OT: Rise in pitch at the end of every sentence

It is known as the "rising inflection" or "high rising terminal".

It does seem to be characteristic of (some) Australians, but has been spreading among young and presumably impressionable people in the UK over the last few decades (possibly because of the prevalence of Australian soap opera on TV) and in the USA (West Coast, mainly) before that.

AIUI, linguists do indeed associate the tendency with persons lacking in social power, authority and confidence and thereby, a lack of self-esteem. By changing the intonation of a statement into that of a question, they are constantly seeking reassurance and approval.

There's a reasonable discussion of it at:

I think a sentence like "I saw Helen (?) in Tesco (?) and she said that she and James (?) were expecting a baby." (where "(?)" denotes a rising tone) there is an implied "You know Helen, don't you?", "You know where Tesco is, don't you?" and "You've met James, haven't you?" - as if the speaker is constantly seeking confirmation that the listener knows who/what the speaker is talking about.

It's referred to as "up-talk" (because the pitch goes up at the end of each clause/sentence) and it's said to have come across to the UK either from West Coast USA or from Australian soaps such as Neighbours.

Thought so, and I'm thankful you've reassured me others think the same :-)

I like to respond with "why are you asking me, it's you telling the story".

And is very irritating. If you're saying something and you're unsure of several pieces of knowledge in the other person's mind, you're doing it wrong.

bollox

No its called a dialect.

Some people talk in monotones and sound a bit like a 20 year old speech synth. Brian

I'm sure it was here long before Neighbours was seen here. Back in the 1960s we had a Northern Irish teacher at the school who used to do it a lot. Brian

And there was I thinking a high rising terminal was a computer in the lift of a tower block. Brian

Indeed they are and this affectation is NOT a dialect.

I have a relative in Liverpool - a university student - who affects this style (probably semi-consciously). Although away from the city these last forty-five years, I can tell the world that the Australian rising inflection *never* formed part of any of the various Liverpool accents. it is entirely learned from the media over the last thirty to forty years.

Correct.

Because they went to Band Camp?

Or the 'Antipodean Interrogative".

It makes me think they're not sure what they just said is correct, and are waiting for you to say "uh-huh" after every phrase. Maybe they want to make sure you're paying attention.

The comedian Rory McGrath christened it the "moronic interrogative" back in 2004. I've seen it referred to as that in The Times.

Another Dave

An excellent description. Comedians are often the best to get the real answers.

ROFL! Well they did used to be that big. I put something in a lift once, it fitted with 1 inch to spare on every side. We had to walk up the stairs to get it! I can't remember what it was now, as I was helping a colleague. Some huge thing to do with biology research.