventually you'll speak with their accent.
What I find odd is when people leave Jamaica in their late 20s and a few years later they don't have a trace of a Jamaican accent and claim they have no memories before the age of 12 when left "country". I have a cousin like that.
He translated for the guys in the group who didn't speak English. Come to think of it, when I was a university, some senior high school students visited for a tour from Mexico. There were 2 Black guys who were born in Mexico but they spoke English with Jamaican accents. They even wore Rasta tams and they stuck together.
I guess if you only speak English with your family, you are going to retain the accent. If you grow up speaking English with your peers, eventually you'll speak with their accent.
What I find odd is when people leave Jamaica in their late 20s and a few years later they don't have a trace of a Jamaican accent and claim they have no memories before the age of 12 when left "country". I have a cousin like that.
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