Annie Reneau

People who grow up in bilingual households have a distinct leg up on second-language fluency. When you grow up hearing native speakers speaking their languages, you pick them up naturally, and it's not unusual to hear a child in a bilingual family switching back and forth between languages.

What is unusual, however, is hearing an adult Scottish-Mexican woman doing that switch-up mid-conversation. Yanett Steven effortlessly flips from her dad's thick Scottish accent to her mom's native Spanish (with a Mexican accent), and it is fascinating to listen to. Steven shares that her mom didn't speak any English when she was little, so she learned Spanish from her mom, but she has the accent that one would expect from someone growing up in Glasgow.

The Brave meets Coco combo feels super unusual, and people in the comments had some things to say:

"What just happened to me?"

"The switching back-and-forth between Scottish and Mexican accents is like scratching some weird itch in my brain"

"First time I've ever heard scanglish."

"Also 'cute wee summer dress, en CHANCLAS' was a wild ride I never imagined this blend of accents it’s lovely I’m so curious."

"I’m like blown away right now. How is the Scottish accent and the Spanish accent blending so smoothly???"

"I want 3000 hours of people speaking 'Spanglish' in a Scottish accent. This is actually the only way I want to hear anyone speak ever again. Also hi, I live in Texas and love visiting Scotland."

"This is tripping me out 😂 my mom is Scottish (my parents & brother live in Scotland) and my husband is from South Texas and is Mexican… it's like my two worlds have combined in one video 😵💫"

Steven shares a lot about her cultural and linguistic background that offers some cool insights into living in a multicultural family. Even just hearing her talk about her mom speaking Scottish English with a thick Mexican accent is a wild ride.

Steven shares that the two languages bring out different parts of her personality. "I feel like when I speak Spanish, I'm a bit more happy and fun. I smile more," she said (in Spanish) in another video. "And I feel like in Scottish, I'm a little bit more timid, a bit more quiet, a bit more reserved into myself." She wondered if other people from bilingual families feel like they have different personalities when they speak different languages, or if people who learn languages later in life also feel that way.

Other bilingual folks confirmed that they also feel a personality difference in different languages:

"Yes girl, both languages bring out a different side of you. I think it’s because words in Mexican Spanish are meant to be loud and with attitude and humor And English words are so much more subtle or quiet, if that makes sense lol."

"I'm German/Scottish I totally get what you mean 😂"

"Yes!! Totally get this!! I feel like completely different people 😂"

"Omg. I'm bilingual and I feel like this!!! Was just trying to explain this to a friend yesterday! I think it’s bc Spanish feels like being at home. 💛"

"When I get in my feels, my husband says, 'Your Latina is coming out.' I definitely feel more passionate 'in Spanish.' 😂"

"Si. Es porque el español tiene el “sazon/chispa” that english doesnt have."

"Yes ma’am when my Mexican side comes out I feel free, outgoing, funny."

Steven has also shared some other interesting insights into growing up bilingual. For instance, the Spanish she learned growing up, which is the Spanish spoken in Northern Mexico, was sometimes a problem when she started learning Spanish in school. Spain's Spanish is different than Mexican Spanish in some ways, so what she had learned growing up was deemed "wrong," even though it was just different from the Spanish taught in school. It's fascinating how the same language can be spoken so many different ways.

You can follow Yanett Steven on TikTok for more.