Swabian German Explained

Swabian
Nativename:Schwäbisch,[1] schwäbische Mundart[2]
Ethnicity:Swabians
States:Germany
Date:2006
Ref:e18
Familycolor:Indo-European
Fam2:Germanic
Fam3:West Germanic
Fam4:High German
Fam5:Upper German
Fam6:Alemannic
Script:Latin (German alphabet)
Map:Alemannic-Dialects-Map-English.svg
Mapcaption:Areas where Alemannic dialects are spoken
Iso3:swg
Glotto:swab1242
Glottorefname:Swabian
Notice:IPA

Swabian (German: Schwäbisch pronounced as /de/) is one of the dialect groups of Upper German, sometimes one of the dialect groups of Alemannic German (in the broad sense),[3] that belong to the High German dialect continuum. It is mainly spoken in Swabia, which is located in central and southeastern Baden-Württemberg (including its capital Stuttgart and the Swabian Jura region) and the southwest of Bavaria (Bavarian Swabia). Furthermore, Swabian German dialects are spoken by Caucasus Germans in Transcaucasia.[4] The dialects of the Danube Swabian population of Hungary, the former Yugoslavia and Romania are only nominally Swabian and can be traced back not only to Swabian but also to Franconian, Bavarian and Hessian dialects, with locally varying degrees of influence of the initial dialects.[5]

Description

Swabian can be difficult to understand for speakers of Standard German due to its pronunciation and partly differing grammar and vocabulary.

In 2009, the word Muggeseggele (a Swabian idiom), meaning the scrotum of a housefly, was voted in a readers' survey by Stuttgarter Nachrichten, the largest newspaper in Stuttgart, as the most beautiful Swabian word, well ahead of any other term.[6] The expression is used in an ironic way to describe a small unit of measure and is deemed appropriate to use in front of small children (compare Bubenspitzle). German broadcaster SWR's children's website, Kindernetz, explained the meaning of Muggeseggele in their Swabian dictionary in the Swabian-based TV series Ein Fall für B.A.R.Z.[7]

Characteristics

"t" to "d"! colspan="2"
"p" to "b"
Standard High German (SHG)SwabianStandard High German (SHG)Swabian
German: Tasche (bag)DaschGerman: putzen (to clean) butza
German: Tag (day)DagGerman: Papa (dad)Baba
!SHG!Swabian
German: Zug (train)Zigle
German: Haus (house)Haisle
German: Kerl (guy) Kerle
German: Mädchen (girl)Mädle
German: Baum (tree)Baimle
SHGSwabianExample
(SHG = Swabian)
English
short a pronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/German: machen = machato make
long a pronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/German: schlafen = schlofato sleep
short e pronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/German: Mensch, German: fest = Mentsch, feschtperson, steady
pronounced as /link/German: Fest = Fäschtfestival
long e pronounced as /link/pronounced as /[ɛa̯]/German: leben = läabato live
short o pronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/German: Kopf = Kopfhead
long o pronounced as /link/pronounced as /[aʊ̯]/German: hoch, German: schon = hau, schauhigh, already
short ö pronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/German: kennen, German: Köpfe = kenna, Kepfto know, heads (pl)
long ö pronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/German: schön = scheebeautiful
short i pronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/German: in = enin
long i (ie) pronounced as /link/pronounced as /[ia̯]/German: nie = nianever
short ü pronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/German: über = iberover
long ü pronounced as /link/pronounced as /[ia̯]/German: müde = miadtired
short u pronounced as /link/pronounced as /link/German: und = ondand
long u pronounced as /link/pronounced as /[ua̯]/German: gut = guatgood
ei pronounced as /[aɪ̯]/pronounced as /[ɔa̯]/, pronounced as /[ɔɪ̯]/German: Stein = Schdoa/Schdoistone
pronounced as /[a̯i]/German: mein = meimy
au pronounced as /[aʊ̯]/pronounced as /[aʊ̯]/German: laufen = laofato run
pronounced as /[a̯u]/German: Haus = Houshouse
eu pronounced as /[ɔʏ̯]/pronounced as /[a̯i]/, pronounced as /[ui̯]/German: Feuer = Feijer/Fuijerfire

In many regions, the Swabian dialect is spoken with a unique intonation that is also present when native speakers speak in SHG. Similarly, there is only one alveolar fricative phoneme pronounced as //s//, which is shared with most other southern dialects. Most Swabian-speakers are unaware of the difference between pronounced as //s// and pronounced as //z// and do not attempt to make it when they speak Standard German.

The voiced plosives, the post-alveolar fricative, and the frequent use of diminutives based on "l" suffixes gives the dialect a very "soft" or "mild" feel, often felt to be in sharp contrast to the harder varieties of German spoken in the North.

Phonology

Consonants

LabialAlveolarPost-
alveolar
PalatalVelarUvularPharyngeal/
Glottal
Plosivepronounced as /p/ pronounced as /b/pronounced as /t/ pronounced as /d/pronounced as /k/ pronounced as /ɡ/
Affricatepronounced as /b̥f/pronounced as /d̥s/(pronounced as /d̥ʃ/)
Nasalpronounced as /m/pronounced as /n/pronounced as /ŋ/
Fricativepronounced as /f/ pronounced as /v/pronounced as /s/pronounced as /ʃ/(pronounced as /ç/)pronounced as /x/ (pronounced as /ɣ/)pronounced as /ʁ/(pronounced as /ʕ/) pronounced as /h/
Approximantpronounced as /l/pronounced as /j/

