Hungarian dialects

The Hungarian language area is traditionally used by ethnographers and linguists in several dialects (Hungarian nyelvjárás ) and these further into dialect regions or groups divided (Hungarian nyelvjárási Regio, csoport ). They differ in phonology and vocabulary to a lesser extent from each other as, for example, the dialects of German or Italian speaking area. Therefore Hungarian dialect speakers are usually able to relatively smoothly to understand speakers of other dialects. Since the beginning of the 20th century, numerous dialects and dialectal forms of speech in favor of the Hungarian standards ( marked by the literary language and the language used in the capital Budapest) been displaced, making the language area has been further unified within the Republic of Hungary. Outside the Republic of Hungary ( respectively, Russian, inter alia, Romanian, Slovak, Serbian and Croatian, Slovenian, German and Ukrainian) have been influenced by the Hungarian dialects since the Peace Treaty of Trianon greatly depends on the state languages ​​. An exception and thus significant phonological and lexical deviation of the eight dialects within the historic Kingdom of Hungary is the only Tschango dialect of Moldova, which has preserved an archaic form of the Hungarian language and was always spoken outside the borders of Hungary.

Linguistic classification

According to the classical theory of nine major dialect groups are distinguished in the Hungarian language area:

Dialect groups

Subsequently, the specific features of each dialect groups are briefly introduced and illustrated by examples.

Süddialekte

These dialects are spoken in the southern part of the Great Hungarian Plain, ie south of Budapest, between the Danube and Tisza River, west of the Danube south of Lake Balaton. The dialect area also includes the Vojvodina ( in Serbia) and the Romanian Banat.

Lexical seen the dialect area is very mixed, as large areas were depopulated during the period of occupation by the Ottoman Empire and then repopulated by speakers from other regions. There are also dialect words from the neighboring dialect areas.

Phonetic characteristics:

Transdanubian dialects

The Danubian dialect area covers the west of the Danube in Hungary and parts of the country is divided manifold. In addition to internal developments lexis South Slavic and German influences can be observed, for example, so instead of strength.

A main feature of the Danubian dialects, the distinction between the short open e [ ɛ ] and also the short but closed ë [e ], which is not reflected in the written language. It is found, for example, but in scores of Zoltan Kodaly. Here, the open e from the standard pronunciation differs from approaches and a short á [a]. This and other phonetic features are indicated in the following table:

Westtransdanubische dialects

These so-called " western dialects " dialects are spoken west of the area on which the Danubian dialects have survived, so in the border areas with Austria and Burgenland. In lexical terms, the frequent use of German is yes instead of strength to mention. The gy [ ɟ ] approaches the dzs [ ʤ ].

Phonetic characteristics:

In Burgenland gy will completely dzs:

Northwest Dialects

This also " Palóc dialects " ( palóc nyelvjárások ) dialects mentioned are spoken in Northern Hungary and Slovakia. The dialect area begins east of the Waag, runs north of the Danube and Budapest- Cegléd -Szolnok to the Tisza and Sajó Hernád Basin. The vocabulary of these dialects has influences from Slovak. There are three sub-groups:

• Western Group: west of the Hron
• Central Group: in the former counties Bars, Hont, Nógrád Gemer and small Hont and to the north of the former counties of Heves, Borsod and Pest
• Southeast group: in Jazygien and south of the former Borsod

Phonetic characteristics:

Northeast dialects

These dialects were the starting point for the Hungarian standard and literary language. The area is located north of the upper course of the river Tisza and the Transcarpathian region of Ukraine and south include the Tisza River to the rapids Kreisch also the north-western Romania.

Phonetic characteristics:

East of Debrecen and in some regions of Romania and Ukraine, ö the standard language in most cases such as e [ ɛ ] is pronounced:

Exceptions: öt ( "five" ) that are expressed in the standard language ökör ( " ox " ), zöld ( "green").

A morphological peculiarity of these dialects is the suffix- s in the third person singular in the present indicative is:

Tisza dialects

These dialects are spoken in the eastern part of Hungary, which is called in Hungarian Tiszántúl ( "beyond the Tisza " ) and extends from the middle reaches of the Tisza River in the east to the extreme west of Romania, that also includes parts of the counties Arad and Timiş.

In the debate, the dialect differs in the following features of the standard language:

The dialects in the north- east of this group have also in the vocabulary similarities to the group of medium Transylvanian dialects.

