Gnällbältet
Encyclopedia
Gnällbältet, Swedish, "The whining belt", a geographic belt in central Sweden
where the dialect
s have certain features in common, mostly extensive usage of the schwa
sound. The belt consists of Västmanland
, Närke
and the western parts of Södermanland
, but are characteristic to a much reduced degree throughout the Mälaren Valley
.
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
where the dialect
Dialect
The term dialect is used in two distinct ways, even by linguists. One usage refers to a variety of a language that is a characteristic of a particular group of the language's speakers. The term is applied most often to regional speech patterns, but a dialect may also be defined by other factors,...
s have certain features in common, mostly extensive usage of the schwa
Schwa
In linguistics, specifically phonetics and phonology, schwa can mean the following:*An unstressed and toneless neutral vowel sound in some languages, often but not necessarily a mid-central vowel...
sound. The belt consists of Västmanland
Västmanland
' is a historical Swedish province, or landskap, in middle Sweden. It borders Södermanland, Närke, Värmland, Dalarna and Uppland.The name comes from "West men", referring to the people west of Uppland, the core province of early Sweden.- Administration :...
, Närke
Närke
' is a Swedish traditional province, or landskap, situated in Svealand in south central Sweden. It is bordered by Västmanland to the north, Södermanland to the east, Östergötland to the southeast, Västergötland to the southwest, and Värmland to the northwest...
and the western parts of Södermanland
Södermanland
', sometimes referred to under its Latin form Sudermannia or Sudermania, is a historical province or landskap on the south eastern coast of Sweden. It borders Östergötland, Närke, Västmanland and Uppland. It is also bounded by lake Mälaren and the Baltic sea.In Swedish, the province name is...
, but are characteristic to a much reduced degree throughout the Mälaren Valley
Mälaren Valley
The Mälaren Valley , occasionally referred to as Stockholm-Mälaren Region , is the easternmost part of Svealand, the catchment area of Lake Mälaren and the surrounding municipalities...
.