View source for Alemannic German

{{Short description|Group of dialects of the Upper German branch of the Germanic language family}}
{{More citations needed|date=May 2012}}
{{Infobox language
|name=Alemannic
|altname=Alemannish
|nativename={{lang|gsw|Alemannisch}}
|pronunciation={{IPA|gsw|alɛˈman(ː)ɪʃ||Alemannisch.ogg}}
|states=[[Switzerland]]: entire [[German-speaking]] part, except for the town of [[Samnaun]].<br>[[Germany]]: most of [[Baden-Württemberg]] and [[Swabia (administrative region)|Bavarian Swabia]].<br>[[Austria]]: [[Vorarlberg]] and some parts of [[Tyrol (state)|Tyrol]].<br>[[Liechtenstein]]: entire country.<br>[[France]]: most of [[Alsace]].<br>[[Italy]]: some parts of [[Aosta Valley]] and northern [[Piedmont]]<br>[[United States]]: Amish in [[Allen County, Indiana|Allen]], [[Switzerland County, Indiana|Switzerland]] and [[Daviess County, Indiana|Daviess]] Counties in [[Indiana]].<br>[[Venezuela]]: [[Colonia Tovar dialect|Alemán Coloniero]]
|speakers={{sigfig|7,162,280|4}}<!-- Number significant down to thousands, apparently. -->
|date=2004–2012
|ref = e18
|familycolor=Indo-European
|fam2=[[Germanic languages|Germanic]]
|fam3=[[West Germanic languages|West Germanic]]
|fam4=[[Elbe Germanic]]
|fam5=[[High German languages|High German]]
|fam6=[[Upper German]]
|script=[[Latin script|Latin]], Historically [[Elder Futhark]]
|ietf = {{wikidata|property|references|P305}}
|iso2=gsw
|glotto=alem1243
|glottorefname=Alemannic
|lc1=gct
|ld1=[[Colonia Tovar dialect|Colonia Tovar]]
|lc2=gsw
|ld2=[[Alsatian dialect|Alsatian]] & [[Swiss German]]
|lc3=swg
|ld3=[[Swabian German|Swabian]]
|lc4=wae
|ld4=[[Walser German|Walser]]
|map=Alemannic-Dialects-Map-English.svg
|mapcaption=Blue indicates the traditional distribution area of Western Upper German (=Alemannic) dialects. 
|notice=IPA
| map2             = Lang Status 80-VU.svg
| mapcaption2      = {{center|{{small|Alemannic is classified as Vulnerable by the [[UNESCO]] ''[[Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger]]''}}}}
}}

'''Alemannic''', or rarely '''Alemannish''' (''Alemannisch'', {{IPA|gsw|alɛˈman(ː)ɪʃ||Alemannisch.ogg}}), is a group of [[High German languages|High German dialect]]s. The name derives from the ancient Germanic tribal confederation known as the [[Alemanni]] ("all men").<ref>{{Cite web|last=Jordioechsler |date=5 November 2013 |title=Alemannic German and other features of language |url=https://jordioechsler.wordpress.com/2013/11/05/alemannic-german-and-other-features-of-language/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170610175741/https://jordioechsler.wordpress.com/2013/11/05/alemannic-german-and-other-features-of-language/ |archive-date=10 June 2017 |website=WordPress}}</ref>{{better source needed|reason=Happens to be right in this case, it seems, but is a layperson's blog without sources|date=January 2024}}

== Distribution ==
Alemannic dialects are spoken by approximately ten million people in several countries:
* In Europe:
** [[Switzerland]]: all German-speaking parts of the country except [[Samnaun]]
** [[Germany]]: centre and south of [[Baden-Württemberg]], [[Swabia (Bavaria)|Swabia]], and certain districts of [[Bavaria]]
** [[Austria]]: [[Vorarlberg]], [[Reutte District]] of [[Tyrol (state)|Tyrol]]
** [[Liechtenstein]]
** [[France]]: [[Alsace]] region ([[Alsatian language|Alsatian]] dialect) and in some villages of the [[Canton of Phalsbourg|Phalsbourg county]], in [[Lorraine]]
** [[Italy]]: [[Gressoney-La-Trinité]], [[Gressoney-Saint-Jean]], [[Issime]], [[Alagna Valsesia]], [[Rimella]] and [[Formazza]], in some other villages almost extinct
*Outside Europe:
** [[United States]]: [[Allen County, Indiana|Allen]] and [[Adams County, Indiana]], by the [[Amish]] there and also in their daughter settlements in Indiana and other U.S. states.
** [[Venezuela]]: [[Colonia Tovar]] ([[Colonia Tovar dialect]])

== Status ==
{{Original research section|date=October 2023}}
Alemannic comprises a [[dialect continuum]] from the [[Highest Alemannic]] spoken in the mountainous south to [[Swabian German|Swabian]] in the relatively flat north and more of the characteristics of [[Standard German]] the farther north one goes.

