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German Linguistics Lectures
Lecture 12:
An Introduction to
German Dialects
Designed by Paul Joyce
University of Portsmouth
E-Mail: Paul.Joyce@port.ac.uk
What is a dialect?
• A dialect (Greek: dialektos) is a variety of a
language used by people from a particular
geographic area. It can have sub-dialects.
• A dialect is a complete system of verbal
communication (oral or signed, but not
necessarily written) with its own vocabulary
and grammar.
• A dialect consists therefore of more than just
an accent.
What is a standard dialect?
• A standard dialect is one that is supported by
institutions. This may include government
recognition.
• For example, Standard British English,
Standard American English, Southern English
and Standard Indian English may all be said to
be standard dialects of the English language.
• A non-standard dialect is not the beneficiary of
institutional support.
Dialects – or languages?
• There are no universally accepted criteria for
distinguishing languages from dialects.
• Language varieties are often called dialects
rather than languages because they are not
(or are not recognised as) literary languages…
• … or because the speakers of the given dialect
don’t have a state of their own
• “Une langue, c’est un dialecte qui possède une
armée, une marine et une aviation.” (Lyautey)
Lëtzebuergesch = a language
• Although the variety of German spoken by the
441,000 inhabitants of Luxembourg is in
essence a Moselle Franconian dialect, it is now
deemed to be a language in its own right.
• Many (South) Germans however find it far
easier to understand than Swiss German
dialects – which aren’t considered to be a
separate language.
• And most newspapers in Luxembourg are
written in German – or French!
German dialects – Mundart, Platt?
• Different words are used to describe dialects
in German.
• “die Mundart” is sometimes used to mean the
spoken dialect of a small area.
• “der Dialekt” is used to mean a group of
Mundarten that share certain characteristics
and cover a wider area.
• “Platt” is the normal colloquial term for Low
and Middle German varieties.
Large number of German dialects
• German is the mother tongue of 94 million
people in Germany, Austria & Liechtenstein.
• 63.7% of Switzerland’s 7.1 million inhabitants
speak German as their first language.
• It is an official language in Belgium and South
Tyrol (Italy)
• German is a pluricentric language, having
several national varieties.
• It therefore has a large number of often very
different dialects.
German dialects are very different!
• English dialects often differ from standard
English mainly in terms of regional accents.
• German dialects are much more sharply
differentiated from standard German however
• They differ in terms of vocabulary, grammar,
phonology and pronunciation.
• Speakers of traditional dialects face problems
in learning standard German similar to those
faced by speakers of foreign languages.
Language continuum
• Language can vary according to the degree of
formality demanded by the situation and the
relationship between the language users.
• While speakers may switch abruptly from one
variety to another, it is increasingly common
to make a less marked shift from one variety
to another.
• This tendency for convergence as opposed to
switching implies that variation in German is
best described as a relatively fluid continuum.
German language continuum
• In Germany and Austria, there are relatively
fluid boundaries between three different types
of speech
• 1) Standard German (Hochsprache)
• 2) Colloquial German (Umgangssprache)
• 3) Dialects
• Many dialect words have become part of the
colloquial usage and have in some cases
become part of the written language.
Standard German
• The narrowly prescribed Standard German is
used in formal situations such as a court of
law, or when one speaker is in a position of
authority over the other in a speech act.
• It is the type of German which children were
expected to produce at school and which is
described in grammar books and dictionaries.
• It is very often the form of German that
carries the highest prestige.
Late standardisation of German
• Unlike English, the German language was
standardised very late.
• Not until Germany was unified in 1871 were
steps taken to impose uniformity of spelling.
• Standardised orthography only appeared for
the German language in 1902!
• Before then, different regional variants were
used in school.
• The rush to learn standard German in the 20th
Century affected the usage of dialects.
Colloquial German (Umgangssprache)
• Colloquial German is midway on the
continuum between standard German and
dialect.
• It ranges from forms close to the traditional
dialect to forms which, in an English-speaking
context, would be called informal standard.
• It represents the everyday speech of a
majority of German-speakers in the 20th
century (and not standard German!)
The rise of colloquial German
• The rise of colloquial German has its origins in
the learning of standard language by dialect
speakers.
• Such people will have felt the need to learn
standard German in the 20th Century, the
spread of which was aided by the mass media.
• BUT dialect speakers didn’t follow the standard
use by the educated middle classes. In order
to identify with their social group linguistically,
they used relaxed forms of the standard.
20th C.: German dialects under threat
• The rise of both standard German and
colloquial German put dialects under threat
• It is dying out in formal usage, as standard
German was adopted by schools & institutions
• The media spreads the usage of standard
German and (now) Umgangssprache
• It is dying out particularly in the North
• It is (literally!) dying out, as dialect usage is
increasingly the preserve of the elderly
Dialects fight back
• But this is not the complete picture!
