Smolyan dialect
Encyclopedia
The Smolyan dialect or Central Rhodope dialect is a Bulgarian
dialect of the Rhodopean group of the Rup dialects
. Its range includes most of the Central Rhodopes, i.e. the region of Smolyan
. Its immediate neighbours are the Rhodopean Hvoyna dialect
to the north, the Serres-Nevrokop dialect and the Razlog dialect
to the west and the Turkish dialects of the Turkish population in the Eastern Rhodopes. To the south, the Smolyan dialect crosses the Greek-Bulgarian border and is spoken by much of the Muslim Bulgarian (Pomak
) population in Western Thrace
. As a result of the rugged mountainous terrain and the century-long isolation of the region from the rest of the country, the Smolyan dialect is the most idiosyncratic of all Bulgarian
dialects (including the Western Central Macedonian dialects) and is not readily understandable even for its immediate neighbours.
For other phonological and morphological characteristics typical for all Rup or Rhodopean dialects, cf. Rup dialects
.
Bulgarian language
Bulgarian is an Indo-European language, a member of the Slavic linguistic group.Bulgarian, along with the closely related Macedonian language, demonstrates several linguistic characteristics that set it apart from all other Slavic languages such as the elimination of case declension, the...
dialect of the Rhodopean group of the Rup dialects
Rup dialects
The Rup dialects, or the Southeastern dialects, are a group of Bulgarian dialects located east of the yat boundary, thus being part of the Eastern Bulgarian dialects. The range of the Rup dialects includes the southern part of Thrace, i.e. Strandzha, the region of Haskovo, the Rhodopes and the...
. Its range includes most of the Central Rhodopes, i.e. the region of Smolyan
Smolyan
Smolyan is a town and ski resort in the very south of Bulgaria not far from the border with Greece. It is the administrative and industrial centre of the homonymous Smolyan Province...
. Its immediate neighbours are the Rhodopean Hvoyna dialect
Hvoyna dialect
The Hvoyna dialect is a Bulgarian dialect of the Rhodopean group of the Rup dialects. Its range includes the northern part of the Central Rhodopes and the town of Batak in the Western Rhodopes...
to the north, the Serres-Nevrokop dialect and the Razlog dialect
Razlog dialect
The Razlog dialect is a Bulgarian dialect, member of the Rup or Southeastern Bulgarian dialects. Its range includes the valley of Razlog in southwestern Bulgaria and its immediate neighbours are the Rup Serres-Nevrokop dialect to the south, the Babyak dialect to the east, the Samokov and Ihtiman...
to the west and the Turkish dialects of the Turkish population in the Eastern Rhodopes. To the south, the Smolyan dialect crosses the Greek-Bulgarian border and is spoken by much of the Muslim Bulgarian (Pomak
Pomaks
Pomaks is a term used for a Slavic Muslim population native to some parts of Bulgaria, Turkey, Greece, the Republic of Macedonia, Albania and Kosovo. The Pomaks speak Bulgarian as their native language, also referred to in Greece and Turkey as Pomak language, and some are fluent in Turkish,...
) population in Western Thrace
Western Thrace
Western Thrace or simply Thrace is a geographic and historical region of Greece, located between the Nestos and Evros rivers in the northeast of the country. Together with the regions of Macedonia and Epirus, it is often referred to informally as northern Greece...
. As a result of the rugged mountainous terrain and the century-long isolation of the region from the rest of the country, the Smolyan dialect is the most idiosyncratic of all Bulgarian
Bulgarian language
Bulgarian is an Indo-European language, a member of the Slavic linguistic group.Bulgarian, along with the closely related Macedonian language, demonstrates several linguistic characteristics that set it apart from all other Slavic languages such as the elimination of case declension, the...
dialects (including the Western Central Macedonian dialects) and is not readily understandable even for its immediate neighbours.
Phonological and morphological characteristics
- The most important phonological characteristic of the Smolyan dialect is the existence of broad o (oa), which is pronounced approximately as the long Swedish a but without the length, i.e. as a broad open o which resembles the consonant a at the end of its articulation. Old Church Slavonic big yus , little yus , ь and ъ have all merged into the open o in the Smolyan dialect, when they are in a stressed syllable: зоап vs. formal Bulgarian зъп (tooth), vs. formal Bulgarian зет (son-in-law), зоалва vs. formal Bulgarian зълва (sister-in-law). When the four vowels are in an unstressed syllable, they have merged into a slightly reduced a
- Broad e (æ) for Old Church Slavonic yatYatYat or Jat is the thirty-second letter of the old Cyrillic alphabet. Its name in Old Church Slavonic is jěd’ or iad’ . In the common scientific Latin transliteration for old Slavic languages, the letter is represented by e with caron: .The yat represented a Common Slavic long vowel...
in all positions and regardless of the word stress and the character of the following syllable: vs. formal Bulgarian бял ~ бели (white), vs. formal Bulgarian голям ~ големи (big). An archaic trait, as the broad e is considered to be the original pronunciation of Old Church Slavonic yat. The broad e has also replaced Old Bulgarian я in all positions: vs. formal Bulgarian (daughter) - Old Bulgarian groups ър, ьр and ъл, ьл are pronounced only as ър ~ ъл, i.e. as оар/оал: воарх vs. formal Bulgarian връх (summit) vs. formal Bulgarian жълт (yellow)
- Preservation of Old Bulgarian vowel ы (ɨ) in the southern subdialect: сын vs. formal Bulgarian син (blue). An archaic trait, as (ɨ) is considered to be the original pronunciation of Old Church Slavonic ы
- Articulation of unstressed o as a (as in RussianRussian languageRussian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
): кабила vs. formal Bulgarian кобила (mare) - Triple definite article: -oaт, -та, -то, -тæ for general cases, -oaс, -са, -со, -сæ for objects situated close to the speaker and -oaн, -на, -но, -нæ for objects situated far from the speaker
- A number of well-preserved case forms: common oblique case forms for family and personal names (as in the Central Balkan dialectCentral Balkan dialectThe Central Balkan dialect is a Bulgarian dialect, which is part of the Balkan group of the Eastern Bulgarian dialects. Its range includes most of north-central Bulgaria , as well as the regions of Karlovo, Kazanlak and Plovdiv in southern Bulgaria, all the way down to the northernmost ridges of...
, cf. article); dative forms for sing. nouns: сину vs. formal Bulgarian на сина, etc. - Verb ending -м for verbs in 1st and 2nd conjugation: vs. formal Bulgarian (I walk)
- A number of lexical idiosyncrasies: галеница vs. formal Bulgarian любовница (female lover)
For other phonological and morphological characteristics typical for all Rup or Rhodopean dialects, cf. Rup dialects
Rup dialects
The Rup dialects, or the Southeastern dialects, are a group of Bulgarian dialects located east of the yat boundary, thus being part of the Eastern Bulgarian dialects. The range of the Rup dialects includes the southern part of Thrace, i.e. Strandzha, the region of Haskovo, the Rhodopes and the...
.