Phonology and Linguistic Geography.

This section focuses on phonology and linguistic geography. Phonic differences between dialects fall into three groups: they can concern the phonological system, the phonetic realization of the individual phonemes or the etymological distribution of phonemes in words. Phonological differences must be divided further into differences in inventory and differences in function. Phonetic differences are absolute when they affect the pronunciation of a phoneme in all positions, restricted when they occur only in certain positions. Dialectology has always operated with diachronic concepts and interpreted every phonic difference as the result of divergent development.