Matagi dialect
Matagi dialect
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Matagi dialect

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Matagi dialect

The Matagi dialect (マタギ言葉, Matagi kotoba) is a functionally extinct Japanese sociolect spoken by the Matagi people of Akita Prefecture and other areas of the Tohoku region in northern Honshu, Japan. The Matagi dialect is sometimes called Yama-kotoba (山言葉; lit.'mountain words').

Matagi contains various unique words relating to hunting, tools, and rituals, many of which are of Ainu origin.

A dictionary of Matagi was published by Yoshizo Itabashi (板橋義三) in 2008.

Below are some examples of unique Matagi words. Words such as wakka 'water', seta 'dog', and sanpe 'heart' are of Ainu origin.

Yoshizo Itabashi (板橋義三) (2019) notes that many Ainu words in Matagi have undergone semantic shifts:

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