page_title: Moldavian dialect
section_title: Geographic distribution
hierarchical_section_title: Moldavian dialect / Geographic distribution
context_page_description: The Moldavian dialect is one of several dialects of the Romanian language. It is spoken across the approximate area of the historical region of Moldavia, now split between the Republic of Moldova, Romania and Ukraine.
  The delimitation of the Moldavian dialect, as with all other Romanian dialects, is made primarily by analyzing its phonetic features and only marginally by morphological, syntactical, and lexical characteristics.
  The Moldavian dialect is the representative of the northern grouping of Romanian dialects and has influenced the Romanian spoken over large areas of Transylvania.
  The Moldavian and the Wallachian dialects are the only two that have been consistently identified and recognized by linguists. They are clearly distinct in dialect classifications made by Heimann Tiktin, Mozes Gaster, Gustav Weigand, Sextil Pușcariu, Sever Pop, Emil Petrovici, Romulus Todoran, Ion Coteanu, Alexandru Philippide, Iorgu Iordan, Emanuel Vasiliu, and others, whereas the other dialects have been considerably more controversial and difficult to classify.
  The Moldavian dialect is not synonymous with Moldovan language.
context_section_description: The Moldavian dialect is spoken in the northeastern part of Romania, the Republic of Moldova, and small areas of Ukraine. It is the only Romance variety spoken east of the Eastern Carpathians. In detail, its distribution area covers the following administrative or historical regions:
  in the Moldavian part of Romania: the counties of Bacău, Botoșani, Galați, Iași, Neamț, Suceava, Vaslui, Vrancea;
  in Muntenia and Northern Dobruja, some isoglosses extend over the northern parts of the following counties: Buzău, Brăila, Tulcea;
  in the Republic of Moldova: the whole territory, including the breakaway region of Transnistria;
  in Ukraine:
  Chernivtsi Oblast: the Northern Bukovina, the Hertza region, and other areas of the oblast;
  Odessa Oblast: the historical region of Budjak (consisting of the current raions of Artsyz, Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi, Bolhrad, Izmail, Kiliia, Reni, Sarata, Tarutyne, Tatarbunary) and other areas in the Odessa Oblast;
  smaller pockets in other parts of Ukraine;
  in the north-eastern half of Transylvania, various isoglosses include all or part of the following counties: Bistrița-Năsăud, Harghita, Covasna, Cluj (eastern half), Mureș (northern half).
caption: Major varieties (graiuri) of the Romanian language
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