Chekov's Accent

[MikeS]

Maybe he was talking his native Russian, which the universal translator converted into American English, and to show he's a Red the translator messes with his pronunciation?

Or perhaps we're just over analysing...

 

[Myasishchev]

^It didn't do it with Worf in his native Ukrainian.

It's not about the Russian language -- it's about a Russian speaker's assumptions about how to pronounce the English language. He uses a V sound in words where he hears English speakers using a W sound, so he figures that when he speaks English he's supposed to do the reverse as well and use a W sound where English speakers would use a V. Hence, overcorrection -- applying a principle too broadly or by false analogy.

So like a gringo who inserts trilled r's into every Spanish word with an r in it, appropriate or not? "Yo volverrrre!"

 

[TIN_MAN]

I always thought he was combinig his "V"s and "W"s as in nuclear vwessel?

 

[Doug Otte]

Christopher, I like your explanations (you had to write it twice, but we're still not paying attention!) the best.

Japanese people overcompensate w/ "r" and "l" sounds sometimes. An old friend named Laurie told the story of a Japanese aquaintance who called her "Roli."

Doug

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

It's just a bad accent.

 

[Scarpad]

Hell...

The Computer did'nt even understand him in the new movie

 

[stoneagepunk]

Anyways, should his name not actually have been Chekhov with a [x] sound and not a [k] - like Anton Chekhov?

 

[Green Shirt]

I'm trying to think of a Russian word that even has a w sound in it.

Whackov.

 

[ScatmanRescueMe]

Always thought it was a bad accent until i met a russian guy who had an accent just like his. I was pretty shocked. I thought wait--am I hearing things?

He's from St Petersburg and is dark like Koenig---which doesn't make any difference except they look a little alike except he has a huge mop of frizzy hair.

Maybe it's a fairly rare accent that koenig heard from someone at some point and mimiced it.

 

[Nerys Myk]

Frizzy hair? Anton Yelchin????

 

[Too Much Fun]

Frizzy hair? Anton Yelchin????

I think I know what SRM means, but maybe the more accurate word is "curly". Obviously they can't do anything about actors' faces looking nothing like that of the actor who originally played their character, but the least they can do is give the new guy a similar hairstyle. At first I thought Yelchin's hair was like that just because this is the way it grows and there's no way to 'uncurl' it, but I saw a picture from "Terminator: Salvation" where it seemed to be straightened out, so what gives?

 

[Therin of Andor]

Japanese people overcompensate w/ "r" and "l" sounds sometimes. An old friend named Laurie told the story of a Japanese aquaintance who called her "Roli."

There are ST:TMP Rhaaandarites featured in Atelier Lana's "Star Trekker" ST manga satires, and they are called "Laandarites". Was never sure if it was on purpose (ie. they spell all the other TMP races correctly) or someone was having mispronunciation problems.

Maybe it's a fairly rare accent that koenig heard from someone at some point and mimiced it.

As for Koenig's "Russian" accent, he maintains that he does have Lithuanian relatives who pronounce words like Chekov does, and he just exaggerated it. The anecdote is repeated in the new bonus features of the latest DVD movie release of ST IV.

His family had emigrated from Lithuania, USSR, and changed their original surname from "Koenigsberg".

Didn't he once play a Russian student in "Room 222"? EDIT: Ah, no it was three episodes as Alexsei Dubov in "Mr Nokak"! The role that got the accent noticed for ST.