Pyongan dialect
Korean dialect
The Pyongan dialect (Korean: 평안도 사투리; MR: p'yŏngando sat'uri), alternatively Northwestern Korean (Korean: 서북 방언; Hancha: 西北方言; MR: sŏbuk pangŏn), is the Korean dialect of the Northwestern Korean Peninsula and neighboring parts of China.
In North Korea, the Pyongan dialect is recognized as a regional dialect. However, the country's standard language, often referred to as Munhwaŏ (문화어, Cultured Language) and claimed to be based on the speech of Pyongyang, is officially distinguished from this dialect. This position was articulated by Kim Il Sung on January 6, 1964, in "Guiding Principles for the Juche-Oriented Development of the Korean Language" (《조선어의 주체적발전의 길을 밝혀준 강령적지침》), where he stated: "Pyongyang speech (평양말, P'yŏngyangmal) is neither the indigenous speech [of the city] nor the Pyongan dialect mixed with regionalisms."
Pronunciation
Vowels
In the Pyongan dialect an eight-vowel system is used (이·에·애·으·어·아·우·오). The sound of 어 is much closer to that of 오 compared to other dialects, as it is [ɔ], the rounded equivalent to South Korean [ʌ̹]. 으 is also closer to [i] than to [ɨ], (e.g. 그렇다 becomes 기렇다). However, the opposite is true after ㅅ. The palatalization that occurred for other dialects with 시 is absent in the Pyongan dialect, e.g. 싫다 becomes 슳다.
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