Transylvanian varieties of Romanian
Encyclopedia
The Transylvanian varieties of Romanian (subdialectele / graiurile transilvănene) are a grouping of speech varieties of the Romanian language
, specifically of the Daco-Romanian
dialect. These varieties cover the historical region of Transylvania
, except several large areas along the edges towards the neighboring subdialects.
The Transylvanian varieties are part of the northern grouping of Romanian subdialects, along with the Moldavian
and the Banat subdialects
.
Among the Transylvanian varieties, the Crișana subdialect
is easier to distinguish, followed by the Maramureș subdialect
. Less distinct are two other dialectal areas, one in the north-east and another in the center and south.
, Moldavia
, and Banat
—, the Romanian of Transylvania
is broken up into many smaller and less distinct local speech varieties, making its dialectal classification more difficult. Classifications made until the end of the 19th century included a Transylvanian subdialect, but as soon as detailed language facts became available (at the beginning of the 20th century), this view was abandoned. In 1908 Gustav Weigand used phonetic differences and reached the conclusion that the Romanian language in Transylvania was a mosaic of transition varieties. Subsequent researchers agreed with his view.
Emil Petrovici
suggested this dialectal fragmentation could be attributed to the fact that Transylvania has been inhabited for longer and had enough time to differentiate and split into small dialectal cells, determined by geography, whereas Moldavia and Wallachia were relatively recently colonized, which led to a remarkable dialectal unity in each of those two regions.
Romanian language
Romanian Romanian Romanian (or Daco-Romanian; obsolete spellings Rumanian, Roumanian; self-designation: română, limba română ("the Romanian language") or românește (lit. "in Romanian") is a Romance language spoken by around 24 to 28 million people, primarily in Romania and Moldova...
, specifically of the Daco-Romanian
Daco-Romanian
Daco-Romanian is the term used to identify the Romanian language in contexts where distinction needs to be made between the various Eastern Romance languages...
dialect. These varieties cover the historical region of Transylvania
Transylvania
Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
, except several large areas along the edges towards the neighboring subdialects.
The Transylvanian varieties are part of the northern grouping of Romanian subdialects, along with the Moldavian
Moldavian subdialect of Romanian
The Moldavian subdialect is one of the several subdialects of the Romanian language...
and the Banat subdialects
Banat subdialect of Romanian
The Banat subdialect is one of the several subdialects of the Romanian language, specifically of the Daco-Romanian dialect...
.
Among the Transylvanian varieties, the Crișana subdialect
Crişana subdialect of Romanian
The Crișana subdialect is one of the several varieties of the Romanian language, specifically of the Daco-Romanian dialect...
is easier to distinguish, followed by the Maramureș subdialect
Maramureş subdialect of Romanian
The Maramureş subdialect is one of the several varieties of the Romanian language, specifically of the Daco-Romanian dialect...
. Less distinct are two other dialectal areas, one in the north-east and another in the center and south.
Classification
Unlike the other Romanian subdialects — those of WallachiaWallachia
Wallachia or Walachia is a historical and geographical region of Romania. It is situated north of the Danube and south of the Southern Carpathians...
, Moldavia
Moldavia
Moldavia is a geographic and historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester river...
, and Banat
Banat
The Banat is a geographical and historical region in Central Europe currently divided between three countries: the eastern part lies in western Romania , the western part in northeastern Serbia , and a small...
—, the Romanian of Transylvania
Transylvania
Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
is broken up into many smaller and less distinct local speech varieties, making its dialectal classification more difficult. Classifications made until the end of the 19th century included a Transylvanian subdialect, but as soon as detailed language facts became available (at the beginning of the 20th century), this view was abandoned. In 1908 Gustav Weigand used phonetic differences and reached the conclusion that the Romanian language in Transylvania was a mosaic of transition varieties. Subsequent researchers agreed with his view.
Emil Petrovici
Emil Petrovici
Emil Petrovici was a Romanian linguist, who studied both Romanian and the Slavic languages. His studies included Romanian phonetics, phonology, and Romanian and Slavic dialectology....
suggested this dialectal fragmentation could be attributed to the fact that Transylvania has been inhabited for longer and had enough time to differentiate and split into small dialectal cells, determined by geography, whereas Moldavia and Wallachia were relatively recently colonized, which led to a remarkable dialectal unity in each of those two regions.
Phonetic features
As a group, all Transylvanian varieties share a small number of common phonetic features:- The stressed vowels [e, ə, o] open to [ɛ, ɜ, ɔ].
- After [s, z, t͡s], and in some varieties also after [ʃ, ʒ, r], the following vocalic changes occur: [e] becomes [ə], [i] becomes [ɨ], and [e̯a] reduces to [a].
- The diphthong [ɨj] found in the Wallachian subdialect is realized here as the monophthong [ɨ]: [ˈkɨne, ˈmɨne, ˈpɨne] for cîine, mîine, pîine.
- Stressed vowels tend to be pronounced longer.
- The vowel [a] before a stressed syllable closes to [ə].
- In a series of verbs, the stress shifts to the root: [ˈblastəm, ɨnˈfəʃur, ˈstrəkur, ˈməsur] for standard blestém, înfășór, strecór, măsór.
- The vowel [u] is found in the full paradigm of the verbs a durmi, a adurmi ("to sleep, to fall asleep", compare with standard a dormi, a adormi).