Łowicz dialect

The Łowicz dialect or the Księżak dialect is a dialect of Polish spoken by the ethnic group of Łowiczans (Księżaks) inhabiting the historical region known as the Duchy of Łowicz around the cities of Łowicz and Skierniewice in south-western Masovia. It belongs to the Masovian dialect group and borders the Near Mazovian dialect to the north and east, the Lesser Polish Masovian Borderland dialect to the southeast, and the Łęczyca dialect to the south and west.

The classification of the Łowicz dialect is debated; in the past it has been considered a Lesser Polish dialect, but there are many features placing it within the Masovian group - the Łowicz dialect shows many transitional features between Masovia, Lesser Poland and Greater Poland. Currently, the dialect is often considered a trasitional dialect.

1. Features shared with Masovian dialects:
   1. ra- re-: redlić, redzić
   2. ja- > je-: jerzmo, jerzyny
   3. Leveling of pretent tense jedzie to jadzie
   4. 'a > 'e: spowiedać, wietrok, zamietać
   5. Simplification of consonant clusters after decomposing soft labial consonants by a reduction of the spirant:
      1. In the words ćwartka, śwat, śwatło, świerk, śwynia
      2. In the nominal instrumental plural ending: cepamy
      3. In instrumental plural endings of adjectives and pronouns: z nimy, z tymy dobrymu
      4. In enclitic pronominal forms: boli mi, dej my
   6. Leveling of nominative and genitive stems of neuter nouns: ciemię-ciemia siemię-siemia
   7. Contamination of the dative singular endings -owi + -u > -owju > -oju: chłopokoju
   8. Use of the third person plural past formsleli, sieli, śmieli sie based on mieli
   9. Replacement of neuter -ę nouns denoting young animals with -ątko: gynsiontko, koźlontko, kurconko or
   10. Replacement of neuter -ę nouns denoting young animals with -ak: cielok, koźlok, kurcok
   11. The comparative form cinzejsy (standard cięższy)
   12. Replacement of the infinitive ending -eć with -ić//-yć: lezyć, siedzić, wyjrzyć, zajrzyć, zlecić
   13. Use of the iterative suffix -ywać: zajmywać, znajdywać
   14. Lack of the morphemes -ow-, -yw- in kupać, zjmać, zlotać
2. Features shared with Lesser Polish dialects
   1. A change of slanted á to o: bijok, bratowo, luśnio, do nos, zycio
   2. A merging of slanted é with e: bieda, brzeg, mleko
   3. Replacement of ablauted 'o with 'e: biedro, mietła, niese, piełun, pierun, wiesna
   4. A change of i, y > e before liquids:
      1. iN > eN: jendyk, jenny
      2. yN > eN: z tem, z temi dobremi
      3. iL > eL: lelijo, pieła, sielny
      4. iR > eR: drugie roz, fieranka
      5. yL > eL: beł, kobelła, motel
      6. yR > eRL derechtur
   5. Lowering of uN to oN: gront
   6. A tendency to harden labial consonants in conjugation (first person singular present): grzebe, kope
   7. Dissimilation of the clusters:
      1. tw > kw: kwardy
      2. tch > ćch: ćchórz
      3. tw > cw: cwaróg, łacwo
   8. Reduplication of s, ś > ss, śś in the terms bosso, wiesso sie, wiśsi and potential further dissimilation to sc, ść in bosco, powieścić, wiści (wisi)
   9. Dissimilation of the clusters:
      1. chw > kw: kwast, kwila, pokwoluny, zukwały
      2. chrz> krz: krzan, krzciny, krześniok, śpikrz
      3. rzch > rzk: wierzk
      4. kt > cht: chto, dochtur, ducht, dyrechtur, tracht
      5. k > ch: chłopotać sie, łocchnąć się
   10. Assimilation of kk > tk in letki, mintki (miękki)
   11. Use of the old dual ending -wa in the imperative: nieśwa, piswa, zawieźwa
   12. Replacement of -wa- with -ja- in dajać, wstajać
   13. Change of the prefix roz- > ôz-: ôzporek, na ôzgun, ôzwora
3. Features shared with Greater Polish dialects
   1. Decomposition of ą
      1. Finally: jadom
      2. Medially before plosives: chomonto, gołomb
   2. Decomposition of ę
      1. Medially before a plosive: gołymbia, pynto, zymby
   3. Replacement of labial w with labial b in brzodziana, grzyba, knubie, trzeźby
   4. Change of rnk > rk: ziorko (ziarnko)
   5. Diminutive forms such as gornysek, kamysek, promysek, słunysko (słoneczko)
   6. Use of the adjectival endings -ity (barcyty, wodnity) and -aty (kolcaty, liściaty, pasiaty)
   7. The adverbial comparative forms -i||-y: nizy (niżej), póxni, wyzy.
4. Features shared with both Masovian and Lesser Polish dialects
   1. Masuration
   2. Use of -wa in
      1. The First person plural present: jedziewa
      2. First person plural past: nieśliśwa
      3. First person plural imperative: napiswa
   3. Use of the adjectival endings -isty (barcysty, piacysty, wodnisty) and -asty (gliniasty, graniasty, jiglasty)
5. Features shared with both Lesser Polish and Greater Polish dialects
   1. A change of the imperative -aj > -ej: cytej
   2. Secondary e in the prepositions w, z: we wodzie, ze sokiem
   3. Labialization of initial o- > ô-: ôbora, ôko, ôwiec
   4. Secondary nasalization not motivated by a nasl consonant: gorsynt, myntryka, tompola, warząchew
   5. Voicing of c to dz in the comparative of adverbs: kródzy (krócej)
   6. Partial or complete reduction of medial ł ending a consonant cluster: kunica (kłonica), mynorz (młynarz)
   7. Interterm voicing: brad matki (brat matki), laz rośnie (las rośnie)
   8. Assimilation and simplification of strz, zdrz, trz, drz: oszcze (ostrze), nożdża (nozdrza), szczała (strzała)
   9. A change of rs to sz: gasztka (garstka), napasztek (naparstek)
   10. Retention of -i in numeral declension for the numerals 5-10: piuńci, szóści, siódmi
   11. The use of the suffix -ąckę in the deverbal adverb na stojąckę motivated by the government of the preposition na and resulting from the combination of the suffixes -ący with -ka, -kę, -ki
   12. Occurrence of the forms dońdę (dojdę), póńdę (pójdę)