Low Saxon-Low Franconian languages
|
Low Saxon and Low Franconian languages. |
Low Saxon-Low Franconian languages (
Nederduitse talen, Nedderdüütsche Spraken) are any of a variety of
West Germanic languages spoken in northern
Germany, the
Netherlands,
Belgium and
Surinam. It also includes
Afrikaans, which is spoken in
South Africa, and
Plautdietsch, which is spoken by
Mennonite communities in
North and
South America. Middle Low German was the
lingua franca of the
Hanseatic League.
Since this group of varieties is not based on common linguistic innovations, there are linguistic reference books that do not mention it, but only its constituents
Low Franconian and
Low Saxon.
[Glück, H. (ed.): Metzler Lexikon Sprache, pages 472, 473. Stuttgart, Weimar: Metzler, 2000 (entries Niederdeutsch and Niederfränkisch)]The term
Low German was more widely used in the past, but this is no longer considered
politically correct as people in the Netherlands generally do not like to be associated as being German. As
Low Saxon-Low Franconian, the name avoids sovereign national associations with either the Netherlands or Germany.
The concept Low German was first pioneered by German linguists, who found that German dialects in the North of Germany were quite different from dialects in the South of the country (
see High German consonant shift), as they continued their research, they found that dialects of Dutch, and the Dutch language had a large number of things in common with the dialects in Northern Germany, and subsequently placed them in the Low German group.Later 2 subgroups of Low German (which was now the supposed ancestor of the 2 subgroups) were created:
Low Saxon, mainly Low German dialects in Germany, and
Low Franconian, mainly Low German dialects in the Netherlands and Flanders.To this day no evidence is found on Low Saxon and Low Franconian ever having a common ancestor, and in linguistics the term Low German is mainly used to indentify West Germanic language who have not experienced the
High German consonant shift, or the
Ingvaeonic nasal spirant law.
The Low Saxon-Low Franconian languages are not characterized by a common linguistic innovation, but they are the
West Germanic languages that have neither been affected by the
High German consonant shift nor by the
Anglo-Frisian palatalizations.
In the High German consonant shift, /k/, /p/, /t/ became /(k)x/, /pf/, /ts/ in initial positions and /x(x)/, /ff/, /ss/ in medial and final positions, though most High German varieties have not completed all of these shifts. In Low Saxon and in Low Franconian, the old /k/, /p/, /t/ remain unshifted, as in Dutch
beter vs. German
besser (English
better).
| Dutch Low Saxon: | Ku'j my verteln wat disse zinne beteakent? Ik verstoa naemelik gin Leegduutse taeln. |
| German Low Saxon, North Saxon dialect: | Kannst (du) mi (maal) vertellen (~ seggen), wat düsse Satz bedüüdt? Ik verstah näämlich keen nedderdüütschen Spraken (~ Talen). |
| East Low Saxon, Molotchna Mennonite dialect (Plautdietsch): | Kjenne jie mie (mol) saje, waut dise Sautz bediet? Ekj vestone nämlich kjeen Nadadietsche Sproake. |
| Dutch: | Kunt U mij vertellen wat deze zin betekent? Ik versta namelijk geen Nederduitse talen. |
Afrikaans: | Kan jy my vertel wat dit sin beteken? Ek verstaan naamlyk geen Nederduitse tale nie | | Standard German (High German): | Können Sie mir sagen, was dieser Satz bedeutet? Ich verstehe nämlich keine niederdeutschen Sprachen. |
| Eastern Yiddish (High German): | Kenstdu mir sogen woss der saz bedeit? Ich verschtei leider nischt [nit] kein niderige Deitsche schprachen. |
| (.קענסטו מיר זא'ן וואס "ער זאטץ בא"ייט? איך פארשטיי ליי"ער נישט [ניט] קיין ני"ערי'-"ייטשע שפראכעןֿ) |
| Scots (not Scottish English! Anglo-Frisian): | Can ye tell us whit the meanin o this sentence is? Ah canna unnerstaund Leich Germanic leids, mynd. |
| English (Anglo-Frisian): | Could you tell me what this sentence means? I don't understand Low German languages you see. |
Note that divisions between subfamilies of Germanic are rarely precisely defined; most form continuous clines, with adjacent
varieties being mutually intelligible by listeners and more separated ones not.
In particular, there is not thought to have been any single
Proto-language of Low Saxon and Low Franconian. The earliest recorded form is known as
Old Low Franconian (Old Dutch), a member of
Low Franconian.
*
Low Franconian**
Hollandic (in the
Netherlands)
**
West Flemish (in
West Flanders and nearby areas of Belgium,
Zeeland in the Netherlands, and
France)
**
East Flemish**
Brabantic in
Belgium and the
Netherlands**
Limburgish (in the
Netherlands,
Germany, and
Belgium) including
Limburgs**
Zuid-Gelders (in
Germany and the
Netherlands)
**
Afrikaans (in
South Africa and
Namibia)
**
Surinaams in
Surinam (in
South-America)
*
Low Saxon**
West Low Saxon***
Westphalian (in
Westphalia, in Germany)
***
Northern Low Saxon (in East Frisia / Eastern Friesland and other parts of Germany)
***
Eastphalian language***
Dutch Low Saxon****
Gelders-Overijssels en Urks*****
Achterhoeks (in
Gelderland, in the Netherlands)
*****
Sallands (in central
Overijssel, in the Netherlands)
****
Midden-Drents (in
Drenthe, in the Netherlands)
****
Zuid-Drents (in
Drenthe, in the Netherlands)
****
Gronings (in
Groningen, in the Netherlands)
*****
Westerwolds (in eastern Groningen, the Netherlands)
****
Stellingwerfs (in
Stellingwerven, in
Friesland, in the Netherlands)
*****
Veenkoloniaals (in eastern Groningen, the Netherlands)
****
Twents (in eastern Overijssel, in the Netherlands)
****
Veluws (in Gelderland, in the Netherlands)
*****
North Veluws*****
Oost-Veluws****
Kollumerlands**
East Low Saxon***
Mecklenburgisch-Pommersch (in
Mecklenburg)
***
East Pomeranian (in
Brazil)
***
Brandenburgisch (in
Brandenburg)
***
Low Prussian***
Plautdietsch*
Building blocks of Low Saxon — English
*
Building Blocks of Low Saxon — with German/English choice
*
Welcome to "Plat(t) Online"*
Low Saxon/Low German Language and Culture Far and Wide*
A few words about Low Saxon*
Low Saxon in the Netherlands*
Plattmaster's home page — in Plattdeutsch
*
De Plattfööt*
Ethnologue report for Low Saxon-Low Franconian
