Anna Daugavet

Recent developments in Latvian dialectology: A review article

Trumpa, Edmunds. Latviešu ģeolingvistikas etīdes [Studies in Latvian Dialect Geography]. Rīga: Zinātne, 2012, 255p., 16 maps. ISBN 978–9984–879–34–5

Sarkanis, Alberts. Latviešu valodas dialektu atlants. Fonētika. Apraksts, kartes un to komentāri [Latvian Dialect Atlas. Phonetics. Description, Maps and Commentaries]. Rīga: LU Latviešu valodas institūts, 2013, 304p. ISBN 978–9984–742–68–7

The last year saw the appearance of two significant contributions to the study of Latvian dialects. These are the phonology part of the Latvian Dialect Atlas prepared by Alberts Sarkanis (2013) and Latviešu ģeolingvistikas etīdes by Edmunds (Edmundas) Trumpa (2012a). The two are very different in their aims and methods, even though both deal with phonetic isoglosses of traditional rural dialects. […] My discussion of each of the contributions is not going to be exactly parallel, because, in spite of being devoted to the same subject, they present different genres. While Sarkanis (2013) is a dialect atlas, Trumpa (2012a) is a collection of three interrelated studies focusing on methodological issues. After reviewing each of the two authors, I will devote a separate section to the English summaries in both publications, followed by a brief conclusion.