Why do the Mannings sound like they have a Different accent ??

Oh, I thought of something else. You good folks who know the area better than I might want to help me out here. :)

My cousin and I talked about her various dialects a great deal.

I don't know if she was pulling my leg or what, but she chalked it up to the Catholic Church's schools and nuns.

I'd noticed that when she spoke to her friends at the parties, they sounded to my ears like some of the guys I'd known from New York in the Marines.

My cousin smiled. The nuns at her school had been transferred from Brooklyn when the neighborhood there had changed and they wanted nuns who could speak Spanish.

So, given their age, the Brooklyn nuns were moved to Louisiana's warmer climate. The school kids picked up bits and pieces and portions of their accents from the nuns who taught them.

Now I have absolutely no idea if that's true or not, but if I learned one thing in my time in and around New Orleans, it's that you should never discount the influence of the Mother Church. :)