Mittelsiebenbürgische dialects

These dialects are in the plains of Transylvania and in Partium (circles Arad, Bihor, Maramures, Satu Mare and Salaj ) spoken. The morphological feature of these dialects is the use of a geschwundenen in the default language of the past tense ( perfect), which is, for example, in the present Romanian: mene ( " I went " ), jövék ( " I came ").

Phonetic characteristics:

In the region Tara Călatei / Kalotaszeg is still the rhotacism when l mention before s [ ʃ ]:

Székely dialects

These dialects are spoken mainly in Székely Land, so in the circles Mureş, Harghita and Covasna.

The phonetic deviations from the standard language can also be found in other dialects. In the area of Odorheiu Secuiesc ö is spoken instead of e [ ɛ ], similar in Baranya county ( Süddialekt ). The Western Székely dialects have influences from the Central Transylvanian dialects, such as when vowel o ( replacement by [ ɒ ] ). Similar to the Northwest dialects in the Székely dialects exclusively shortened verb forms of the verbs are used whose stem ends in t: süttem ( " I baked " ) instead sütöttem.

In the Székely dialects tenses are preserved, which correspond to the Perfect and the Past Perfect in the Romance languages ​​: mene ( " he / she / it is gone " ), Kere ( " he / she / it has asked ") or management ( " gone he / she was /") Kert vala, vala ( " he / she / it had requested "). Very characteristic of these dialects is also the exclusive use of the form s for the conjunction és ( " and").

The Székely dialects stand out less by the debate as by the syntax of the other dialects from which to generation has inherited a variety of sayings of generation. This is especially evident in the folk poetry, so in the style of folk songs, fairy tales and ballads, and in the novels and stories of writers who were stylistically inspired by the variety of dialects of the Székely itself.

Examples of words and phrases Székely:

Tschango dialects

These dialects are spoken beyond the Carpathian Mountains in the region of Moldova of about 62,000 people, mainly in the districts of Bacau, Neamt, Iasi and Vrancea.

Phonetics has similarities to the Central Transylvanian and Székely dialects, such as the opening of the vowel o ( replacement by [ ɒ ] ).

Characteristic of the lexis is the lack of words that have (19th century) found entrance into Hungarian language at the time of renewal.

In the grammatical structures are as common in the Székely dialect tenses corresponding to the perfect and the pluperfect: mene ( " he / she / it is gone " ), Kere ( " he / she / it has asked " ) or management ( " gone he / she was /") Kert vala, vala ( " he / she / it had requested ").

The Tschango dialects are two sub-groups, with the archaic dialects of the Csángós of about 10,000 to 15,000 people and mixed with the Székely dialect dialect of Csángós of about 10,000 to 13,000 are used:

• The archaic dialects are spoken in the northern dialect area. It is the language form the group of Csángós of Moldova, which does not originate from the Székelys and the only dialect of Hungarian, who has now fully developed independently, there is a complete separation from the rest of the Hungarian language area since the Middle Ages. Therefore, here are also of the opinion, if it were its own regional language.

Characteristic of the debate is the specific " hissing " s realization of the [ ʃ ]. Nevertheless, the gezischelte s and the sz [s ] different phonemes constitute Another pronunciation feature is the frequent occurrence of the phoneme [ ʤ ]:

In the vocabulary to linguistic forms have received from the Middle Ages. At the same time many loanwords were adopted from Romanian. The dialects are also for romanian speaking Hungary is hard to understand because often archaisms or Tschango own words are used that are not of Romanian origin:

Specific to the lexical- grammatical area is the frequent use of Diminutivsuffixen, the numerous nouns ( people and animal and object names ) and also to adjectives and adverbs are added. The suffix -ka/-ke is become the identifier of the feminine in ethnonyms:

Special features in the syntax:

The archaic vocabulary of Csángós is strongly influenced by the Romanian, for example, in technical terms from agriculture and animal husbandry, administration, judiciary, industry, trade, technology as well as adverbs, conjunctions and interjections. Many borrowings are made ​​in the basic vocabulary, are being taken beyond structures and discharges from the Romanian vocabulary.

• The dialects of the Csángós of Moldova, derived from the Székelys, are spoken in southern dialect area and show similarities with the Székely dialects from the regions Trei-Scaune/Háromszék and Ciuc / Csík. However, it is missing (see above), the words from the time after the language reform, and there are also borrowings from Romanian exist, but to a lesser degree than in the northern dialect area. The majority of Csángós of Moldova ( about 40000-44500 people) speak these dialects.

• In addition, there are about 9,500 people who speak dialects that are located between the two subgroups.