Dialects of Polish#Greater Polish dialect group
{{short description|Overview of dialects of the Polish language}}
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| image1 = Polska-dialekty.png
| caption1 = Subdivision of Polish dialects according to Karol Dejna
| image2 = Polska-dialekty wg Urbańczyka.PNG
| caption2 = Subdivision of Polish dialects according to Stanisław Urbańczyk
| footer = Translations:
- {{lang|pl|Dialekt wielkopolski}} – Greater Poland dialect group
- {{lang|pl|Dialekt małopolski}} – Lesser Poland dialect group
- {{lang|pl|Dialekt mazowiecki}} – Masovian dialect group
- {{lang|pl|Dialekty mieszane}} – Mixed dialects
- {{lang|pl|Nowe dialekty mieszane}} – New mixed dialects
- {{lang|pl|Śląski}} – Silesian{{efn|Also considered a separate language}}
- {{lang|pl|Kaszubski}} – Kashubian
}}
Polish dialects are regional vernacular varieties of the Polish language, and often show developments starting from an earlier stage of the language, often Old Polish or Middle Polish, namely the development of the so-called "pitched" or "slanted" vowels (Polish {{lang|pl|samogłoski pochylone}}).
Four major dialect groups (termed {{lang|pl|dialekt}}) are typically recognized, each primarily associated with a particular geographical region, and often further subdivided into dialects (termed {{lang|pl|gwara}} in Polish).Roland Sussex and Paul Cubberley (2006). The Slavic Languages. Cambridge University Press. P. 530.Robert A. Rothstein (1994). "Polish". The Slavonic Languages, edited by Bernard Comrie and Greville G. Corbett. Routledge. Pp. 754–756. They are:
- Greater Polish, spoken in the west
- Lesser Polish, spoken in the south and southeast
- Goral, spoken in the mountains on the Poland-Slovakia border
- Masovian, spoken throughout the central and eastern parts of the country
- Silesian{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/stream/dictionaryofrace00unitrich#page/105/mode/1up|title=Dictionary of Races or Peoples|last1=Dillingham|first1=William Paul|last2=Folkmar|first2=Daniel|last3=Folkmar|first3=Elnora|publisher=Washington, Government Printing Office|others=United States. Immigration Commission (1907–1910)|year=1911|location=Washington, D.C.|pages=105}}{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/stream/dictionaryofrace00unitrich#page/128/mode/1up/search/Silesian|title=Dictionary of Races or Peoples|last1=Dillingham|first1=William Paul|last2=Folkmar|first2=Daniel|last3=Folkmar|first3=Elnora|publisher=Washington, Government Printing Office|year=1911|location=Washington, D.C.|pages=128}} spoken in the southwest (sometimes also considered a separate language)
The regional differences correspond mainly to old ethnic or tribal divisions from around a thousand years ago. As a result of 19th century measures taken by occupying powers, expulsions plus other displacements of Poles during and after World War II, as well as language policy in the Polish People's Republic, supplemented by broadcast media, the Polish language has become extremely homogeneous. In the modern day, dialectal variation can be found among mostly older generations.
