Hungarian dialects
The Hungarian language area is traditionally divided by ethnographers and linguists into several dialects (Hungarian nyelvjárás ) and these are further divided into dialect regions or groups ( Hungarian nyelvjárási régió, csoport ). They differ less from one another in phonology and vocabulary than e. B. the dialects of the German or Italian language area. Therefore, Hungarian dialect speakers are usually able to understand speakers of other dialects relatively smoothly. Since the beginning of the 20th century, numerous dialects and dialectal forms of language have been displaced in favor of the Hungarian standard (shaped by the literary language and linguistic usage in the capital Budapest ), which has further standardized the language area within the Republic of Hungary . Outside the Republic of Hungary, the Hungarian dialects have been heavily influenced by the respective state languages (including Romanian , Slovak , Serbian or Croatian , Slovenian , German and Ukrainian or Russian ) since the Trianon Peace Treaty . The only exception and thus significant phonological and lexical deviation from the eight dialects in the area of the historical Kingdom of Hungary is the Tschango dialect of Moldova , which has retained an archaic form of the Hungarian language and was always spoken outside the borders of Hungary.
Linguistic classification
According to the classical theory, nine major dialect groups are distinguished in the Hungarian-speaking area:
- the West Transdanubian dialects, nyugati nyelvjárások
- the Trans-Danubian dialects, dunántúli nyelvjárások
- the southern dialects , déli nyelvjárások
- the Tisza dialects, tiszai nyelvjárások
- the northwest dialects , palóc nyelvjárások
- the northeast dialects , északkeleti nyelvjárások
- the Middle Transylvanian dialects, mezőségi nyelvjárások
- the Szekler dialects, székely nyelvjárások
- the Tschango dialects, csángó nyelvjárások
Dialect groups
In the following, the special features of the individual dialect groups are briefly presented and explained using examples.
Southern dialects
These dialects are spoken in the south of the Great Hungarian Plain , i.e. south of Budapest , between the Danube and Tisza and west of the Danube south of Lake Balaton. The dialect area also includes Vojvodina (in Serbia ) and the Romanian Banat .
Lexically, the dialect area is very mixed, as large areas of land were depopulated during the occupation by the Ottoman Empire and then repopulated by speakers from other regions. There are also dialect words from the neighboring dialect areas.
Phonetic features:
| phenomenon | Southern dialects | Standard language | German |
|---|---|---|---|
| ö instead of e [ ɛ ] in certain cases | embör | ember | human |
| mögitta | megitta | he / she / it has drunk something | |
| may | megette | he / she / it has eaten something | |
| é [ e: ] instead of í [ i: ] in the stressed syllable | késér | kísér | accompany |
| west of the Danube failure of the l at the end of the syllable | abbú | abból | away from there |
| l instead ly [ j ] in the counties Somogy and Baranya | folik | folyik | flow |
| góla | gólya | stork | |
| Assimilation of the preceding consonants to the v in certain cases | dreary | ötven | fifty |
| Assimilation of the v to the preceding consonant in other cases | Husfét | Husvét | Easter |
Transdanubian dialects
The Trans-Danubian dialect area comprises the parts of Hungary west of the Danube and is subdivided in many ways. In addition to internal developments, South Slavic and German influences can be observed in the dictionary, e. B. yes instead of igen .
A main feature of transdanubian dialects is the distinction between the short open e [ ɛ ] and also short, but closed ë [e], which is not reproduced in the written language. But it can be found, for example, in scores by Zoltán Kodály. The open e deviates from the standard pronunciation and approaches a short á [a]. This and other phonetic features are shown in the following table:
| phenomenon | Transdanubian dialects | Standard language | German |
|---|---|---|---|
| Presence of [ e ] (short closed "e") | [ ɟɛrek ] | gyerek [ ɟɛrɛk ] | child |
| short á [ a ] instead of s [ ɛ ] in certain cases | [ ambɛr ] | ember | human |
| [ almɛɟ ] | elmegy | disappear, go away | |
| [ mɛgɛtːa ] | megette | he / she / it has eaten something | |
| Shortening of the high tongue vowels ú , ű , í | tüz | tűz | Fire |
| husz | húsz | twenty | |
| í instead of é | szíp | szép | beautiful |
| nígy | négy | four | |
| [ j ] instead of [ l ] in many parts of the dialect area | jány | lány | girl |
| Palatalization of some consonants | gyün | jön | come |
| kalaptya | kalapja | his / her hat | |
| irnyi | írni | write | |
| Elongation of consonants between vowels | esső | eső | rain |
| tanittó | tanító | Teacher |
Western Transdanubian dialects
These dialects, also known as "Western dialects", are spoken west of the area in which the Trans-Danubian dialects are widespread, i.e. in the border areas with Austria and in Burgenland . From a lexical point of view, the frequent use of German must be mentioned instead of igen . The gy [ ɟ ] approaches the dzs [ ʤ ] .
