SUBDIALECTS OF THE KAUNAS ENVIRONS IN MANUSCRIPT SOURCES Cover Image

KAUNO APYLINKIŲ ŠNEKTOS RANKRAŠTINIŲ ŠALTINIŲ DUOMENIMIS
SUBDIALECTS OF THE KAUNAS ENVIRONS IN MANUSCRIPT SOURCES

Author(s): Laura Brazaitienė
Subject(s): Phonetics / Phonology, Sociolinguistics, Baltic Languages, Post-War period (1950 - 1989), Transformation Period (1990 - 2010), Philology
Published by: Vilniaus Universiteto Leidykla
Keywords: Lithuania; Kaunas district; language; subdialect; manuscripts; audio recordings; 20th century;

Summary/Abstract: The goal of the article is to discuss the change of the subdialects of the surrounding area of Kaunas belonging to the territory of Kaunas district. The manuscripts of the second half of the 20th century and the printed texts of these subdialects and audio recordings served as research material. The situation of subdialects in the Kaunas area is revealed by the analysis in different periods by the differentiating (the pronunciation of the consonant l, accented long and accented short vowels, stress retraction) and their characteristic (the pronunciation of unaccented inflexional vowels ė and o) dialectal features recorded in the manuscripts.It was found that the western part of the dialect area was more homogeneous in all classifications: the consonant lwas usually not hardened, cases of stress retraction were few, and the unaccented long vowels were seldom shortened. In the eastern part, the inhabitants of both speakers of the traditional Lithuanian subdialect and the local Polish language tended to retract the stress, shorten the unaccented long vowels, and prolong the accented short vowels. The influence of the local Polish language is thought to be explained by some other cases recorded in this part of the subdialect area.

  • Issue Year: 2020
  • Issue No: 14
  • Page Range: 1-21
  • Page Count: 21
  • Language: Lithuanian