A comment on dialectology

The development of ON -a in auslaut is

in Standard Swedish -> -a
in Standard Danish -> -& (written -e)
in the Swedish dialects of Östergötland, Småland and Gotland -> -&
in the Danish dialects of Bornholm and (formerly) Scania -> -a

which looks confusing, if you look at dialects as representing the
original, unspoilt language: along the former Danish/Swedish border
the reflexes of ON -a is the reverse of those of the standard
languages. Why is that?

I think the explanation is that 'dialect' is defined by opposition
to the standard language. Thus when recorded, the 'true' dialect forms
are those that are the most different from the standard language. The
actual situation is probably that on both sides both -a and -& are
used, depending on the individual.

Perhaps this is a point to be remembered, when considering dialect
material.


Torsten