Traditionally two additional dialect groups were treated alongside the aforementioned, adding to a total of six.{{cite book | author =Zofia Kurzowa | title =Z przeszłości i teraźniejszości języka polskiego | year =2007 | editor =Szpiczakowska Monika, Skarżyński Mirosław | pages =726 | publisher =Universitas | location =Kraków | isbn=978-83-242-0691-9 |language=pl}}
These varieties have been put at risk of extinction due to historic geopolitical population movements. They are:
- Northern Kresy, spoken along the border between Lithuania and Belarus{{cite web |url= http://www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl/index.php?l1=leksykon&lid=623|title= Kresowe odmiany polszczyzny|last= Karaś|first= Halina|year= 2010|website= dialektologia.uw.edu.pl|access-date= 16 July 2024}}
- Southern Kresy, spoken in isolated pockets in Ukraine
Often the usage of dialects are avoided due to negative associations and low prestige, and as such, there is often a preference for Standard Polish, and many dialects are slowly being abandoned, and instead regionalisms within Standard Polish are more common. However, some dialects are still widely used.{{cite web |url= http://www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl/index.php?l1=podstawy-dialektologii&l2=stan-sytuacja|title=3.4. Stan, sytuacja i perspektywy dialektów i gwar ludowych|last= Karaś|first= Halina|year= 2010|website= dialektologia.uw.edu.pl |access-date= 16 July 2024}}{{Cite journal|lang=pl|title=Status gwary w języku polskim|last=Wronicz|first=Jadwiga|journal=Socjolingwistyka|volume=XXX|issn=0208-6808}}
Notation
In order to accurately notate phonetic differences in dialects, letters outside standard Polish orthography are sometimes used, or some letters have uses different than in Standard Polish. Namely, they are:{{cite book|title=Mazurski fÉBEL abo Mazurská Fibla czyli Elementarz mowy mazurskiej|author=Piotr Szatkowski (Psioter ôt Sziatków)|publisher=Ełckie Centrum Kultury|location=Ełk|year=2019|isbn=978-83-955884-0-2|pages=25–29|url=https://eck.elk.pl/2020/08/mazurski-febel-abo-mazurska-fibla-czyli-elementarz-mowy-mazurskiej/|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20231118101330/https://eck.elk.pl/2020/08/mazurski-febel-abo-mazurska-fibla-czyli-elementarz-mowy-mazurskiej/|archivedate=18 November 2023|accessdate=18 November 2023}}{{cite web |url= https://www.facebook.com/GwaraGoralska/posts/nasza-pisownia-podhala%C5%84ska-zwi%C4%99z%C5%82e-przedstawienie-zasad-zapisuw-zwi%C4%85zku-z-pojawi/1320123624704769/|title= Nasza Pisownia Podhalańka – Zwięzłe Przedstawienie Zasad Zapisu.|publisher=Gwara Góralsko Skolnego Podholo|date= January 18, 2017|website=www.facebook.com|access-date= 16 July 2024}}{{Cite book|lang=pl|title=Mały słownik gwar polskich|editor-last1=Kucharzyk|editor-first1=Renata|editor-last2=Niezabitowska|editor-first2=Anna|editor-last3=Reichan|editor-first3=Jerzy|editor-last4=Tokarz|editor-first4=Maria|editor-last5=Wójcicka|editor-first5=Wiktoria|editor-last6=Wronicz|editor-first6=Jadwiga|publisher=Wydawnictwo Lexis|location=Kraków|year=2010|url=https://rcin.org.pl/dlibra/publication/36312/edition/18995/content|page=8—10}}
:* á for the slanted a ({{IPA|pl|ɒ}}) (as opposed to a for ({{IPA|pl|a}}
:* é for the slanted e ({{IPA|pl|e}}) (as opposed to e for ({{IPA|pl|ɛ}}
:* ó for the slanted ó ({{IPA|pl|o}}) (as opposed to o for ({{IPA|pl|ɔ}}
:* ô for labialized o ({{IPA|pl|wɔ}})
:* û for labialized u ({{IPA|pl|wu}})
:* ÿ (in Masurian) or ý (Goral dialects) for non-palatalizing {{IPA|pl|i}}.
Dialect and language distinctions
Although traditional linguistic divisions continue to be cited, especially in Polish sources, the current linguistic consensus tends to consider Kashubian a separate language, or at least as a distinct lect that cannot be grouped at the same level as the four major modern Polish dialects.{{cite journal | author =Jadwiga Wronicz |date=March–April 2007 | title =Pozycja dialektu wobec innych odmian polszczyzny | journal =Język polski| volume =LXXXVII | issue =2 | pages =91–96 |language=pl}}Roland Sussex and Paul Cubberley (2006). The Slavic Languages. Cambridge University Press. Pp. 531–532.Gerald Stone (1994). "Cassubian". The Slavonic Languages, edited by Bernard Comrie and Greville G. Corbett. Routledge. Pp. 759–794.{{cite journal | author =Bronisław Jakubowski | year =1999 | title =Język czy dialekt? | journal =Wiedza i Życie | issue =4 | url =http://archiwum.wiz.pl/1999/99044500.asp |language=pl}} Prior to World War II, Kashubian speakers were mainly surrounded by German speakers, with only a narrow border to the south with Polish speakers. Kashubian contains a number of features not found in other Polish dialects, e.g. nine distinct oral vowels (vs. the six of standard Polish), evolution of the Proto-Slavic TorT group to TarT (a feature not found in any other Slavic language) and (in the northern dialects) phonemic word stress, an archaic feature preserved from Common Slavic times and not found anywhere else among the West Slavic languages.
