Switzerland German

The Swiss German ( Schwiizertüütsch ) indicates the whole of the Germanic dialects spoken in Suisse. Generally, the term includes/understands also the dialects of the principality of Liechtenstein. The German Swiss dialects are narrowly related with those of the Austrian Vorarlberg and to those of the villages Walser of the Italian Alps.

Variation and distribution

The German Swiss dialects present between them phonological differences , lexical and syntactic marked. The strong topographic bulk-heading of the Swiss and the relatively limited mobility of the population until the beginning of the 20th century supported dialectal differentiation. However, the Intercompréhension between speakers of different Germanic dialects is as often as possible, except for particularly antiquated peripheral varieties like the dialect high-Valaisan ( Walliserdütsch ). On the other hand, the German Swiss dialects are not directly comprehensible by the majority of German-speaking of Germany or Austria.

The German Swiss dialects divide, of north in the south, in three groups: low Germanic, high Germanic and Germanic superior.

Low Germanic : in Switzerland, this group is represented by the traditional dialect of the town of Basle ( Baseldytsch ), although this alternative is supplanted almost completely by a more contemporary dialect ( Baseldütsch ) having been subject to a strong influence Germanic Top. Apart from the Swiss borders, the Alsatian dialects, in France, and the majority of the dialects of old the Country of Bade, in Germany, also form part of it. All these dialects are characterized in particular by the initial maintenance of /k/ (for example in Kind , “child”), become /kx/ then /x/ (written CH , Chind ) in Germanic top and a Germanic superior, where the Second consonant shift was more thorough.

High Germanic : this group includes/understands the majority of the dialects spoken in the Swiss Plateau, like those of the principality of Liechtenstein. The dialects of the Austrian Land of the Vorarlberg, those of the extreme south of old the Pays of south-Alsatian Bade and that of the Sundgau form of it also part. The group is subdivided in Eastern dialects (those of Zurich or Züridütsch , Saint-Gall and Appenzell, in particular) and Westerners (dialect of Bern or Bärndütsch , in particular).

Germanic superior : the Valaisan dialects ( Walliserdütsch ), those of the Bernese Oberland and part of central Switzerland (cantons of Uri and Unterwald, in particular), like those of the villages founded by the Walser with the Moyen-âge in the Italian Alps, tessinoises (Bosco/Gurin) and Grison preserved many antiquated features.

Use

Contrary to the majority of the dialects of Europe, the German Swiss dialects, are still spoken today by all the layers about the population, as well in the campaigns as in the great urban centres, and that in all the contexts of the daily life. The use of the dialect is never perceived as a sign of social inferiority or insufficient education.

The employment of standard German ( Hochdeutsch ) is confined essentially with the written communication, that it is formal (newspapers, books) or abstract (private correspondence). This is why this language is generally called Schriftdeutsch (“German written”) in German-speaking Switzerland.

Such a situation is described as Diglossie “codic” or “médiale”, the dialect being the spoken language, standard German the written language. One observes the same phenomenon for example in the Arab countries, where one speaks the national dialect with the oral examination, but one has recourse to the Written Arabic with the writing.

To the oral examination, standard German limits itself to certain situations in formal matter, for example in the speeches, at the school, in the multilingual Parliaments (federal Assemblée or Parliaments of bilingual cantons), in the principal radiotelevized magazines of information (but the dialect prevails largely in the other emissions), or in the presence of foreigners expressing itself in standard German.

In general, the German Swiss dialects are not written, although there exists a certain number of literary works in dialect (poetry, in particular). However, one attends a development of the use of the dialect in the abstract registers written among the young generations (for example in the drafting of e-mail or SMS). A certain number of dialectal words are moreover allowed in the language written under helvetisms.

