This paper examines the phenomenon of vocalism in Northern Greek dialects, where unstressed vowels /e/ and /o/ become [i] and [u] respectively, and unstressed /i/ and /u/ are lost. The paper dates this change to the modern Greek language and explains it as a tendency to raise unstressed vowels, affecting preceding consonants and sometimes creating diphthongs. The paper also reexamines forms like [an sis > an ys] and discusses theories about the raising and loss of unstressed vowels over time.

1. 1
.
Thesaurus Linguae Cypriae Graecae
Under the notion of the so called vocalism of Northern Greek in the
modern Greek language we mean the fronting of unstressed /e/ and /o/ to [i]
and [u] respectively and the loss of unstressed /i/ and /u/. This change is
attested today or was attested in earlier times in Central and Northern Greece,
Ipeiros, Thrace, islands of the Aegean Sea and at the area of modern Turkey.
The phenomenon is so widely spread that we assume it has to be relatively old.
This paper dates this change and assumes it belongs to the modern
language and is parallel to the phenomenon of synizesis.
This paper also gives an explanation of this change as a tendency to raise
unstressed vowels in these dialects. The raising of vowels also affects preceding
consonants which as a result show palatalization. Unstressed /i/ and /u/ become
semi-vowels [y] and [w] when raised. Semi-vowels can not be associated to a
preceding consonant so they are dismissed. But in the case that a semi-vowel is
adjacent to a vowel it can be assosiated to it creating a diphthong. At this point
there is a connection of this phenomenon to Synizesis because in Synizesis we
also have vowel raising and association of semi-vowel to vowel. Unstressed /e/
and /o/ become [i] and [u] respectively after raising. Vowel loss and vowel
raising affected vowels simultaneously and in an evolutionary manner. Raising
of unstressed /e/ to [i] was distinguished from semi-vocalization and loss of
unstressed /i/ because the secondary [i], which comes from the raising of /e/,
was not further raised to become a semi-vowel.
This paper also re-examines some other phenomena of the vocalism of
Northern Greek such as forms like
>
[ an sis > an ys],
>
[pézis > péys].
[i]
[e]
[ ]
[i]
[u].
[u]
,
,
.
.
Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Greek Linguistics

2. 2
,
.
.
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.
:
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2.
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,
Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Greek Linguistics
,

3. 3
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( . .
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).
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»(
138-139).
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:
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;
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,
. .
«
»
,
, 1977,
Gustav Meyer
1976,
(
-
. 13-21).
, 28-3-
:
,
Albert Thumb
.
Karl
Dieterich
.
.
.
.
Th. Capidan
,
,
,
,
Albert Thumb
,
.
.
Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Greek Linguistics
.
.

4. 4
:
«
,
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(
20).
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(1955)
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,
. Dieterich [
,
,
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,
,
(
. .)
,
( )
,
,
. .» (
203).
René Hodot,
Brixhe
Cl.
,
.
«
Brixhe
(1999)
,
,
,
»(
33).
.
,
,
,
.
,
,
.
.
.
Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Greek Linguistics
,

5. 5
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[u],
[e]
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Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Greek Linguistics

6. 6
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482).
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2.
[u],
[e]
,
[e]
[o]
[i]
.
[e]
[i],
.
.
Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Greek Linguistics
,
[e]

7. 7
[i]
,
-
,
.
,
( nSa 171),
( nSa 176),
( nSa 172).
( nSa 172),
,
,
,
,
( nSa 166),
( nSa 166),
-
167),
( nSa 166).
[ ]
[u]
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( nSa 168),
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( nSa 168).
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,
,
,
Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Greek Linguistics
.

