MEZŐSÉGI BESZÉLŐK VERBÁLIS REPERTOÁRJA
VERBAL REPERTOIRE OF HUNGARIAN SPEAKERS LIVING IN THE TRANSYLVANIAN PLAIN

Author(s): Attila Benő, Krisztina Sófalvi
Subject(s): Sociolinguistics
Published by: Scientia Kiadó
Keywords: verbal repertoire; bilingualism; dialect; language contacts; regional language variety;
Summary/Abstract: The study describes the complexity of the linguistic repertoire of local native speakers of Hungarian, based on interviews conducted in recent years in villages situated in the Transylvanian Plain. The analyses indicate that the linguistic repertoire of the dialect speakers is – contrary to the earlier homogeneous view – diverse, varied, and far from homogeneous. In addition to the influence of Hungarian–Romanian bilingualism (sometimes Romanian-dominant bilingualism) and the contact phenomena that go with it, the interviewees’ utterances show the use of traditional and newer varieties of the dialect, including elements of the second language, the appearance of preserved lexical archaisms, and specific dialectal neologisms. The use of specific grammatical and lexical forms can be interpreted partly as a contact phenomenon and partly as a dialectal feature, indicating that the speaker’s verbal repertoire functions as a unified whole, despite the verbal competence based on a variety of linguistic influences. The results also show that boundary areas of regional language varieties are not always clear and distinct, and the local Hungarian-language communication often shows symptoms of linguistic uncertainty and language deficiency.

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