History

Pronunciation

It would be difficult to explain how to pronounce Switzerland-German considering at the base little world writes it, or then in phonetics… But one can note that: the pronoun " je" (=Eg) can say itself in several way: Ig, I, Eg, E

in Switzerland German, there is few " Ch" (=comme Cat e.g.), there is more a " chhh" , there exists nothing to explain this sound, but approximately it is necessary to raise the language towards the palate, with the back of the mouth, and to blow while making a smile.

Often the words are chewed, such as for example in this sentence, one will see little Swiss-German to say " Was hast of the gemacht? " (=qu' ace you make?) , " rather will be said; Was ech g'moch't" To know to speak Switzerland-German it should be practiced with the oral examination, and unless living in the areas or the language is spoken or unless to know it as native tongue it is difficult (especially for a French-speaking person and Spanish-speaking) to succeed in speaking Switzerland-German.

Grammar

Vocabulary and phrases

Grüezi = Hello

Uf Wiederluägä = Goodbye

aaluägä = to look at

ränne = to run

Rööschtigraabe = the barrier of röschtis (which is the cultural border between the German-speaking Switzerland and the French-speaking Switzerland )

Grabbe = ditch

Verussä = outside

chörblä = to vomit (dégueuler, familiar)

gäled If? (use of the vous) gäll? (the use of the tu) = isn't?

glettä = to pass by again

donschtig = Thursday

Wüescht = ugly

Schnauz = moustache

ää! wie gruusig! = Beurk!

Rüebli = carrot

Gwand = costume

Schpinnä = to become insane

iischlaafe = to fall asleep

Biigäwiis = a heap of…

Finkä = slipper

Schtäckä = stick

Gumpä = to jump

Houère = very (the " e" of end is marked). Is, literally, a relatively vulgar denomination for a prostitute. Can be connected with the " vachement" French-speaking person.

Chütlè = to shake

Drakhig = dirty

graaduus = straight (direction)

Reebock = Roe-deer (male)

Reegäiss = Roe-deer (female)

Lüüti = Bell

Dropf = drop

Buech = Book

Chatzeli = kitten

Chämi = Chimney

Chlotz = Log

Er hät Chlotz = It has dough

Lueg emol! = Look at-to see!

Säg emol! = thus Say!

Examples

Here the pronunciation of some German Swiss words of Zurich. (For a French-speaking person, the pronunciation is rather difficult.)

Switzerland-German and linguistic mutual comprehension

The majority of the German dialects Swiss are often not easily comprehensible first of all by a German-speaking speaker of Germany or Austria nonbordering. The same difficulty of immediate comprehension is posed for the people having followed a schooling to French-speaking Switzerland or Italian, learning standard German classifies some ( Hochdeutsch ). It should be raised however that passive comprehension is frequent in the interlinguistic zones of contact (the Jura Bernois, Singine, Valais). The diffusion of the German use of Switzerland apart from the private context creates the debate on the quality of the communication inside the country, not without being sometimes instrumentalized at ends partisanes. Of with dimensions, the diglossy forms sometimes an obstacle with the good integration of the first generations of immigrants, the difficulty in learning two languages at the same time being able to support a total renouncement of linguistic integration and the reinforcement of the Community segregation. Of other with dimensions, the French-speaking Swiss citizens and italophones are de facto excluded from a good part of the political life, cultural and professional national. Whereas a German-speaking Switzerland is able to follow and take part in an abstract conversation between Romands with a school knowledge of French, the reverse is not possible. The stake became particularly problematic with the development of the media. The German-speaking Switzerland television carried the federal political life in the center of the attention of the Germanic televiewers. The political data transmission and debates are often diffused in Switzerland German by thus preventing the respect of equal opportunity of active participation and passive between speakers and spectators of the various linguistic areas.

Because of its abstract character, diversity of the German-speaking Switzerland dialects and absence of a “standardized” dialect, a system of German training of Switzerland in the other linguistic areas is not easily possible.

See too

Internal bonds

External bonds

Extracted sound from German Swiss dialects (in German)

Zh-min-nan: Sūi-teak-gí

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