Struga dialect

The location of the Struga dialect among the others Macedonian dialects

The Struga Dialect (Macedonian: Струшки дијалект, Struški dijalekt) is a member of the western and north western subgroup of the western group of dialects of the Macedonian language. The dialect is spoken in Struga, Pogradec, Pustec and up to the Golo Brdo and in the surrounding hinterland. The dialect has many similarities with the Vevčani-Radožda,^[1] Ohrid and Korča dialects.

Phonological characteristic

• change of word-initial /tsv/ (цв-) to /tsu/ (цу): цвет → цут / cvet → cut ('flower')
• loss of intervocalic /v/ (в): право → прао / pravo → prao ('straight ahead')
• the stress is on the third syllable from the end of the word.
• loss of the intervocalic /ɡ/ (г): сега → сеа / sega → sea ('now')
• loss of the intervocalic /d/ (д): одиме → оиме or ојме / odime → ojme ('we go') ^[2]

Macchiato in Struga with inscription in local dialect

Morphological characteristic

• use of the suffix -иче / -iče: мома → момиче / moma → momiče ('kid');
• use of the preposition в/во ('in'): во вода, в град / vo voda, v grad ('in water', 'in city');
• use of the suffix -Т: тој пишит / toj pišit ('he writes');
• frequent use of the perfect construction: е дојден, беше дојден / e dojden, beše dojden (literally 'is come', 'was come').^[3]
• replacement of the consonant з/z with г/g: влезиме → влегваме / vlezime → vlegvame ('we enter');
• use of the suffix- ка/-ka: јас → јаска / jas → jaska ('I/me');

Other specific characteristics

• change of the vocal R and vocal L;
• using vocal groups such as: -ea-, -oa- .

Typical words

• Пипун/pipun as opposed to диња/dinja - 'melon'
• Риза/riza as opposed to крпа/krpa - 'towel'
• Кондури/konduri as opposed to чевли/čevli - 'shoes'
• Карпуз/karpuz as opposed to лубеница/lubenica - 'watermelon'
• Момиче/momiče as opposed to Девојче/devojche – 'young/little girl'
• Пљачки/pljački as opposed to Алишта/Ališta – 'clothes'
• Гужва/Gužva as opposed to Народ/Narod – 'people/crowd'
• Блеблеби/Bleblebi as opposed to Леблеби/Leblebi -'chickpeas'
• Губа/Guba as opposed to Мазник/Maznik - Pastry

Typical sayings

• Не Биди енајџиа ко Нестора/Ne bidi enajdžija ko Nestora - 'Don't be a pain like Nestor' ^[4]
• Како Струга нема друга!/Kako Struga nema Druga! - There is no place like Struga.

Example of the dialect

	The Child from the Land Above Excerpt from a folk fairy tale told by an old woman from Mali Vlaj in the Struga dialect
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Mometo odit na ezeroto

Mometo odit na ezeroto

da mi naleit biserna voda.

Dve vedra v race, vedro na glava

da mu izmie beḱаru nodze

da mu izmiet, dur' do kolena,

da mu izbrišet so bela riza.

Mometo odit na ezeroto

da mi naleit biserna voda,

da mu izmiet beḱaru lice

da mu izbrišet so al šamija.

Mometo odit na ezeroto

da mi naleit bela voda.

da mu izmiet bеḱаru race

bеќаru race dur' dо ramena,

da mu izbrišet sos belo čevre.

References