Gyeongsang dialect
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The Gyeongsang dialect is a dialect of the Korean language which is widely used in the Yeongnam region, which includes North and South Gyeongsang provinces. A highly pronounced intonation distinguishes the Gyeongsang dialect from the standard language (Pyojuneo: 표준어) which is based on the local dialect used near Seoul. Approximately 10 million people use the Gyeongsang dialect.
The Gyeongsang dialect has different forms depending on where it is used. A native speaker can distinguish the dialect of Taegu from that of Pusan. Dialectal forms are relatively similar along the midstream of Nakdong River but are different near Pusan, Jinju, and Pohang as well as along the eastern pastures of Mount Jiri.
Gyeongsang dialect maintains a trace of Middle Age Korean. Modern Korean doesn't distinguish yes-no questions from wh-questions. In other words, both have the same ending. For example, "What are you doing?" and "Do you have a cup?" are translated to standard korean as "뭐 하니?" and "컵 있니?" respectively. Both questions finish with the same finals, "-니?". But in the Gyeongsang dialect, the two questions above are translated to "뭐하노?" and "컵 있나?". A wh-question is made by appending "-노?" or "-데?", while a yes-no question is made by appending "-나?", "-제?", respectively. This is one of the prominant differences between standard Korean and the Gyeongsang dialect.
During the millitary dictatorship (1960-1992) the Gyeongsang dialect had an informal supremacy over other dialects as all the presidents were natives of Gyeongsang province. This bias towards the dialect ended with the democratization of South Korea.
