What is a dialect? Features of dialectology on examples of Russian, German and English languages

If we talk about what is a dialect, then first of all we need to define the term. From Greek "dialektos" is translated as "an adverb". It means the same thing - a dialect is called a variety of one language, which is used only by a limited number of people. Usually they are connected either by territorial, or professional, or social community.

Features and Specificity

Speaking of what a dialect is, several important features should be noted. The first is that those dialects that refer to territorial ones are a reflection of the linguistic traditions of a particular people. Sometimes even such dialects became the basis of a nationwide language. From the dialect they differ in the scope of the territory they cover. For example, a dialect can form a whole region. And the talk, sometimes, exists even within a single village. What is a dialect related to the professional field of activity? It is such a kind that unites in its linguistic relation personalities who are representatives of one kind of activity or profession. And, finally, a few words about the social dialect. It is inherent only to a separate group of people. However, without looking at the fact that the word "dialect" has several meanings, linguists and philologists under this concept mean a whole system. It is so diverse that even a science has been formed under the name dialectology. She is also studying what is a dialect, its specifics, origin and other characteristics.

Dialects of Germany

Germany - not such a big country, if you compare it with Russia, but there are a lot of dialects here. They refer to territorial. After all, Germany is divided into 16 lands, and the people of each of them are distinguished by their own dialect. So, for example, in the South of the country instead of "s" they say "sch". According to this dialect it is easy to determine that a person comes from Stuttgart or Reutlingen. However, if the dialects of the Germans can be understood, then here is the dialect, which distinguish the Swiss and the inhabitants of other German-speaking countries, one must also learn to understand. For example, people born in Switzerland instead of "e" in the end put "i": "Spätzle" - "Spätzli", "Grüßle" - "Grüßli", etc. The southern Germans (in particular the Bavarians) differ in their peculiar intonation. Therefore, it is not surprising that sometimes the northerners can not understand them.

Professional interest in Russian dialect

The dialects of the Russian language are a completely separate topic. Everyone knows how rich and varied he is. That is why the Russian dialects interested in such famous scientists as Dahl, Lomonosov, Trediakovsky. Back in the 19th century, an academician named Sreznevsky developed a program to study the specifics of the Russian language. In his work he paid much attention to exactly what dialect is. The scientist suggests even developing a "map of languages, dialects and dialects". In general, it should be noted that Russian dialects attracted interest from many, not only from scientists from CIS countries, but also from foreign specialists.

Scientific study of dialects of Russia and their classification

After this began to develop so-called linguistic geography. It clearly showed the language features - right on the map. And after a while, in the XX century, an intensive study of dialects and dialects has already begun. The northern adverb differs strongly pronounced "o" and hard "g". Southerners, on the contrary, do not hesitate to allocate "a" and soften their "t". A peculiar "golden mean" is the Middle Russian dialect, in which the features of the southern and northern dialects are combined. They, in turn, are divided into eastern and western. However, if one hundred years ago the Russian dialects were distinguishable, today they were "smoothed out." Modern Russian language gradually acquires the features of the literary, and the dialects have receded into the background. Although in villages and small towns they can still be heard. However, rather than a territorial dialect, rather, a social one is acting here.

Dialects with English as an example

English is one of the most common in the world. A few tens of millions of people speak it. Accordingly, and English dialects are numerous and diverse. Initially, dialects were formed because of the expansion of the British Empire. The next step was the US influence on the nearby continents. The most common dialects are British and American. Since the overwhelming majority of English-speaking people (about 70 percent) live in the US, it was the last dialect that became the most popular. But generally there is a huge number of dialects, and each of them has its own name. This is a scout (in Liverpool), and Jordi (Newcastle), Yola (a dead language that separated from English, existed in the Middle Ages), Chicano, Vermont - and these are only a few dozens of dialects. Ireland, Scotland, Wales, England, USA - these and many other countries are English-speaking countries, and everywhere they say differently. Therefore, deciding to begin to study this language, it is necessary to decide for themselves which dialect should be oriented.