Vowels

FrontCentralBack
shortlongshortlongshortlong
Closepronounced as /ɪ/ pronounced as /i/pronounced as /iː/pronounced as /u/pronounced as /uː/
Close-midpronounced as /e/pronounced as /eː/pronounced as /ə/pronounced as /o/pronounced as /oː/
Open-midpronounced as /ɛ/pronounced as /ɛː/(pronounced as /ɐ/)pronounced as /ʌ/ pronounced as /ɔ/pronounced as /ɔː/
Openpronounced as /a/pronounced as /aː/
Diphthongs!!Front!Central!Back
Closepronounced as /iə/pronounced as /uə/, pronounced as /ui/
Midpronounced as /eə/pronounced as /əi/pronounced as /əu/, pronounced as /ɔe/
Openpronounced as /ae/pronounced as /ao/

Classification and variation

Swabian is categorized as an Alemannic dialect, which in turn is one of the two types of Upper German dialects (the other being Bavarian).

The Swabian dialect is composed of numerous sub-dialects, each of which has its own variations. These sub-dialects can be categorized by the difference in the formation of the past participle of 'sein' (to be) into gwäa and gsei. The Gsei group is nearer to other Alemannic dialects, such as Swiss German. It can be divided into South-East Swabian, West Swabian and Central Swabian.[10]

Danube Swabian dialects

See also: Banat Swabian dialect.

The Danube Swabians from Hungary, Romania, and former Yugoslavia have been speaking several different Swabian dialects, called locally Schwowisch, some being similar to the original Swabian dialect, but also the Bavarian dialect, mostly with Palatine and Hesse mixed dialects.[11] In this regard, the Banat Swabians speak the Banat Swabian dialect.

Recognition in mass media

The Baden-Württemberg Chamber of Commerce launched an advertising campaign with the slogan "Wir können alles. Außer Hochdeutsch." which means "We can [do] everything. Except [speak] Standard German" to boost Swabian pride for their dialect and industrial achievements.[12] However, it failed to impress Northern Germans[13] and neighboring Baden. Dominik Kuhn (Dodokay) became famous in Germany with Swabian fandub videos,[14] dubbing among others Barack Obama with German dialect vocals and revised text.[15] In the German dubbing of the 2001 movie Monsters Inc., the Abominable Snowman, played by John Ratzenberger in the original English version and Walter von Hauff in the German version, speaks in the Swabian dialect.[16]

Swabian dialect writers

See also

Literature

External links

Articles in Swabian on the Alemannic/Swiss German edition of Wikipedia

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Swabian . Ethnologue . 2019-04-25.
  2. Hyazinth Wäckerle: Gau! Stau! Bleiba lau! Gedichte in schwäbischer Mundart. Augsburg, 1875, p. 6 (Google Books)
  3. not included e.g. in:
    • Hermann Niebaum, Jürgen Macha, Einführung in die Dialektologie des Deutschen, 3rd ed, 2014, p. 252: "Das Westobd. [= Westoberdeutsche] zerfällt in Alemannisch, Schwäbisch, Südfränkisch und Ostfränkisch."
    • Peter von Polenz, Geschichte der deutschen Sprache, 10th ed., 2009, p. 26 with a map having the dialect area of Alemannisch and Schwäbisch as "Westoberdeutsch", and p. 23: "[...] in den südlichsten Dialekten Alemannisch, Schwäbisch, Bairisch und Ostfränkisch, die zusammen das Oberdeutsche bilden."
  4. http://www.goethe.de/ins/ge/prj/dig/his/lig/deindex.htm{{cite web |title=Geschichte der deutschen Siedler im Kaukasus – Leben in Georgien – Goethe-Institut 2019 |url=http://www.goethe.de/ins/ge/prj/dig/his/lig/deindex.htm |website=www.goethe.de |access-date=30 January 2019}}
  5. Web site: Gehl . Hans . Donauschwäbische Dialekte, 2014 . de . www.sulinet.hu . Sulinet Program Office (Hungary) in cooperation with the Ministry of Education . 30 January 2019.
  6. http://content.stuttgarter-nachrichten.de/stn/page/1968288_0_9223_schoenstes-schwaebisches-wort-grosser-vorsprung-fuer-schwabens-kleinste-einheit.html Schönstes schwäbisches Wort, Großer Vorsprung für Schwabens kleinste Einheit
  7. http://www.kindernetz.de/barz/infos/lexikon/-/id=64520/1navg22/ Swabian dictionary
  8. Book: Russ, Charles V. J.. Swabian. Routledge. 1990. The Dialects of Modern German: a Linguistic Survey. 337–363.
  9. Book: Frey, Eberhard. Stuttgarter Schwäbisch: Laut- und Formenlehre eines Stuttgarter Idiolekts. Marburg: Elwert.. 1975. Deutsche Dialektgeographie, 101. 8–45.
  10. Noble, Cecil A. M. (1983). Modern German dialects New York [u.a.], Lang, p. 63.
  11. Web site: Language & Dialect(s).
  12. http://www.baden-wuerttemberg.de/de/Werbe-_und_Sympathiekampagne/124658.html Baden-Württemberg Chamber of Commerce
  13. https://www.faz.net/aktuell/feuilleton/diskriminiteer-dialekt-armes-sueddeutsch-12724816.html Diskriminiteer Dialekt Armes Süddeutsch
  14. News: Star Wars dub sends jobbing ad man into orbit . Graham . Dave . 2010-10-14 . Reuters.
  15. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqrpG48-GdI Barack Obama Schwäbisch – Rede Berlin 2013 – dodokay
  16. Web site: Deutsche Synchronkartei Filme Die Monster AG. 2020-11-12. www.synchronkartei.de.