Phonetic features:
| phenomenon | Dialects west of the Danube | Standard language | German |
|---|---|---|---|
| Presence of [ e ] (short closed "e") | [ ɟɛrek ] | gyerek [ ɟɛrɛk ] | child |
| Pronunciation of the middle tongue vowels ó , ő , é as ascending diphthongs | [ swo ] | szó | word |
| [ lɥø ] | lő | shoot | |
| [ kjez ] | kéz | hand | |
| ö instead of e after labial consonants | foets | firmly | to paint |
| bötü | betű | Letter | |
| í instead of é in the north of the dialect area | szíp | szép | beautiful |
| nígy | négy | four | |
| Shortening of the high tongue vowels ú , ű , í | tüz | tűz | Fire |
| viz | víz | water | |
| ll instead of ly [ j ] | millen | milyen | what a |
| frequent dropout of the l at the end of a syllable or word or after long vowels | körübelü | körülbelül | approximately |
| szányi | szállni | to fly | |
| Palatalization of some consonants | irnyi | írni | write |
| kalaptya | kalapja | his / her hat | |
| n instead of ny at the end of the word | asszon | asszony | woman |
| gyün | jön | come |
In Burgenland, gy becomes dzs completely :
| Dialect in Burgenland | Standard language | German |
|---|---|---|
| [ ʤɛrek ] | gyerek | child |
Northwest dialects
These dialects, also known as “ Palóczen dialects” (palóc nyelvjárások) , are spoken in northern Hungary and Slovakia. The dialect area begins east of the Waag , runs north of the Danube and the Budapest - Cegléd - Szolnok line to the Tisza and the Sajó - Hernád basin. The vocabulary of these dialects shows influences from Slovak . There are three subgroups:
- Western group: west of the Hron
- Central group: in the former counties Bars , Hont , Nógrád , Gemer and Kleinhont and in the north of the former counties Heves , Borsod and Pest
- Southeast group: in Jazygia and in the south of the former Borsod county
Phonetic features:
| phenomenon | Northwest dialects | Standard language | German |
|---|---|---|---|
| [ a ] instead of [ ɒ ] | [ alma ] | alma [ ɒlmɒ ] | Apple |
| [ ɒ: ] instead of [ a: ] | [ samɒ: r ] | szamár | ass |
| [ ɛ: ] instead of [ e: ] in some cases | [ tɛhɛ: n ] | tehén | cow |
| i instead of ü | kilső | külső | exterior |
| pispek | püspök | bishop | |
| [ e ] (short closed e ) instead ö | ser | sör | beer |
| Diphthongization of the vowels á , é , ó , ő | [ ˈVu̯a: roʃ ] | város | city |
| [ ˈI̯e: dɛʃ ] | édes | sweet | |
| [ ˈLɒ̯o: ] | ló | horse | |
| [ ˈY̯ø: rzøm ] | őrzöm | he / she / it guards something | |
| historical pronunciation of the digraph ly [ ʎ ] | [ foʎo: ] | folyó [ fojo: ] | flow |
| [ goʎo: ] | golyó [ gojo: ] | Bullet | |
| [ ʎuk ] | lyuk [ yuk ] | hole | |
| general palatalization of the consonants before i and ü | gyinnye | dinnye | melon |
| szeretyi | szereti | he / she / it likes / loves someone / something | |
| Abbreviation of the verb forms in verbs whose stem ends in t | sweet | sütöttem | I baked |
| No assimilation of the v in the suffix -val / -vel to the preceding consonants | szekérvel | szekérrel | with the car |
Northeast dialects
These dialects formed the starting point for the Hungarian standard and literary language. The area lies north of the upper reaches of the Tisza and the Transcarpathian region in the Ukraine and includes north-west Romania to the south of the Tisza up to the Schnellen Kreisch .
Phonetic features:
| phenomenon | Northeast dialects | Standard language | German |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pronunciation of the middle tongue vowels ó , ő , é as falling diphthongs | [ yow ] | jó | Well |
| [ løɥ ] | lő | shoot | |
| Lengthening of the vowels before l , r and j [ j ] | kólbász | kolbász | sausage |
| frequent shortening of the high tongue vowels ú , ű , í | buza | búza | wheat |
| in some cases elongation of intervowel consonants | meggett | may | Behind |
| közzé | közé | between (moving towards something) |
East of Debrecen and in some regions of Romania and Ukraine, the ö the standard language in most cases like e [ ɛ ] pronounced:
| Dialects east of Debrecen | Standard language | German |
|---|---|---|
| ser | sör | beer |
| perks | pörkölt | goulash |
| megcsemerlett | megcsömörlött | he / she / it was disgusted |
Exceptions: öt ("five"), Ökör ("ox"), zöld ("green") are pronounced as in the standard language.
