Morphological Features of the Noun of the Alnash Dialect of the Udmurt Language

Abstract

Introduction. Dialect systems undergo multidirectional processes under the influence of socio-economic factors and extralinguistic interference, including both the loss of relic features and the emergence of innovations. In Udmurt dialectology, this issue is particularly significant with regard to the southern area, whose local varieties remain only fragmentarily studied despite functioning in conditions of intensive contact with Russian and the literary standard. The aim of this study is to describe the morphological characteristics of the noun in the Alnashi local variety, a microsystem of the southern dialect. The article examines plural formation, the distribution of the markers -os and -yos, the number of cases within the declensional paradigm, and the inventory of inflectional suffixes. To identify the specific features of this variety, the data are compared with evidence from other Udmurt microsystems. Materials and Methods. The empirical basis of the study comprises field materials collected by the author during expeditions conducted in 2024 and 2025 in settlements of the Alnash District of the Udmurt Republic, together with a corpus of texts recorded by students of the Institute of Udmurt Philology, Finno-Ugric Studies and Journalism. The research employs the descriptive method for the systematic analysis and verification of the empirical data. A comparative approach is used to identify systematic parallels with other dialect areas of the Udmurt language. The phenomena under investigation are examined from a diachronic perspective through the application of the comparative-historical method. Results and Discussion. An analysis of noun morphology in the Alnashi subdialect has revealed a number of features that determine its status within the southern dialect group. The morphological system displays an expanded distribution of the plural suffix -yos, which occurs after both consonant-final and vowel-final stems; regressive assimilation of the stem vowel -a- to the following vowel -o- in the plural marker; and sporadic assimilation of the initial -y- of the plural suffix -yos to a preceding stem-final consonant. These phenomena are characteristic of the southern dialect proper and are also partially attested in certain northern and central subdialects. The case system shows a reduction in the paradigm due to the loss of the adverbial and approximative cases, whose functions have been transferred to analytic postpositional constructions. The phonetic forms of several case markers reveal isoglosses that distinguish southern subdialects from northern ones. In the plural accusative, the suffix -yz is used, whereas northern dialects employ -ty. The elative and egressive are marked by -is’ and -is’en, respectively, compared with northern -ys’ and -ys’en. Taken together, these features point to systematic linguistic developments within the southern dialect group and reflect an ongoing internal restructuring of its morphological system. Conclusion. An analysis of noun morphology in the Alnash dialect reveals a substantial degree of similarity with other Southern Udmurt microsystems. Further areal research into the Lower Izh continuum and adjacent dialects is required to refine their internal classification and to reconstruct the evolutionary trajectories of their morphological structure.