The two Kresy dialects are spoken in Kresy, the former eastern Polish territories annexed by the Soviet Union in 1945 and currently absorbed into Lithuania, Belarus and Ukraine.{{Citation needed|date=February 2022}} Both dialect groups have been in decline since World War II as a result of expulsions of millions of Poles from Kresy.{{Citation needed|date=February 2022}} Poles living in Lithuania (particularly in the Vilnius region), in Belarus (particularly in the northwest), and in northeast Poland continue to speak the Northern Kresy dialect, which sounds (in Polish described as zaciąganie z ruska) as if speaking with a Russian drawl, and is quite distinctive.{{Citation needed|date=February 2022}}
The majority of Poles expelled from Kresy were settled in newly annexed regions in northern and western Poland, and thereby their manner of speech evolved into so-called new mixed dialects. However, among the declining older generation there are still traces of Kresy dialect with its characteristic Ukrainian or Rusyn sounds, especially in the use of the East Slavic velarised L where standard Polish has it already vocalised ({{IPA|/w/}}) and of elongated vowels.
List of dialects
File:Sybilanty w polskich gwarach wg Urbańczyka.pngs in Polish dialects.
{{Legend|#FF8080|Standard pronunciation (/{{IPA|s...}}/–/{{IPA|ʂ...}}/–/{{IPA|ɕ...}}/ distinction)}}
{{Legend|#A02C2C|Mazurzenie (/{{IPA|s...}}/–/{{IPA|ʂ...}}/ merger)}}
{{Legend|#FF6600|Jabłonkowanie (/{{IPA|ʂ...}}/–/{{IPA|ɕ...}}/ merger)}}
{{Legend|#FFCC00|{{ill|Kaszubienie|pl|Kaszubienie|v=sup}} (/{{IPA|s...}}/–/{{IPA|ɕ...}}/ merger)}}]]
Many dialects on the edges of dialect groups show traits belonging to the groups it borders, and are usually classified as transitional dialects, whose exact classification is often debated.{{cite web |url= http://www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl/index.php?l1=leksykon&lid=594|title= Gwary przejściowe|last= Karaś|first= Halina|year= 2010|website=dialektologia.uw.edu.pl|access-date= 16 July 2024}}
=Greater Poland dialect group=
{{main|Greater Poland dialect group}}
Descended from the Western Slavic language spoken by the Polans, the dialects are:{{cite web |url= http://www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl/index.php?l1=opis-dialektow&l2=dialekt-wielkopolski|title= Dialekt wielkopolski|last= Karaś|first= Halina|year= 2010|website=dialektologia.uw.edu.pl|access-date= 16 July 2024}}
:* Northern Greater Poland dialect
:* Western Greater Poland dialect
:* Central Greater Poland dialect
:* Eastern Greater Poland dialect
:* Southern Greater Poland dialect
:* Bydgoszcz dialect, Bydgoszcz urban dialect
:* Poznań dialect, Poznań urban dialect
=Masovian dialect group=
{{main|Masovian dialect group}}
Descended from the language of the Masovians,{{cite book | author =Bronisław Wieczorkiewicz | title =Gwara warszawska dawniej i dziś | year =1968 | pages =516 | publisher =Państwowy Instytut Wydawniczy | location =Warsaw |language=pl}}Halina Karas, Gwary Polskie, [http://www.gwarypolskie.uw.edu.pl/index.php?option=com_content&task=section&id=6 Dialects and gwary in Poland] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110414143918/http://www.gwarypolskie.uw.edu.pl/index.php?option=com_content&task=section&id=6 |date=2011-04-14 }} the dialects are:{{cite web |url= http://www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl/index.php?l1=opis-dialektow&l2=dialekt-mazowiecki|title= Dialekt mazowiecki|last= Karaś|first= Halina|year= 2010|website=dialektologia.uw.edu.pl|access-date= 16 July 2024}}
