Maybe one of the reasons the pronunciation varies across time and regions is exactly because the pronunciation rules aren't really standardized, so people can g

Maybe one of the reasons the pronunciation varies across time and regions is exactly because the pronunciation rules aren't really standardized, so people can get creative. I wonder if the languages with strict pronunciation rules tend to change less. In my native language we tend to get new words of course, but if I read a text from 100 years ago I will be able to pronounce every word correctly, even if the word is now archaic and fallen out of use. I might get the accent wrong, and indeed accents do vary across regions, and sometimes even between neighboring towns.