Język polski w rejonie orańskim na Litwie
Polish Language in the Varėna District in Lithuania

Summary/Abstract: The article presents the results of dialectological research carried out in summer 2009 in the Varėna District. It contains a description of the linguistic situation on the researched area and of the basic linguistic features of the Polish dialect. The study shows that the condition of the Polish language in the Varėna District differs – from fluent speech, to a variety which has been strongly influenced by Lithuanian. The Polish language which has been better preserved is spoken in the area which before the war belonged to Poland. The less preserved variety of Polish is used in the area which before the war belonged to Lithuania. A factor which helps to maintain the Polish language in the area of Varėna, Valkininkai and Marcinkonys is the fact that the local people are in touch with the neighbouring people of the Eišiškės district where Polish is one of the main entolects. Polish which is used in the area of Merkinė has a number of archaic traits which are characteristic for the 19th century Polish language; moreover, one can also notice here considerable Lithuanian influences in phonetics, lexis and sentence formation. It is a language variety which is similar to the one recorded in the Kaunas District.

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