The is a Japanese dialect

Japanese dialects

The comprise many regional variants. The lingua franca of Japan is called hyōjungo or kyōtsūgo , and while it was based initially on the Tokyo dialect, the language of Japan's capital has since gone in its own direction to become one of Japan's many dialects...

 spoken in the southern area, made up of the former area known as Mino Province

Mino Province

, one of the old provinces of Japan, encompassed part of modern-day Gifu Prefecture. It was sometimes called . Mino Province bordered Echizen, Hida, Ise, Mikawa, Ōmi, Owari, and Shinano Provinces....

, of Gifu Prefecture

Gifu Prefecture

is a prefecture located in the Chūbu region of central Japan. Its capital is the city of Gifu.Located in the center of Japan, it has long played an important part as the crossroads of Japan, connecting the east to the west through such routes as the Nakasendō...

, Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

. It is also referred to as the Tōnō dialect (東濃弁 Tōnō-ben) by residents of the Tōnō

Tono

Tono can refer to:Locations*Bay of Tono, in Italy*Tono River, in East Timor*Tōno, Iwate, a city in Japan*Tōnō, a region of Gifu Prefecture, Japan*Tono, Washington, a town in Washington, USA*Pasar Tono, a town in East TimorPeople...

 region of the prefecture, which is the eastern part of the former province. It is sometimes also referred to as the Gifu dialect (岐阜弁 Gifu-ben), but that can sometimes include Hida dialect

Hida dialect

The is a Japanese dialect spoken in the Hida region of Gifu Prefecture, Japan. Along with the Mino dialect in the south, it is one of the two main dialects of Gifu Prefecture. It uses a number of non-standard words, for example:...

, which is in the northern part of Gifu Prefecture.

Generally speaking, it has many words and grammatical structures that are shared with other nearby dialects, such as the Nagoya and Mikawa dialects in neighboring Aichi Prefecture

Aichi Prefecture

is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region. The region of Aichi is also known as the Tōkai region. The capital is Nagoya. It is the focus of the Chūkyō Metropolitan Area.- History :...

. However, it also shares features with the Kansai dialect.

Parts of speech

Up until the Taishō period

Taisho period

The , or Taishō era, is a period in the history of Japan dating from July 30, 1912 to December 25, 1926, coinciding with the reign of the Taishō Emperor. The health of the new emperor was weak, which prompted the shift in political power from the old oligarchic group of elder statesmen to the Diet...

, the Japanese used ja (じゃ) for copulas and adjectival nouns, which has since evolved into de aru (である). Because the Mino dialect continued to use ja after this evolution, it is still occasionally referred to as a "ja-language." However, the Mino dialect has since evolved, too, and ya (や) is the general term used for copulas and adjectival nouns. Standard Japanese emphasizes copulas with yo, such as da yo (だよ), but the Mino dialect attaches te (て) to the ya copula, leading to emphases such as ya te (やて). It is thought that these developments show the influence of the Kansai dialect, as the Nagoya dialect continues to use da for copulas and adjectival nouns.

The main difference between verb

Verb

A verb, from the Latin verbum meaning word, is a word that in syntax conveys an action , or a state of being . In the usual description of English, the basic form, with or without the particle to, is the infinitive...

s in the Mino dialect and in standard Japanese is seen in the negative form. The verb "to eat" (食べる taberu) is written as tabenai (食べない) as a negative in standard Japanese. In the Mino dialect, nai is replaced by n (ん) or hen (へん), leading to forms such as taben (食べん) or tabehen (食べへん). The verb "to go" would similarly be written in the negative form as ikan (行かん) or ikahen (行かへん).

Pronunciation

The Mino dialect continues the main vowel sounds in words that have an'i and en'i constructions; the middle n sound is eliminated, becoming aai and eei, respectively. For example, 満員 and 全員 are read as man'in and zen'in in standard Japanese, but can be read as maain and zeein in the Mino dialect.

The traditional accent pattern for the Mino dialect follow similar patterns to the Tokyo accent, though some of the western areas around Tarui

Tarui, Gifu

is a town located in Fuwa District, Gifu, Japan.As of July 2011, the town has an estimated population of 28,461. The total area is 57.14 km².- Railroad :*JR Tōkai**Tōkaidō Main Line - Tarui Station-External links:*...

 and Sekigahara

Sekigahara, Gifu

is a town located in Fuwa District, Gifu Prefecture, Japan.As of July 2011, the town has an estimated population of 7,965. The total area is 49.29 km².In 1600, the Battle of Sekigahara took place here.-History:...

 also show influences from the nearby Kansai accent pattern. Because major cities like Ōgaki

Ogaki, Gifu

is a city located in Gifu Prefecture, Japan. It was incorporated as a city on April 1, 1918. As of July 2011, the city has an estimated population of 160,999 and a total area of .Ōgaki was the final destination for the haiku poet Matsuo Bashō...

 and Gifu

Gifu, Gifu

is a city located in the south-central portion of Gifu Prefecture, Japan, and serves as the prefectural capital. The city has played an important role in Japan's history because of its location in the middle of the country. During the Sengoku period, various warlords, including Oda Nobunaga, used...

 have many commuters from the surrounding area, modern youth have lost the traditional accent for the dialect.

Examples

Below is a list of example words for the Mino dialect:

Mino dialect	Standard Japanese	English English language English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...	Lexical category Lexical category In grammar, a part of speech is a linguistic category of words , which is generally defined by the syntactic or morphological behaviour of the lexical item in question. Common linguistic categories include noun and verb, among others...
omoroi (おもろい)	omoshiroi (面白い)	interesting	adjective
kashiwa (かしわ)	toriniku (鶏肉)	chicken (meat)	noun
bii (びい)	onna no ko (女の子), musume (娘)	girl, daughter	noun
bō (ぼう)	otoko no ko (男の子), musuko (息子)	boy, son	noun
watchi (わっち)	watashi (私)	I, me	pronoun
mawashi (まわし)	junbi (準備), shitaku (支度)	preparation	noun/verb
shiru (しる)	suru (する)	do	verb
chau (ちゃう)	chigau (違う)	be different/wrong	verb
tsure (つれ)	tomodachi (友達), shiriai (知り合い)	friend, acquaintance	noun
doerai (どえらい)	sugoku (すごく)	very	adverb
deeree (でーれぇー)	sugoku (すごく)	very	adverb
yattokame (八十日目)	hisashiburi (久しぶり)	long time	adjective
tanto (たんと)	takusan (たくさん)	many, much	adjective
gabari (画針)	gabyō (画鋲)	pushpin, thumbtack	noun
kiinai (きいない)	kiiro no (黄色の)	yellow (color)	adjective
gebo (ゲボ)	ōto (嘔吐)	vomit	noun
-nta (～んた)	-tachi (～たち), -ra (～ら)	pluralization	suffix
naburu (なぶる)	sawaru (触る)	touch	verb

Famous persons using Mino dialect

• Yuriko Osada (長田 百合子 Osada Yuriko)
• Yoko Kumada
  Yoko Kumada
  is a Japanese gravure idol and singer originally from Gifu city, Gifu Prefecture, Japan.- Variety :* London Hearts（TV Asahi network）* S.B.S.T（TV Tokyo network）* Akko ni Omakase!（Tokyo Broadcasting System network）* Go on（Kyoto Broadcasting System only）...
  
  (speaks standard Japanese, but uses the Mino dialect on some programs)