=Lesser Poland dialect group=
{{main|Lesser Poland dialect group}}
Descended from the language of the Vistulans, is the most numerous dialectal group in modern Poland.{{cite encyclopedia |editor=Stanisław Urbańczyk |encyclopedia=Encyklopedia języka polskiego |title=Dialekt małopolski |url=http://artur.czesak.webpark.pl/Stronica/Dialmlp.html |edition=II |year=1992 |publisher=Ossolineum |location=Wrocław-Warszawa-Kraków |pages=60 |language=pl}} the dialects are:{{cite web |url= http://www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl/index.php?l1=opis-dialektow&l2=dialekt-malopolski|title= Dialekt małopolski|last= Karaś|first= Halina|year= 2010|website=dialektologia.uw.edu.pl|access-date= 16 July 2024}}
:* Masovian Borderland dialect
:* Carpathian-Podgórze Lach dialects
:* Lwów dialect
The Goral ethnolect (the name for the many dialects spoken by Gorals in Western Carpathians bordering Poland and Slovakia),{{Cite web |last=www.goralske-narecie.estranky.sk |title=gorali |url=https://goralske-narecie.estranky.sk/clanky/gorali.html |access-date=2024-07-20 |website=goralské nárečie |language=sk}}
:* Carpathian-Podgórze Goral dialects
::* Pieniny dialect
::* Łącko dialect
:* Liptov dialect (not to be confused with the Slovakian Liptov dialect)
The dialects spoken by Silesian Gorals are considered closer Silesian but are referred to as Goral by Silesian Gorals in Poland, due to them feeling more Goral than Silesian.{{cite book|author=Zbigniew Greń |chapter=Zależności między typami poczucia regionalnego i etnicznego |date=2000 |isbn=83-86619-09-0 |location=Warszawa |page=121 |publisher=Towarzystwo Naukowe Warszawskie. Instytut Slawistyki Polskiej Akademii Nauk |title=Śląsk Cieszyński. Dziedzictwo językowe}} Silesian Gorals in Zaolzie usually consider themselves more Silesian and are more likely to call it Silesian.J.w. s. 132.4:00: „[…] miyndzy nami gorolami […]” w: {{cite web|date=2010-04-30 |language=cs |title=Soužití Čechů a Poláků |url=https://www.ceskatelevize.cz/ivysilani/1095908415-kosmopolis/210562210300009 |website=www.ceskatelevize.cz}}
=Northern Borderlands dialect=
{{main|Northern Borderlands dialect}}
In modern times the dialect is still spoken mainly by the Polish minorities in Lithuania and in northwestern Belarus.{{cite book | author =Zofia Kurzowa | title =Ze studiów nad polszczyzną kresową | year =2007 | editor =Szpiczakowska Monika, Skarżyński Mirosław | pages =518 | publisher =Universitas | location =Kraków | isbn=978-83-242-0683-4 |language=pl}}{{cite book | author =Zofia Kurzowa | title =Język polski Wileńszczyzny i kresów północno-wschodnich | year =2006 | editor =Szpiczakowska Monika, Skarżyński Mirosław | publisher =Universitas | location =Kraków | isbn=83-242-0738-4 |language=pl}}
:* Wilno dialect ({{langx|pl|gwara wileńska}}){{Citation needed|date=February 2022}}
=Southern Borderlands dialect=
{{main|Southern Borderlands dialect}}
Often considered a derivative of a mixture of Old Polish and Old Ruthenian, as was spoken in Red Ruthenia in the Middle Ages.{{cite book | author =Zofia Kurzowa | title =Polszczyzna Lwowa i kresów południowo-wschodnich do 1939 | year =2006 | editor =Szpiczakowska Monika, Skarżyński Mirosław | pages =439 | publisher =UNIVERSITAS | location =Kraków | isbn=83-242-0656-6 |language=pl}}
See especially, the Lwów dialect, {{langx|pl|gwara lwowska}}.
