German language
German is a West-Germanic language spoken as the official language in Germany, Austria, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, Belgium, and is also spoken in Italy, and Denmark. A German dialect is also spoken in Luxembourg and Standard German is also used there for various official purposes. Although there are many dialects, Hochdeutsch, 'High German', is the standard version of the language as taught in German and Austrian schools and used by the media, business, and government.
The many German dialects are spoken throughout Germany, Austria and elsewhere. Over 100 million people count some variety of German as a native language[1], and it remains an important second language for millions more, from Americans interested in the language as a link to their forefathers, to businesspeople, politicians and students who need to communicate with their customers, colleagues and peers. There is also a large corpus of writings in German, on literature, philosophy, psychology, mathematics, and other fields, that is of interest to a wide international audience.
Dialect and Standard Language
- see main article: German dialects
Dialects
The main dialect division is between southern dialects which participated in the Second or High German Consonant Shift (the High German dialects) and northern dialects (Low German dialects) which did not participate in this shift. Many Low German dialects have become heavily influenced by the standard language, which is based on High German.
Standard Language
Hochdeutsch ('High German') is the German dialect encountered by most second language learners, and by native speakers in school. It has considerable prestige because it is used in education, business, government, and literature.
It is the 'standard' variety of the language, but is not necessarily the speech of everyday conversation in such countries as Germany, where regional dialects differ considerably. In Switzerland, standard German is even less likely to be the preferred choice amongst native Swiss German speakers, and is largely confined to print, broadcasting and formal lectures. Because Hochdeutsch has an alternate specialised meaning amongst linguists (pertaining to a specific group of German dialects in one particular region), Standarddeutsch ('Standard German') may be used to refer to the German language of officialdom.
History of the German Language
Work in Progress
It is customary to describe the history of the German language in three or four main periods:
- the so-called "Old" period, which extends from the earliest beginnings of literacy and records (ca. AD 700) until ca. AD 1100. Reconstructions of German-specific developments before the onset of records are usually called Pre-Old High German or Pre-Old Low German.
- the "Middle" period, extending from ca. AD 1100 until ca. AD 1400.
- the "Early Modern" or "Early New" period, extending crom ca. AD 1400 until ca. 1750.
- the "Modern" period, from ca. 1750 until the present.
Because of the important dialect division between High and Low German (see German dialects), the history of German is further subdivided into sections for these dialects.
Old High German
- see main article: Old High German
Old Saxon (Old Low German)
- see main article: Old Saxon
Middle High German
- see main article: Middle High German
Middle Low German
- see main article: Middle Low German
Early New High German
Early Modern Low German
Modern High German
Modern Low German
- see main article: Low German
Spelling reform of 1996
The Rechtschreibreform of July 1996 standardised the orthography (spelling) of the standard German language by the governments of Austria, Germany, Liechtenstein and Switzerland where German is an official language. (Luxembourg did not agree to this standardisation, but the autonomous province of Bozen-Südtirol in Italy and also the German speaking communes of Belgium did). [2][3] [4] However, these moves towards standardisation are still controversial and many respected institutions, journals and newspapers still preserve (or have returned to) pre-reform German spelling. Although German spelling was already far more regular than that of English, these codified differences in some ways mirror those between American and Commonwealth varieties of English.
References
Bibliography
- Werner Besch, Anne Betten, Oskar Reichmann and Stefan Sonderegger. 2000. Sprachgeschichte. Ein Handbuch zur Geschichte der deutschen Sprache und ihrer Erforschung. 3 vols. Berlin/New York: Walter de Gruyter. ISBN 3110158825
- John T. Waterman. 1976. A History of the German Language. With Special Reference to the Cultural and Social Forces that Shaped the Standard Literary Language. Prospect Heights, IL: Waveland Press (reissued 1991). ISBN 0881335908
Notes
- ↑ The World Almanac and Book of Facts, 2000. World Almanac Books (November 2000). Retrieved on 2007-04-02.
- ↑ "Rechtschreibreform: German Spelling Reform and Prohibition". © 2007 About, Inc., A part of The New York Times Company. All rights reserved. (2007). Retrieved on 2007-05-12.
- ↑ "The German Language: The End of the Debate". © 2007 Goethe Institut (2007). Retrieved on 2007-05-12.
- ↑ "Zur Neuregelung der Deutschen Rechtschreibung ab 1. August 2006" Extra-Ausgabe Juli 2006. Institut für Deutsche Sprache, Mannheim (2006). Retrieved on 2007-05-12.