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A dialect is a variety of a language that indicates a speaker's origin, typically geographical but sometimes social or occupational. Dialects are distinguished by differences in grammar, such as morphology and syntax, and in vocabulary. While dialects of the same language differ, they share a common core of features. Accent, which refers to pronunciation, is usually treated separately from dialect. The distinction between dialects and separate languages can sometimes be arbitrary, often influenced by sociopolitical factors. Linguistic changes naturally lead to dialectal differentiation, but modern conditions like urbanization and mass communication tend to reduce dialectal differences in favor of standard languages.12

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