= New mixed dialects =
{{Main|New mixed dialects}}
- Northern new mixed dialect
- Northwestern new mixed dialect
- Southern new mixed dialect
=Silesian=
{{main|Silesian language}}
Silesian ({{Langx|szl|ślōnskŏ gŏdka}}, {{langx|pl|język śląski, dialekt śląski}}) is a lect spoken in the regions of Upper Silesia. Some regard it as one of the four major dialects of Polish,{{Cite book |title=Gwara Śląska – świadectwo kultury, narzędzie komunikacji |date=2002 |publisher=„Śląsk" |editor1-first=Jolanta |editor1-last=Tambor |editor2-first=Aldona |editor2-last=Skudrzykowa |isbn=83-7164-314-4 |location=Katowice |oclc=830518005}}„Słownik gwar Śląskich". Opole, Bogusław Wyderka (eds.)„Dialekt śląski" author: Feliks Pluta, publication: Wczoraj, Dzisiaj, Jutro. – 1996, no 1/4, pp 5–19„Fenomen śląskiej gwary" author: Jan Miodek publication: Śląsk. – 1996, no 5, pp 52 while others classify it as a separate regional language, distinct from Polish.{{Cite news |last=Ptak |first=Alicja |date=2022-12-28 |title=Supermarket introduces bilingual Polish-Silesian signs |url=https://notesfrompoland.com/2022/12/28/supermarket-introduces-bilingual-polish-silesian-signs/ |access-date=2023-04-14 |publisher=Notes from Poland |location=Kraków |language=en}}Norman Davies, Europe: A History, Oxford 1996 pp 1233[https://d.polskatimes.pl/k/r/10/26/fe/4dd5396ff3179_z.pdf Jolanta Tambor. Opinia merytoryczna na temat poselskiego projektu ustawy o zmianie Ustawy o mniejszościach narodowych i etnicznych oraz o języku regionalnym, a także niektórych innych ustaw, Warszawa 3 maja 2011 r. (English: Substantive opinion on the parliamentary bill amending the Act on national and ethnic minorities and on the regional language, as well as some other acts, Warsaw, May 3, 2011.)] Many Silesians consider themselves a separate ethnicity and have been advocating the recognition of Silesian as a distinct language. In the 2021 Polish census, about 460 thousand people declared that they speak Silesian.{{Cite web |title=585,7 tys. osób deklaruje się jako Ślązacy. "Je to blank dobry wynik" |url=https://oko.press/spis-powszechny-slazacy |access-date=2024-05-08 |website=oko.press |language=pl}}
Language organizations such as SIL International and various linguistic resources such as Ethnologue recognize Silesian as a distinct language.{{cite web |title=ISO documentation of Silesian language |url=http://www.sil.org/iso639-3/documentation.asp?id=szl |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121003061821/http://www.sil.org/iso639-3/documentation.asp?id=szl |archive-date=2012-10-03 |publisher=SIL International}}{{cite web |title=List of languages with ISO codes |url=http://www.ethnologue.org/codes/LanguageCodes.tab |work=Ethnologue |publisher=SIL International}} In 2007, Silesian was assigned its language code szl
within the ISO 639-3 standard.
Those who regard Silesian as a separate language tend to include the Lach dialects ({{langx|pl|gwary laskie}}) of the Czech Republic as part of this language. However, other linguistic sources on Slavic languages normally describe them as dialects of the Czech language,Roland Sussex and Paul Cubberley (2006). The Slavic Languages. Cambridge University Press. P. 533.David Short (1994). "Czech". The Slavonic Languages, edited by Bernard Comrie and Greville G. Corbett. Routledge. P. 530. or sometimes as transitional Polish–Czech dialects.
