Text-to-Speech: Regional Accent Fallback Error with ar-IQ Neural Voices

Sayed Hasan 0 Reputation points
2026-09-30T12:23:04.78+00:00

When synthesizing Speech Synthesis Markup Language (SSML) text explicitly using the Iraqi locale (xml:lang="ar-IQ") and designated Iraqi neural voice models (ar-IQ-BasselNeural and ar-IQ-RanaNeural), the system is failing to produce the correct regional dialect. Instead of outputting an Iraqi accent, the neural engine defaults/falls back to a Cairo-centric Egyptian accent (ar-EG).

Steps to Reproduce:

  1. Input valid SSML declaring <voice name="ar-IQ-BasselNeural">.
  2. Input conversational Iraqi text phrases (e.g., "شلونك", "هسه", "عدنا").
  3. Generate the audio preview. The underlying accent and phonetic flow generated belong to the ar-EG (Egyptian) model instead of ar-IQ.

Expected Behavior: The audio output should strictly utilize the native phonetics, intonation, and speech patterns of the deployed Iraqi (ar-IQ) neural models.

Azure Speech in Foundry Tools
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  1. Engla Wahlberg Burlin 80 Reputation points
    2026-09-30T13:41:34.4633333+00:00

    I would recommend opening a Speech support ticket and providing a minimal SSML sample together with the generated audio output. According to Microsoft's language and voice support documentation, the ar-IQ locale is supported and Iraqi voices are published as distinct voice models. If the rendered output does not match the expected Iraqi dialect, that could indicate a model-quality issue rather than an SSML configuration problem. Including the Speech resource region, SSML payload, and sample audio files in the support request should help the Speech team determine whether this is a service issue or expected behavior of the current voice model.

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  2. Sayed Hasan 0 Reputation points
    2026-09-30T19:05:09.2066667+00:00

    This kind of support is not provided on the free tier. I only have access to a chatbot which does not help and also does not accept support documents and sample files.

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