| Putèr | |
|---|---|
| puter | |
| Pronunciation | [puˈteːr]ⓘ |
| Native to | Engadin inSwitzerland |
| Latin script | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | – |
| Glottolog | uppe1396 |
| IETF | rm-puter[2] |
Puter (also spelledPutèr;Romansh:puter[puˈteːr]ⓘ) is a variety ofRomansh spoken in theEngadin valley inGraubünden, which is in the southeastern part ofSwitzerland. It is spoken in the central northwestern end of the valley betweenS-chanf andSt. Moritz, as well as in the region of theBernina Pass. Romansh was named by 5,497 people within the upper Engadine valley (30%) as a habitually spoken language in the census of 2000, which probably corresponds roughly to the total number of speakers.[3] The term is probably originally a nickname derived fromput 'porridge', meaning 'porridge-eaters'.[4]
Puter andVallader are sometimes referred to as one specific variety known as Ladin, as they have retained this word to mean Romansh. However, the term Ladin is primarily associated with the closely related language in Italy's Dolomite mountains also known asLadin. Puter and Vallader are distinguished from the other Romansh dialects among other things by the retention of the rounded front vowels /y/ and /ø/ (writtenü andö), which have been derounded to /i/ and /e/ in the other dialects. Compare Putèrmürⓘ to Sursilvanmirⓘ ‘wall’ and Putèrchaschölⓘ to Sursilvancaschielⓘ 'cheese'.
Each village between S-chanf and St. Moritz has a slightly different accent, although the written form remains the same.
Gian Travers wrote the first surviving work in Romansh, theChianzun dalla guerra dagl Chiaste da Müs, in the Putèr dialect. This epic poem, written in 1527, describes thefirst Musso war, in which Travers himself had taken part.[5]
There is an individual dictionary for this dialect,[6] as well as texts dealing with its grammar.[7]
The fableThe Fox and the Crow byJean de La Fontaine in Putèr Romansh, as well as a translation intoEnglish, the similar-looking but noticeably different-sounding dialect Vallader, and Rumantsch Grischun.[8]
| Putèr audioⓘ | Vallader audioⓘ | Rumantsch Grischun audioⓘ | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| La vuolp d’eira darcho üna vouta famanteda. Co ho'la vis sün ün pin ün corv chi tgnaiva ün töch chaschöl in sieu pical. Que am gustess, ho'la penso, ed ho clamo al corv: «Che bel cha tü est! Scha tieu chaunt es uschè bel scu tia apparentscha, alura est tü il pü bel utschè da tuots». | La vuolp d'eira darcheu üna jada fomantada. Qua ha'la vis sün ün pin ün corv chi tgnaiva ün toc chaschöl in seis pical. Quai am gustess, ha'la pensà, ed ha clomà al corv: «Che bel cha tü est! Scha teis chant es uschè bel sco tia apparentscha, lura est tü il plü bel utschè da tuots». | La vulp era puspè ina giada fomentada. Qua ha ella vis sin in pign in corv che tegneva in toc chaschiel en ses pichel. Quai ma gustass, ha ella pensà, ed ha clamà al corv: «Tge bel che ti es! Sche tes chant è uschè bel sco tia parita, lur es ti il pli bel utschè da tuts». | The fox was hungry yet again. There he saw a raven upon a fir holding a piece of cheese in its beak. This I would like, he thought, and shouted at the raven: "You are so beautiful! If your singing is as beautiful as your looks, then you are the most beautiful of all birds.". |
