Qormi dialect

One of the dialects found in the Maltese language is the Qormi Dialect (in general Maltese termed as Qormi and by the speakers as Qurmi, and affectionately as it-Tuf, and standard Maltese is called it-Taf. Literally, Taf is the Maltese word for "you know"). This dialect is used by many of the Qormi inhabitants and in other settlements around this city, that consists of around twenty-thousand people. The most distinctive feature of the Qormi dialect lies in its treatment of vowels.

Although there is no strict rule, generally the vowels in the dialect take the following forms. Vowels of first syllables are the ones most affected, but sometimes medial vowels are changed as well. Final vowels, on the other hand, are usually identical to those of the Standard language.

The Vocal 'A'

The vocal 'A' changes into the vocals 'U'. If in the end, it becomes an 'O'.

English Maltese Qormi Dialect
steeple (church tower) kampnar kampnur
seriousness serjetà serjetò
seminary seminarju seminurju
potato patata patuta
fog ċpar ċpur

The Vocal 'O'

The vocal 'O' in the Qormi dialect is also changed into 'U'. Example:

English Maltese Qormi Dialect
we went morna murna
go (imperative 3rd pers. pl.) morru murru
spring coil molla mulla
car karozza karuzza
glue kolla kulla
postage stamp bolla bulla

This form happens to roughly all of the words that have the vowel "O" in the first syllable, although there may be exceptions.

Vowels after the Għ

The vowels after the 'Għ' change their sound as well.

Exceptions

Although there may be exceptions, such as Kollha (all of it) would be pronounced as Killha, Meta (when) as Mita, etc. one must note that the vowels are never lengthened, and their accent remains as the normal Maltese one.

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Friday, June 12, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.