Castelmezzano dialect
The dialect of Castelmezzano is a Romance variety spoken in Castelmezzano in the Province of Potenza in Italy. It differs from the surrounding Neapolitan language and Gallo-Italic languages as it has an Eastern Romance vocalism.
| Castelmezzano | |
|---|---|
| Native to | Italy |
| Region | western Basilicata |
Indo-European
| |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | None (mis) |
| Glottolog | cast1245 |
Castelmezzano is but the kernel of an entire area, known as Vorposten (German for '"outpost"'), sharing the same vocalic system. This area also includes Castronuovo di Sant'Andrea, Sant'Arcangelo, Roccanova, San Martino d'Agri, Aliano (and Alianello), Gallicchio, Missanello, Armento, Pietrapertosa, Anzi, Campomaggiore, Albano di Lucania, Trivigno, Brindisi di Montagna, Corleto Perticara and Guardia Perticara.
There is evidence that this type of vocalism was once characteristic of most of southern Italy.[1] This vocalic system can be viewed as a compromise between the Sardinian system of the Lausberg area, in the southern Basilicata, and the Western Romance vocalic system of the neighboring Neapolitan language and other Southern Italian languages.
Comparison of vowel changes
| Latin | Root form | Vowel | Castelmezzano dialect | Dalmatian | Romanian | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| piper | *pipum, *piprum | /ɪ/ | pépë | pepro | - | Romanian has got the borrowing "piper". |
| digitus | digitum | /ɪ/ | [?] | detco | deget | |
| fīlum | - | /iː/ | filë | fil | fir | |
| cor | *corum | /ɔ/ | córë | cur | - | |
| bonus | bonum | /ɔ/ | [?] | bun | bun | The vowel was shifted from /o/ to /u/, yielding "bun" in Romanian, as part of vowel reduction. |
| focus | focum | /ɔ/ | [?] | fuc | foc | |
| somnus | somnum | /ɔ/ | [?] | samno | somn | The Dalmatian result may be tied to the consonantal cluster /mn/ or to the retention of the word-final vowel. |
| sōl | sōlem | /oː/ | sólë | saul | soare | The Dalmatian and Romanian terms are only diphthongized due to not having been followed by /u/ or /i/. |
| vōx | vōcem | /oː/ | [?] | baud | boace (archaic) | The Dalmatian and Romanian terms are only diphthongized due to not having been followed by /u/ or /i/. Romanian has got the neologism "voce". |
| bōs | *bōvum | /oː/ | [?] | bu | bou | |
| tōtus | tōtum | /oː/ | [?] | tut, tot | tot | The function as pronoun may be the reason for the Dalmatian alternative form. |
| furca | furcam | /ʊ/ | fùrchë | fuarca | furcă | |
| surdus | surdum | /ʊ/ | [?] | suard | surd | |
| nux | *nucem, *nucum | /ʊ/ | [?] | nauc | nuc | |
| lūna | lūnam | /uː/ | lùnë | loina | lună | |
| mūrus | mūrum | /uː/ | [?] | moir, mor | mur | The Dalmatian variant does not seem to reflect the most usual outcomes. |
| crūdus | crūdum | /uː/ | [?] | croit | crud |
A comparison of vowel changes shows only limited relatability of the languages and the dialect yet Dalmatian sound changes may sometimes differ from the usual phonological development that can be ascertained.
References
- Loporcaro, Michele (2011). "Phonological Processes". In Maiden; et al. (eds.). The Cambridge History of the Romance Languages: Volume 1, Structures.