Adjectives of Romance origin in the speech of the Biokovo Mountain hinterland

Numerous linguistic studies have attempted to analyze the presence of Romanisms in the dialect of the central Dalmatian Coast. However, the speech used in the surrounding area (the Dalmatian hinterland) has been less extensively researched and studied. This paper analyses the remnants of Romance influences in the large yet sparsely populated area surrounding Biokovo. In light of the fact that linguistic borrowings are mostly evident in noun and verb categories, this paper pays particular attention to the morphological characteristics of Romance adjectives, since less research has been carried out in this specific area. The observed corpus was obtained by extracting Romanisms from recent lexicographic works. An overview of the social and historical background of the Biokovo area is provided, which explains how the Romance influences came to be. A lexicographical and etymological analysis of adjectives of Romance origin is provided, followed by an examination of the adaptation of these adjectives