The Irish accent is one of the least annoying, according to a new study.
Business training website The KnowledgeAcademy.com asked 500 people to listen to a five-minute passage from a famous book.
Native speakers from Ireland, New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, Canada, America and Great Britain read a passage to participants.
Researchers found people could listen to Irish women speaking for four minutes and 32 seconds.
People could put up with American voices for just 90 seconds.
Northern Irish people were able to keep listeners engage for four minutes and two seconds.
Overall, Scottish accents were deemed the least irritating.
American, South African and Kiwi tones are the most annoying.
Language Lecturer at Waterford Institute of Technology Chris Mulhall says people tend to like accents that they've had a positive experience with.
"You may have a bad experience abroad in a particular country and when hearing that accent it may elicit a feeling of negativity.
He said feelings of trust and distrust can come about from interactions with a culture and its accent.
