Finding out that Jesus probably had an accent is just a small tidbit of information, but knowing it will help to put flesh and blood on the sometimes dry bones of Bible characters.
During the times of Jesus, the Holy Land was divided into the provinces of Judea, Samaria, and Galilee. These provinces were something like our states, but on a very small scale. The size of the province of Galilee was about 60 miles north to south and 30 miles wide. Galilee was noted for its natural beauty and bounty. Olive oil was its most famous export along with wheat and barley. Fish from the Sea of Galilee were one of the province's chief industries.
The Galilaeans were noted for being hardy, healthy and brave. They were also noted for having a thick accent. In his book Jesus the Evidence, on page 70, Ian Wilson states, "As a true countryman of Galilee it is likely that Jesus spoke with the notorious local accent. From sources quite independent of the New Testament, it is know that Galileans caused great amusement to the snobbish southerners of Jerusalem by their characteristic sloppiness in pronouncing Aramaic. The Talmud describes the ridiculing of a Galilean in the Jerusalem market-place for trying to buy what he called amar. He was chided: ‘You stupid Galilean, do you want something to ride on [hamar: a donkey]? Or something to drink [hamar: wine]? Or something for a sacrifice [immar: a lamb]? The Galileans evidently dropped their aitches, or more accurately, their alephs." A clear example of a noticeable accent is found in Matthew 26:73, "And after a little while, those standing there went up to Peter and said, "Surely you are one of them, for your accent gives you away." NIV
"Apparently Peter's Galilean accent, or pronunciation was noticeable. The Galilean dialect was broader and rougher than that of Judea, and no doubt the people of Jerusalem listened condescendingly to the speech of the ruder provincials. Galilean pronunciation of the gutturals is said not to have been so smooth as that of the Judeans." 5BC532
Now a personal note about accents. Since I'm from Ohio, whenever I speak in a South Carolina church I ask the congregation to forgive me for my funny accent. And then I explain that I married a South Carolina girl and therefore I've been issued a permanent visitors pass to the state. Actually, concerning local ways of pronouncing words, there is no right or wrong. There is only the accepted way of speaking for a region. People in the South speak just as correctly as people of the North or East or West. And yes, there is standard English, but it is simply the way of speaking that erases all local identity and makes everyone sound like the man on the six o'clock news.
This matter of proper saying of words carries over into pronouncing of the Greek words that were used to write the original New Testament. My college Greek teacher made it clear that we simply don't know how the ancient Greeks pronounced their words. It's anybody's guess how to pronounce the words because the modern Greek language has evolved over time. Here again, there is really no right or wrong, we simply try to agree on a pronunciation and work from there. In my opinion, local accents are part of the beauty of language and should be carefully preserved and enjoyed.
Knowing that Bible characters spoke with accents helps to personalize these people of old and bring the Scriptures to life in these modern times.

Blessings in your study of God's Word!

Marvin Hunt

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Blessings!
Marvin Hunt

Http://www.biblehistory.com

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