Armenian dialects in Romania
| Armenian Romanian dialects | |
|---|---|
| Region | Romania |
| Ethnicity | Armenians of Romania |
Indo-European
| |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | – |
The Romanian Armenian dialects refer to the extinct dialects spoken by Armenians in Romania. An important element for the survival of the identity of Armenians is its language. The first wave of immigrants spoke the Armenian that was spoken in the Armenian land. This later changed by adoption of words from the Romanian language and other ethnic groups that were living in Romania such as the Polish, Turks and Tatars. This led to the birth of both the Moldavia and Transylvania Armenian dialects. However, these dialects were short lived and the main dialect at the beginning of the 20th century was Western Armenian, predominantly spoken by the immigrants who survived the Genocide by the Ottoman Empire. The Armenian language was kept alive and passed on through schools which were usually built near Armenian churches and monasteries.[1]
The first Armenian emigrants in Romania spoke the Armenian that constituted the point of departure for a new dialect formed in Moldavia. In its lexis, words from: Romanian, Polish and Turkish-Tatar, and – in Transylvania – Hungarian, were included. These dialects would vanish at the onset of the 20th century; the spoken language remained the vernacular of the tens of thousands of emigrants, newcomers from the Ottoman Empire after the 1915 Genocide. Regrettably, Armenian-speaking literature has not yielded sonorous names to travel beyond the community's space.[2]
Since the older generations have lost their language and the new generation largely comes from the former Ottoman Empire, they use standard Western Armenian. Romanians-Armenians (Rumanahay) speak like Westerners but sometimes have a unique pronunciation, many having for example difficulty pronouncing the sound "kh" (alias "x").
Moldavian dialect[edit]
The first Armenian emigrants to Romania spoke Armenian which eventually became a new dialect formed in Moldavia. In its lexicon, words from: Romanian, Polish and Turkish-Tatar have been included.
Transylvanian dialect[edit]
In 1913 the Lazarev Institute published his Armenian Dialectal Dictionary (Հայերէն գաւառական բառարան).[3][4] It includes some 30,000 words used in Armenian dialects.[5] His studies on various Armenian dialects have also been published in separate books. These include publications on the dialects of Ardeal/Transylvania (1953).[6]
References[edit]
- ↑ "History of the Armenian community in Romania – Uniunea Armenilor din România".
- ↑ Cazazian, Mihai Stepan (2006). "A Brief Overview of the Armenian Community in Romania". Plural. Retrieved 2021-10-25.
- ↑ Aghayan 1976, p. 46.
- ↑ Available online at nayiri.com.
- ↑ Baloyan 2016, p. 33.
- ↑ Stepanian 1959, p. 194.
Bibliography[edit]
- Stepanian, G. Kh. (1959). "Հրաչյա Աճառյան (1876-1953) [Hrachia Adjarian (1876-1953)]". Patma-Banasirakan Handes. N 2-3 (2–3): 190–203.
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