| Užice dialect | |
|---|---|
| ужички говор /užički govor | |
| Pronunciation | [ˈuʃə̆tʃkiːˈɡɔʋɔːr] |
| Native to | Serbia |
| Region | Stari Vlah (Užice) |
Native speakers | (undated figure of 500,000) Consideredmoribund, suppressed by thestandard language |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | – |
| Glottolog | uzic1234 |
| This article containsIPA phonetic symbols. Without properrendering support, you may seequestion marks, boxes, or other symbols instead ofUnicode characters. For an introductory guide on IPA symbols, seeHelp:IPA. | |
TheUžice dialect (Serbo-Croatian:ужички говор /užički govor), also known as theZlatibor dialect (Serbo-Croatian:златиборски говор /zlatiborski govor), is aNeo-Shtokavian subdialect of theEastern Herzegovinian dialect[1] traditionally spoken in theZlatibor andMoravica Districts of theUžice region (Stari Vlah) in southwesternSerbia. The dialect is spoken by approximately 500,000 people, including bothBosniaks andSerbs living in the area.[2][3][4]
One of the earliest mentions of the local dialect ofUžice region is found inOttoman geographerEvliya Çelebi's record on his visit to the Užicenahiya in 1664.[5] In his travelogue, the language ofUžicans is called the "Bosnian language".[6]
TodayOrthodox people in the Užice region usually claim to speakSerbian, whereasMuslims (who primarily dwell in the municipalities ofNova Varoš,Priboj,Prijepolje, andSjenica in theZlatibor District) claim to speakBosnian. The nameSerbo-Croatian was also used during theYugoslav era.[7]
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Western South Slavic
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Transitional dialects
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The Užice dialect is aNeo-Štokavian dialect withIjekavian accent. It is characterized by an Eastern Herzegovinianaccenting system consisting of four pitch accents with long vowels following accented syllables, and acase system using full declension.[8] Today many people in the Užice region, especially in urban areas, use theEkavian accent (which is dominant in Serbia) in speech and writing, instead of the traditional Ijekavian.[9] Nevertheless, the original Ijekavian forms of local toponyms such asBioska,Đetinja,Prijepolje,Bjeluša,Kosjerić,Drijetanj etc., are usually preserved, as these are the names used in official documents and other publications.[10] However, there is also a number of toponyms which were Ekavized in the written language, although their original Ijekavian forms have often survived in the spoken language. These includeDonja Bela Reka /Gornja Bela Reka,Kriva Reka,Seništa and others, which can often be heard asBijela Rijeka,Kriva Rijeka,Sjeništa etc. in conversation among the locals.[11]
In the Central South Slavicdialect continuum, the Užice dialect forms a transition between the neighbouring dialects ofBosnia and Herzegovina and the dialects ofSerbia. Some of its characteristics are shared with either dialects, but many of them are common with the Bosnian vernacular rather than the dialects of the rest of Serbia; including the traditional Ijekavian reflex ofyat, thereduction of short unaccented vowels in speech, and other characteristics of the localphonetics,morphology, andlexis, the latter manifested primarily in many loanwords fromTurkish,Persian, andArabic languages, which are, however, suppressed and less used in the modern language. The connections between theUžice region and Bosnia were even stronger in the past, as parts of this region once belonged to the mediaeval Bosnian state, and the mediaeval local population were followers of theChurch of Bosnia.[12]
The local population descends from theSlavs who mixed withIllyrian andCeltic tribes in the earlyMiddle Ages,[13] and therefore the dialect in its earliest mediaeval form has been rather influenced by the Celtic and Illyrian languages, the remaining of which are some local toponyms of Illyrian orRomanized Celtic etymology, such asTara Mountain,Negbina,Murtenica,Čigota etc.,[14] or the mediaeval Užican personal nameBrajan of Celtic origin.[15]
Mediaeval records of local toponyms showIkavian characteristics of the local Slavonicvernacular, similarly to the mediaevalBosnian language. These toponyms includeBila Rika,Siča Rika,Biluša, and others, which are today known as Bela Reka orBijela Rijeka,Seča Reka, andBjeluša (either Ijekavian accent or Ekavized during the 19th and 20th centuries).[15]
The dialect’s vocabulary was later influenced by theOttoman Turkish language.[16] A mention of the respectable Turkish influence on Užican language and mentality is also found in the novelDošljaci by a notable Užice writerMilutin Uskoković:
The Turkish influence still remained in speech and mentality. The language ... is full with Turkish words. Older Užicans are at home still very much like the Turks
— Milutin Uskoković,Došljaci (1919)
During the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, theUžice region was mostly populated by the migrants fromHerzegovina,Montenegro, and otherDinaric regions. Most of the present-dayUžicans descend from these settlers.[17] The local dialect was then influenced by the Younger Ijekavian dialects of Herzegovina and Montenegro, and thus became one of the Eastern Herzegovinian dialects.[18]
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Native Titular nation
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Related nations OtherSouth Slavs |
| front | central | back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| close | i | u | |
| mid | ɛ | (ə, ə̆)[1] | ɔ |
| open | ä[2] |
The significant portion of the Užicanvernacular literature consists of localanecdotes andproverbs, as well as theepic andlyric poems, both of which are usually sung according to a common metric system consisting of ten units (ten syllables in a verse), and often performed withgusle.[2] The hero of all Užican anecdotes is calledEro (another name forUžicans, also spelledEra), who is portrayed as a most clever, witty, and hospitable person, although he is just a simpleZlatiborian peasant. In these short anecdotes, he always succeeds to trick the others at the end, even though they hold a higher position in the society or are often considered smarter than him (priests, Ottoman andSerbian nobility, the police, etc.).[19] Characters similar to smart and clever Ero are found in anecdotes across theBalkans: in the stories aboutNasredin Hodža, of oriental origin, orKaragiozis in the Greek and Turkish literatures.[20]
The written literature, on the other hand, usually stuck to thestandard language; that isOld Church Slavonic andChurch Slavonic in theMiddle Ages, and later the standardSerbian language. The first Užican printed book,Rujansko četvorojevanđelje (the Gospels ofRujno), was printed in Church Slavonic in 1537.[21] Other Church Slavonic books printed in the Užice region includePsalter printed inMileševa monastery in 1544, andEvangelion andPentecostarion printed inMrkša’s Church in 1562 and 1566, respectively.[22] After the printing centres in Užican monasteries were demolished by theOttoman Turks, amanuscript culture arose in theRača monastery. The manuscripts produced in Rača were written in Church Slavonic, but they contained many elements of the Užican vernacular.[23] The first works compiled in the local dialect by literate Užicans appeared in the 19th century. They include Miladin Radović's chronicleSamouki rukopis, and theProphecy of Kremna which was told byZechariah Zaharić, theprotopope ofKremna.