• As standardisation of German gathered pace,
so too did the urge to preserve dialects
• Although they may not now be heard as often,
the study of German dialects began in earnest
in the late 19th Century
• We call the study of dialects “dialectology”
• The father of German dialectology is Georg
Wenker (1852-1911)
Wenkersätze
• In 1876, Georg Wenker sent out a list of 42
formal German sentences to local teachers
• He asked them to transcribe them into their
local dialect and send them back
• By 1895, Wenker had 48,500 completed
questionnaires from all over the German Reich
• He used them to draw detailed maps of the
usage of key aspects of the German language
Deutscher Sprachatlas
• After Wenker’s death, Ferdinand Wrede drew
1,646 individual maps, tracing the distribution
of 339 words across Germany
• A selection of these maps were published as
the Deutscher Sprachatlas (DSA)
• Between 1951 and 1973, 20 volumes of the
Deutscher Wortatlas (DWA) appeared
• Since then a number of regional language
atlases have appeared
Isoglosses
• Isoglosses are used to demarcate areas in
which a variant of a linguistic feature appears
• These lines can be compared to isobars on a
weather map or to contour lines on an
ordnance survey map
• Isoglosses bear no necessary relationship with
physical barriers such as a river or a mountain
range, although they can often follow them
• Isoglosses are very elusive “best-fit” lines
Isogloss bundles
• Dialect boundaries occur where a substantial
number of isoglosses overlap
• The most famous example of such a “bundle”
of isoglosses is the so-called Benrather Linie
which separates Low German dialects from
High German ones.
• Dialect boundaries are rarely clearcut however
• We therefore speak of focal areas (i.e. dialect
centres) and transitional zones
Dialect map of Germany
• The dialect map of the German-speaking
countries can be split into three:
• Low German (Niederdeutsch) spoken in the
Lowlands in North Germany
• Middle German (Mitteldeutsch)
• Upper German (Oberdeutsch) spoken in south
Germany, Austria and Switzerland
• All three dialect areas contributed to the
formation of modern standard German
Which dialects are the “purest”?
• The dialects that are nearest to Standard
German from a written standpoint are those in
the south and the centre of the country
• This is because the standardisation of German
was hugely influenced by Martin Luther
• For his translation of the Bible, he took the
chancery language of Meißen as his basis
• He chose a central dialect “dass mich beide
Ober- und Niederländer verstehen mögen”
Pronunciation = North Germany!
• But the pronunciation of German in Meißen (in
Saxony!) was felt to be substandard
• Instead the pronunciation in North Germany
(esp. Braunschweig, Hannover) was purer
• This is in part because, as Low Germans, they
had to learn the developing standard as a new
language that was very different to their own
• Modern “standard” German is thus the written
language of the South & Middle with the
pronunciation of North Germany.
1970s – “Die Dialektwelle”
• In the 1970s, dialects enjoyed a new wave of
popularity (Dialektwelle), particularly among
authors and the middle-class
• As the Green movement grew, dialects were
seen as representing local traditions and
expressing regional identity
• Dialects were valued as a “Sprache der Nähe”
• There were seen as a language of human
closeness underpinning a friendly community
New dialect presence in the media
• German dialects are more present in the
media than ever before
• TV and radio: “Talk op Platt”
• Dialect poetry and stories published
• Astérix and Le Petit Prince translated into
German dialects so that children can learn
• Musically, the Dialektrock phenomenon proved
popular, esp. in S. Germany & Austria
Dialect prestige – hot or not?
• Some dialects are more loved than others
• In a 1998 survey, the most popular dialect
was Bairisch – 37% liked hearing it
• N. German Plattdeutsch was next with 32%
• The Allensbach survey concluded that dialects
were gaining a more positive image, having
lost “viel von ihrem Image von provinzieller
Enge und Unbildung”
• Only 12% of people never used their dialect
Bairisch macht sexy
• In 2003, a Playboy (!) survey found that “der
erotischste Dialekt Deutschlands” was also
Bairisch (29%)
• Berlinisch was second with 23%
• Rheinisch followed with 22%
• Schwäbisch was fourth with 18% sexiness
Unpopular dialects: Saxon
• The 1998 Allensbach survey also concluded
that Sächsisch was by far the most unpopular
dialect – 50% of Germans polled disliked it!
• This is in part because the unpopular GDR
leader Walter Ulbricht spoke with a strong
Saxon accent, but even 19-29 year olds dislike
the dialect very strongly
• The second most unpopular dialect was
Berlinisch (24%), then Bairisch (19%)
Swiss German – the huge exception
• Swiss German bucks the trend of dialect usage
gradually dying out
• There has been a huge increase in the usage
of Swiss German dialects in the last 20 years
• At least 95% of Swiss Germans speak dialect
• Anyone wishing to become a naturalised Swiss
citizen in Zurich must show that they can
speak the local dialect “in angemessener
Weise”
Why is Swiss German so popular?