A morphological peculiarity of these dialects is the suffix -n in the third person singular in the indicative present tense:
| Northeast dialects | Standard language | German |
|---|---|---|
| megyen | megy | go |
| veszen | vesz | take, buy |
Tisza dialects
These dialects are spoken in the eastern part of Hungary, which is called Tiszántúl in Hungarian ("beyond the Tisza") and extends from the central reaches of the Tisza in an easterly direction to the far west of Romania, including parts of the Arad and Timiș districts.
When it comes to pronunciation, the dialect differs from the standard language in the following ways :
| phenomenon | Tisza dialects | Standard language | German |
|---|---|---|---|
| Presence of [ e ] (short closed "e") | [ ɟɛrek ] | gyerek [ ɟɛrɛk ] | child |
| Pronunciation of the middle tongue vowels ó , ő , é as falling diphthongs | [ yow ] | jó | Well |
| [ løɥ ] | lő | shoot | |
| í [ i: ] instead of é [ e: ] | níz | néz | see |
| píz | pénz | money | |
| fílsz | félsz | you are scared | |
| Lengthening of the vowels before the consonants l , r and the semivowel j at the syllable boundary | [ ɛ: lmɛnt ] | elment | gone, gone |
| [ j ] instead of [ l ] | jány | lány | girl |
| Abbreviation of the verb forms in verbs whose stem ends in t | sweet | sütöttem | I baked |
The dialects in the northeast of this group also show similarities in vocabulary to the group of Middle Transylvanian dialects.
Central Transylvanian dialects
These dialects are spoken in the flatlands of Transylvania and in the Partium (Arad, Bihor , Maramureș , Satu Mare and Sălaj districts ). The morphological feature of these dialects is the use of a past tense (perfect) that has disappeared in the standard language. B. also exists in Romanian: mene (“I have gone”), jövék (“I have come”).
Phonetic features:
| phenomenon | Central Transylvanian dialects | Standard language | German |
|---|---|---|---|
| Opening of the [ o ] (replacement by [ ɒ ] ) | bagár | bogár | Beetle |
| malam | malom | Mill | |
| szaba | szoba | room | |
| Opening of the east (replacement by [ œ ] ) | [ tœk ] | tök [ tøk ] | pumpkin |
| frequent shortening of long vowels | házbol | házból | out of the house |
| mell oil | mellől | from ... her (away from something in the neighborhood) | |
| Pronunciation of the middle tongue vowels ó , ő , é as falling diphthongs | [ yow ] | jó | Well |
| [ løɥ ] | lő | shoot | |
| almost always [ j ] instead of [ l ] | jány | lány | girl |
In the region Ţara Călatei / Kalotaszeg is still the rhotacism when l before s [ ʃ ] to mention:
| Dialect in the Țara Călatei / Kalotaszeg region | Standard language | German |
|---|---|---|
| [ ɛrʃøɥ ] | első | first, first, first |
Szekler dialects
These dialects are mainly spoken in the Szeklerland , i.e. in the districts of Mureș , Harghita and Covasna .
The phonetic deviations from the standard language can also be found in other dialects. In the area of Odorheiu Secuiesc is ö instead of e [ ɛ ] speaking, similar to the county Baranya (Süddialekt). The western Szekler dialects have influences from the Middle Transylvanian dialects, e.g. B. when vowel o (replacement by [ ɒ ] ). Similar to the Northwest dialects, the Szekler dialects only use the shortened verb forms of the verbs whose stem ends in t : süttem (“I have baked”) instead of sütöttem .
In the Szekler dialects Tempora be preserved corresponding 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 vala ("he / she / it was gone"), kért vala ("he / she / it had asked"). The exclusive use of the form s for the conjunction és (“and”) is also very characteristic of these dialects .
The Szekler dialects stand out from the other dialects less through pronunciation than through syntax, which has a variety of idioms inherited from generation to generation. This is particularly evident in folk poetry, i.e. 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 Szeklers.
Examples of words and expressions of the Szekler:
| Szekler dialects | Literal translation | Standard language | German |
|---|---|---|---|
| ádámbűz | "Adam's Smell" | a házhoz nem tartozó ember szaga | Smell of a stranger |
| ahajt | ott | there | |
| elszövődik a nap | "The sun is interwoven" | fátyolfelhő kerül a nap elé | Veil clouds move in front of the sun |
| gürüzdölés / görözdölés | köszörülés | cut | |
| kacsiba / kacsuba / kacsuka | csámpás | No good, good-for-nothing | |
| megbonyul | megellik | to give birth (in animals) | |
| odaül valahol | "Sit down somewhere" | sokáig tartózkodik valahol | staying somewhere for a long time |
| olló | gida | kid | |
| ollózik | ellik (kecske) | Giving birth to kids | |
| összebüszüdik | megromlik, megbüdösödik | spoil, begin to stink |
Tschango dialects
These dialects are spoken by around 62,000 people across the Carpathian Mountains in the Moldova region , especially in the districts of Bacău , Neamț , Iași and Vrancea .