For a list of dialects, see dialects of Silesian.
Common isoglosses
Dialects are often divided based on isoglosses in pronunciation, grammar (namely declension and syntax), and word-formation.
In terms of the most important, dialect groups are usually divided based on the presence of masuration (present in Masovian and Lesser Polish dialects) and voicing of word-final consonants before vowels and liquids in the next word or sometimes the personal verb clitics {{lang|pl|-m, -ś, -śmy, -ście}} as in {{lang|pl|byliśmy}} (e.g. jak jestem may be realized as {{IPA|pl|[jaɡ jestem]}} in Lesser Polish and Greater Polish dialects, but as {{IPA|pl|[jak jestem]}} in Masovia).
Common phonetic isoglosses in terms of vowels include the development of slanted vowels, or their retention;{{cite web |url= http://www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl/index.php?l1=leksykon&lid=683|title=Samogłoski pochylone |author=Halina Karaś |year= 2010|website=www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl |access-date=16 July 2024}} and the treatment of nasal vowels.{{cite web |url= http://www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl/index.php?l1=leksykon&lid=691|title=Samogłoski nosowe |author=Halina Karaś |year= 2010|website=www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl |access-date=16 July 2024}}
Common phonetic isoglosses in terms of consonants include Jabłonkowanie, Siakanie, Szadzenie, and the insertion of prothetic consonants before initial (and sometimes medial) vowels.{{cite web |url= http://www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl/index.php?l1=leksykon&lid=715|title=Spółgłoski |author=Halina Karaś |year= 2010|website=www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl |access-date=16 July 2024}}
Another important factor is the presence of contracted forms of {{lang|pl|bać}} and similar verbs (regionally and originally {{lang|pl|bojeć}}).{{cite web |url= http://www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl/index.php?l1=leksykon&lid=617|title=Kontrakcja |author=Halina Karaś |year= 2010|website=www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl |access-date=16 July 2024}}
A common grammatical isogloss is the formation of first-person plural verb forms, which in Standard Polish is usually with -my in the present/future tense or with -śmy in the past tense. Many dialects show much variation, including ‑m, ‑ma, ‑me, ‑wa.{{cite web |url= http://www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl/index.php?l1=leksykon&lid=573|title=Formy 1. os. lmn. czasu teraźniejszego |author=Halina Karaś |year= 2010|website=www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl |access-date=16 July 2024}}{{cite web |url= http://www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl/index.php?l1=leksykon&lid=574|title=Formy 1. os. lmn. czasu przeszłego |author=Halina Karaś |year= 2010|website=www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl |access-date=16 July 2024}}
A common lexical or word-formation isogloss is how nouns denoting young animals and people are formed, where in the south and in Standard Polish it is typically formed with -ę, as in {{lang|pl|źrebię}}, but in the north it is often -ak, as in {{lang|pl|źrebiak}}.{{cite web |url= http://www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl/index.php?l1=leksykon&lid=705|title=Słowotwórstwo rzeczowników |author=Halina Karaś |year= 2010|website=www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl |access-date=16 July 2024}} Both suffixes are subject sound changes.
A common isogloss in verb formation is the preferred ending for imperfective or frequentative verbs; in Standard Polish and the north they are usually formed with -ywać, but in the south -ować is often preferred.{{cite web |url= http://www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl/index.php?l1=leksykon&lid=703|title=Słowotwórstwo czasowników |author=Halina Karaś |year= 2010|website=www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl |access-date=16 July 2024}} Also important is the formation of adjectives, with many different suffixes being used in different regions that are usually different from the formation in Standard Polish.{{cite web |url= http://www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl/index.php?l1=leksykon&lid=704|title=Słowotwórstwo przymiotników |author=Halina Karaś |year= 2010|website=www.dialektologia.uw.edu.pl |access-date=16 July 2024}}
Notes
{{Notelist}}