8. 8
[i]
[u]
.
Paul Kretschmer,
.
,
[i]
.
,
,
.
.
.
,
[u],
[i]
.
,
,
.
,
,
,
,
,
.
[e]
[o]
[i]
[u],
[i]
[u],
.
[e]
[ ],
,
,
Gerhard
Rohlfs
(RoGr 41).
[i]
[e]
,
[u]
[o].
,
.
,
,
,
,
.
,
.
,
,
.
.
,
,
,
.
4.
:
[u]
[w]
.
Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Greek Linguistics

9. 9
[u]
[w].
,
w
:
[i]
5.
w
,
.
[y]
.
[i]
T
[i]
:
[y].
.
.
.
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[i].
[i]
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[e],
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[]
[Õ ],
.
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[n]
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,
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-
.
,
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:
y
:
y
y
:
y
y
(
y
y
Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Greek Linguistics
)
ä

10. 10
yÒ
-
(
yÒ
)
yÒ
:
yÒ
:
ä
y
yÒ -
-
yÒ -
yÒ
(
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y
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(
yÒ -
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(
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Òy
-
)
yÒ -
,
.
.
,
,
,
,
Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Greek Linguistics
.

11. 11
,
:
Brian Newton
y ,
:
,
y ,
Palatalization
péz is
a lús is
High vowel loss
péz s
a lús s
Voice assimilation
péz z
Softness dissimilation
Consonantality dissimilation
pé z
péyz
a lúx s
a lúys (NeGe 87)
Brian Newton
,
.
Brian Newton
-Drachman
G. Drachman,
.
a or z is
i/u
x s is
a or z s
:
x ss
a or z z
a or iÅ zz
x iÅ ss
a or iÅ z
x iÅ s (Dr
40)
:
Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Greek Linguistics

12. 12
y
y
y
(
)
y
-
y
yÒ
y
yÒ
(
)
-
y )-
(
y
y -
y
yÒ
-
-
-
-
y
y
yÒ
y
)- y
Brian Newton
(
:
Palatalization
éx isa
és isa
High vowel loss
éx sa
és sa
éysa
éx sa
éysa
(NeGe 87)
y
(
Softness dissimilation
Consonantality dissimilation
:
-
y
-
-
-
- y
(
)- y
yÒ
-
yÒ
-
-
-
-
)- y
.
,
y
-
,
,
:
y
yÒ -
Brian Newton
,
:
yÒ -
,
,
[i]
Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Greek Linguistics
,

13. 13
Palatalization
High vowel loss
Vowel epenthesis
Velar palatalization
m vr i
m vr
m vir
fn i
fn
fin
téxn i
téxn
téxin
téx in (NeGe 210)
,
y y y
:
y y y -
[i]
,
[i].
,
[u],
[i]
,
:
-
y-
y- w -
-
- ,
[i],
[i]
.
.
.
,
-
.
[i]
-
.
[u]
,
[i]
w -
[i]
,
.
,
.
[ ]
.
[u]
340-341).
»(
,
«
/u/ > /i/
,
,
.
,
,
.
,
.
[e]
,
[i]
[o],
[u],
,
.
:
(
-
(
(
175),
175),
-
-
175),
(
174).
Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Greek Linguistics
(
176),

14. 14
,
,
.
,
,
,
.
AnSa Andriotis, N.
Samothrace ,
, 1939-40, . 153-208
, .
»,
,
.
»,
,
, 1943-44,
Dr
Drachman, .
»,
), 28-30
, .
P.
De quelques faits phonétiques du dialecte moderne de
,
,
.«
,
i
. 171-185
, 1931,
., «
,
,
. 131-185
-Drachman, G., «
(
1976,
, 1977,
-
. 37-50
., «
(
(
, 1993,
u
)»,
-
:
),
. 195-206
,
.
., «
( )
»,
, 1980, . 401-437
Hodot, René, «
,
,
»,
,
,
, 2000, . 29-34
, «
»,
), 23-30
(
1976,
,
. 13-21
NeGe Newton, Brian, The Generative Interpretation of a Dialect, A Study of Modern Greek
Phonology, Cambridge, At the University Press, 1972
,
, «
»,
4
,
,
1999,
, 2001, . 480-486
RoGr Rohlfs, Gerhard, Historische Grammatik der unteritalienischen Gräzität, München,
1950
,
., «
i
»,
(
), 13-15
1983, . 329-343
1977,
Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Greek Linguistics