Kostel Dialect

This article uses Logar transcription.

The Kostel dialect ( sl, kostelsko narečje ,Smole, Vera. 1998. "Slovenska narečja." ''Enciklopedija Slovenije'' vol. 12, pp. 1–5. Ljubljana: Mladinska knjiga, p. 2. ,Logar, Tine. 1996. ''Dialektološke in jezikovnozgodovinske razprave''. Ljubljana: SAZU, p. 203. ;Horvat, Sonja. 1994. "Nekaj naglasnih in fonoloških značilnosti slovenskega kostelskega govora." ''Slavistična revija'' 42: 305–312, p. 305. ), in Croatian literature also eastern microdialects of Western Goran subdialect (, , , ), is a dialect, spoken along the Kupa Valley in Slovenia and Croatia, around Banja Loka and Brod na Kupi.Toporišič, Jože. 1992. ''Enciklopedija slovenskega jezika''. Ljubljana: Cankarjeva založba, p. 88. Dialect originates from Alpine Slavic, a predecessor of nowadays Slovene, but speakers living in Croatia self-identify as speaking Croatian. Dialect borders Mixed Kočevje subdialects to the north, Southern White Carniolan and Eastern Goran dialect to the east, Čabranka dialect to the west, and Goran dialects to the south and east, as well Shtokavian, which is spoken in Moravice and neighbouring villages. The dialect belongs to the Lower Carniolan dialect group, and evolved from the Lower Carniolan dialect base. Until recently, neighbouring Čabranka dialect considered to be a part of Kostel dialect, but it was later discovered both dialects evolved differently, but are in process of becoming more similar to each other.

Geographical distribution

Kostel dialect is spoken in Croatia, but the northernmost part extends into southern Slovenia. It extends from Kuželj and Gornji Turni in the west, south to Ravna Gora, as far east as Razdrto and north to Banja Loka and Kostel.It is the southernmost Slovene dialect. Notable settlements include Kuželj, Guče Selo, Brod na Kupi, Krivac, Gornji Turni, Kupjak, Ravna Gora, Skrad, Brod Moravice, Lokvica and Šimatovo in Croatia, and Vas, Fara, Kuželj and Potok in Slovenia.

The border between Kostel dialect, South White Carniolan dialect and Mixed kočevje subdialects is a bit unclear and Kostel dialect might also extend down the Kupa river on Slovene side.

Accentual changes

Kostel dialect lost the difference between high- and low-pitched accent, both on long and short vowels, which are still differentiated. It also underwent three accent shifts: → , → , / → / , → , and → accent shift.

Phonology

Almost all vowels have monophthongized, which sets this dialect apart from all other Lower Carniolan dialects.

* Non-final and is pronounced as or .
* Vowel is pronounced as or .
* Non-final and , as well as non-final and are pronounced as or .
* Similarly, non-final and , as well as are pronounced as or .
* Newly stressed and after → shift mostly got simplified into and , or and , respectively.
* Non-final and turned into .
* Non-final and turned into .
* Non-final and became .
* Non-final and became .
* Non-final and evolved into long or short .
* Non-final and mostly evolved into , but some microdialects still pronounce them as .
Akanye is not that common, but ukanye is, turning word-final into or . Unstressed is reduced into , , or . Unstressed evolved into . Banja Loka and Delač microdialects also have unstressed long vowels, which became unstressed after accent shifts.

Word-final mostly turned into . Palatal and have not depalatalized. If a word started with , then appeared before, and if a word started with , appeared before. It, however, lost the before at the beginning of a word. Alpine Slovene evolved into non-sonorant , which devoices if at the end of a word or before a non-voiced consonant. Clusters and simplified into and , respectively. Other consonant simplifications also appeared, such as → .

Morphology

Dual forms were fully replaced by plural forms. Future and preterite tense are formed using the l-participle.

Vocabulary

A priest and slavicist Jože Gregorič collected almost 17 000 words spoken in Slovene part of Kostel dialect, from Srobotnik to Grgelj, which is currently still listed as belonging to Mixed Kočevje subdialects and published a dictionary of Kostel dialect.

References

Bibliography

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{{Languages of Slovenia
Slovene dialects