The phonetics show similarities to the Middle Transylvanian and Szekler dialects, e.g. For example, the opening of the vowel o (replacement by [ ɒ ] ).
The lexicon is characterized by the lack of words that found their way into Hungarian at the time of the linguistic renewal (19th century).
In the grammatical structures, as in the Szekler dialect, tenses are common that correspond to the perfect and past perfect: mene (“he / she / it has gone”), kére (“he / she / it has asked”) or ment vala ( "he / she / it had gone"), Kert vala ( "he / she / it had requested").
The Tschango dialects are divided into two subgroups, whereby the archaic dialects of the Tschangos are used by around 10,000 to 15,000 people and the dialect of the Tschangos, mixed with the Szekler dialect, by around 10,000 to 13,000 people:
- The archaic dialects are spoken in the north of the dialect area. It is the language form of the group of the Tschangos of the Moldavia, which does not originate from the Szeklern and the only dialect of Hungarian that has developed completely independently, since there has been a complete separation from the rest of the Hungarian language area since the Middle Ages. Therefore, the view can also be taken here that it is a separate regional language.
The specific, “hissing” realization of the s [ʃ] is characteristic of the pronunciation . Nevertheless, the gezischelte make s and sz [s] represent different phonemes Another pronunciation feature is the frequent occurrence of the phoneme. [ ʤ ] :
| Archaic dialects | Standard language | German |
|---|---|---|
| [ ʤɛrmɛk ] | gyermek | child |
| [ ʤio: ] | dió | nut |
| [ mɛʤ ] | megy | go |
Linguistic forms from the Middle Ages have been preserved in the vocabulary. At the same time, many loan words were taken from Romanian. The dialects are difficult to understand, even for Romanian-speaking Hungarians, because archaisms or their own Tschango words that are not of Romanian origin are often used:
| Archaic dialects | Standard language | German |
|---|---|---|
| bücsü | becsület | honor |
| csúkmony | tojás | egg |
| eszüdni | hozzáérteni | be knowledgeable, understand something |
| filjesz | nyúl | Rabbits |
| hét | mikor | when |
| jü | O | he she it |
| külpis / külbécs | csiga | slug |
Specific to the lexical-grammatical area is the frequent use of diminutive suffixes, which are added to numerous nouns (names of persons, animals and objects) and also to adjectives and adverbs. The suffix -ka / -ke has become the identifier of the feminine in ethnonyms :
| Archaic dialects | Standard language | German |
|---|---|---|
| magyarka | magyar nő | Hungarian |
Special features in the syntax:
| phenomenon | Archaic dialects | Standard language | German |
|---|---|---|---|
| Omission of the predicate ("to be") | Arra a bold a heden. | Arra van a kecske a hegyen. | The goat is there on the hill. |
| Omission of the articles in certain cases | Feredik a búza napba. | Fürdik a búza a napban. | The wheat is in the sun. |
| Indicative instead of conditional | Mintha úszik búzába. | Mintha úszna a búzában. | As if he were swimming in the wheat. |
The archaic vocabulary of the Tschangos is strongly influenced by Romanian, for example in terms from agriculture and livestock, administration, justice, industry, trade, technology as well as adverbs, conjunctions and interjections. Many borrowings have been incorporated into the basic vocabulary, with structures and derivations from Romanian also being adopted in the vocabulary.
- The dialects of the Tschangos of Moldova, which are descended from the Szeklern, are spoken in the south of the dialect area and show similarities with the Szekler dialects from the areas of Trei-Scaune / Háromszék and Ciuc / Csík . However, the words from the time after the language renewal are missing (see above), and there are also borrowings from Romanian, but to a lesser extent than in the north of the dialect area. The majority of the Tschangos of Moldova (around 40,000 to 44,500 people) speak these dialects.
- In addition, there are around 9,500 people who speak dialects that fall between the two subgroups.
literature
- Iván Balassa; Gyula Ortutay: Magyar néprajz (Hungarian ethnography) , Corvina, Budapest 1980, part III, Szellemi műveltség (intellectual education), chapter A szellemi műveltség kifejezésének eszközei (means of expressing intellectual education), subsection A magyar nyelvjes (Hungarian dialects).
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- Loránd Benkő: Új módszerbeli lehetöségek a magyar nyelvjárástörténeti vizsgálatokban (New Methodological Possibilities in Studies of the History of the Hungarian Dialect), 1961. In: Magyar Nyelv 57 , pp. 401-413.
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- Krisztina Piro: A moldvai csángó nyelvjárásról (About the dialects of the Moldovan Tschangos) .
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