• This dates back in part to the 1930s, when
Germany represented a threatening “draußen”
• Speaking Swiss German helped protect Swiss
integrity as a “sprachlicher Heimatschutz”
• Since 1960s, dialect represent democratic and
anti-authoritarian values
• Swiss German dialects are now viewed as “die
Muttersprache der Schweiz” – “persönlich, frei,
locker, einfach, sympathisch, lustig”
Swiss German – purely spoken form
• Swiss German has also profited from the rise
of written forms of communication
• It is the spoken language of all social classes
in industrial cities and in the countryside.
• It is rarely, if ever, written down
• Swiss Standard German (SSG) is instead the
language of writing and formal speech
• This is why SSG is viewed as a “Schulsprache”
– “steif, kompliziert, wenig emotional”
Swiss German – medial diglossia
• Unlike German and Austrian dialects, there is
no colloquial German in Switzerland
• Instead speakers switch between two radically
different forms of the language – written
(SSG) and spoken (Schwyzerdütsch dialects)
• We define diglossia as the usage in one speech
community of two varieties of the same
language with complementary functions
• Medial diglossia = diglossia based on medium
Swiss German: context-based choice
• University lectures are normally held in
Standard German, but small discussions are
held in dialect
• Standard German is used in the national
parliament, but cantonal and city politicians
very often use dialect
• In private conversation, standard German may
be used in the presence of non-dialect
speakers, but even highly educated Swiss find
themselves slipping into dialect. In practice
most newcomers learn to speak the dialect.
Swiss German – TV and radio
• Since 1983, dialect is increasingly heard on
the radio due to the new private stations
• Dialect is conquering formal news programmes
• Interviews between a Swiss journalist and
politicians on news broadcast “10 vor 10” will
be held in dialect even if they are talking
about something as serious as the Iraq war.
• When the programme is shown later in
Germany & Austria, it has to be subtitled!
How are German dialects different?
• All German dialects have their own vocabulary
(lexis), pronunciation and morphology (vowel
and consonant differences)
• German dialects also tend to:
• Avoid the genitive case
• Avoid the preterite (esp. South Germany)
• Omit unstressed vowels in middle
(syncopation) or end (apocopation) of words
• Have simpler verb endings (esp. North & SW)
Swiss German: how is it different?
• Helveticisms – words that are exclusive to
Swiss German or have a different meaning
• Number of French loan words – der Autocar
(Bus), der Jupe (Kleid), das Velo (Rad), Salü!
• “ch” and “k” sounds always pronounced as
harsh /x/ phoneme – Kchameel (Kamel)
• Vowel rounding – nöd (nicht), öppis (etwas)
• Diminutive “-li” – Chätzli (kitten)
• Odd plurals – Tääg (Tage), Hööchene (Höhen)
Huge contraction of verbs
• Many Swiss German verbs look very different
to their standard German equivalents
• haa (= haben); ghaa (= gehabt)
• sy (= sein); gsy, gsi (= gewesen)
• gëë (= geben); gëë (= gegeben)
• choo (= kommen); choo (= gekommen)
• gsee (= sehen); gsee (= gesehen)
• laa (= lassen); glaa (= gelassen)
Berlinisch - characteristics
• Originally a Low German dialect, Berlinisch is
now classed as a Middle German dialect
• A city dialect, it has lexical influences from:
• 1) Slavic – “Berlin”, Lanke (Sumpf); dalli
• 2) Yiddish – meschugge (verrückt); mies
• 3) French – Feez (fête); Budike (boutique)
• 4) Low German – doof; kieken; Jöre (Kind)
• 5) Latin – Penne (Schule)
Berlinisch - Akkudativ
• Berlinisch is famous for alternating the
accusative and dative cases = the Akkudativ
• “Ick liebe dir, ich liebe dich
wie ‘t richtig is, det weeß ick nich
un is mich ooch Pomade
Ick lieb’ dir nich im dritten Fall
Ick lieb’ dir nich im vierten Fall
Ick liebe dir uff jeden Fall”
Berlinisch – consonants
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
g  j: Jeld (Geld), jleich (gleich) liejen (liegen)
ch  k: icke (ich), Schnäpperken, Männeken
s  t: det (das), wat (was), anderet (anderes)
pf  p: Kopp (Kopf), Appel (Apfel)
lt  ll: olle (alte)
Lack of final “t”: is (ist), jib’s (gibt es)
Disappearance of “d”: jeworn (geworden), ick
wer (ich werde), Meechen (Mädchen)
Berlinisch - vowels
•
•
•
•
•
•
ei  ee: nee (nein), beede (beide), kleen
ö  e, ee: scheen (schön), Leffel (Löffel)
ü  i: Stick (Stück), miede (müde)
au  oo: ooch (auch), Boom, Ooren (Augen)
au  u: uff (auf), Uffjabe (Aufgabe)
Shortening of vowels before doubling of
consonants: ville (viel), Jlass (Glas), Hoff
(Hof), jenuch (genug)
• Adding of –e: Bette, alleene, Paule, Fritze