In Germany and other European countries, the [[Abstand and ausbau languages|abstand and ausbau language]] framework is used to decide what is a language and what is a dialect.{{citation needed|date=October 2023}} According to this framework, Alemannic varieties of German form a [[dialect continuum]] and are clearly dialects.{{citation needed|date=October 2023}} Some [[linguistics|linguist]]s and organisations that [[Dialect#Dialect or language|differentiate between languages and dialects]] primarily on the grounds of [[mutually intelligible languages|mutual intelligibility]], such as [[SIL International]] and [[UNESCO]], describe Alemannic as one of several independent languages.{{citation needed|date=October 2023}} While [[ISO 639-2]] does not distinguish between dialects, [[ISO 639-3]] distinguishes four of them:

* <code>gct</code> {{ndash}} [[Colonia Tovar dialect|Colonia Tovar]], a dialect spoken since 1843 in [[Venezuela]],
* <code>gsw</code> {{ndash}} what [[ISO 639-2]] only considers to be the ''Alemannic'' language, is recognised here as:
** [[Alsatian dialect|Alsatian]], a dialect spoken in the [[Alsace|eastern France region]];
** [[Swiss German]], mainly spoken in [[Switzerland]];
* <code>swg</code> {{ndash}} [[Swabian German]], mainly spoken in the central-southeastern [[Baden-Württemberg|Baden-Wuerttemberg]],
* <code>wae</code> {{ndash}} [[Walser German]], mainly spoken in Swiss [[Valais|Upper Valais]] in the [[Alps]].

Standard German is used in writing and in Germany orally in formal contexts throughout the Alemannic-speaking regions (with the exception of [[Alsace]], where [[French language|French]] or the [[Alsatian dialect]] of Alemannic is used instead).

== Variants ==
{{Unreferenced section|date=May 2024}}
Alemannic in the broad sense comprises the following variants:
* [[Swabian German|Swabian]] (mostly in [[Swabia]], in [[Germany]], covering large parts of [[Württemberg]] and all of [[Bavarian Swabia]]). Unlike most other Alemannic dialects, it does not retain the [[Middle High German]] monophthongs ''û, î'' but shifts them to {{IPA|[ou]}}, {{IPA|[ei]}} (as opposed to Standard German {{IPA|[aʊ]}}, {{IPA|[aɪ]}}). For this reason, "Swabian" is also used in opposition to "Alemannic".
* Alemannic in the strict sense:
** [[Low Alemannic German|Low Alemannic]] dialects. Retain German initial {{IPA|/k/}} as {{IPA|[kʰ]}} (or {{IPA|[kx]}}) rather than fricativising to {{IPA|[x]}} as in High Alemannic. Subvariants:
*** [[Upper-Rhine Alemannic]] in Southwestern [[Baden]]<ref>''[https://www.alemannische-seiten.de/alemannisch.php Upper-Rhine Alemannic]'', alemannische-seiten.de</ref> and its variant [[Alsatian dialect|Alsatian]] (in [[Alsace]], [[France]])
*** [[Colonia Tovar dialect|Alemán Coloniero]] (in [[Venezuela]])
*** [[Basel German]] (in [[Basel]], [[Switzerland]])
** [[Lake Constance Alemannic]] (Bodenseealemannisch) (in Southern [[Württemberg]], Southeastern [[Baden Germany|Baden]], Northwestern [[Vorarlberg]]), a transitional dialect, close to High Alemannic, with some Swabian features in the vowel system.
** [[High Alemannic German|High Alemannic]] (mostly in [[Switzerland]], parts of [[Vorarlberg]], and in the southern parts of the [[Black Forest]] in Germany). Complete the [[High German consonant shift]] by fricativising initial {{IPA|/k/}} to {{IPA|[x]}}. Subvariants:
*** [[Bernese German]]
*** [[Zurich German]]
*** [[Vorarlbergisch]]
*** Liechtensteinisch
** [[Highest Alemannic German|Highest Alemannic]] (in the [[Valais|Canton of Valais]], in the [[Walser]] settlements (e.g., in the canton of [[Grisons]]), in the [[Bernese Oberland]] and in the German-speaking part of [[Canton of Fribourg|Fribourg]]) does not have the [[hiatus (linguistics)|hiatus]] diphthongisation of other dialects of German. For example: {{IPA|[ˈʃnei̯jə]}} ('to snow') instead of {{IPA|[ˈʃniː.ə(n)]}}, {{IPA|[ˈb̥ou̯wə]}} ('to build') instead of {{IPA|[ˈb̥uː.ə(n)]}}. Subvariants:
*** [[Walliser German]]
*** [[Walser German]]

The Alemannic dialects of Switzerland are often called [[Swiss German]] or ''Schwiizerdütsch''.

== Written Alemannic ==
The oldest known texts in Alemannic are brief [[Elder Futhark]] inscriptions dating to the sixth century ([[Bülach fibula]], [[Pforzen buckle]], [[Nordendorf fibula]]). In the [[Old High German]] period, the first coherent texts are recorded in the [[St. Gall Abbey]], among them the eighth-century [[Lord's Prayer|Paternoster]]:<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.stefanjacob.de/Geschichte/Unterseiten/Textproben.php?Multi=54 |title=Althochdeutsch (700–1050) |last=Jacobs |first=Stefan |website=stefanjacob.de |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171018071020/http://www.stefanjacob.de/Geschichte/Unterseiten/Textproben.php?Multi=54 |archive-date=18 October 2017 |access-date=17 Oct 2017 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

:{{lang|gsw|Fater unser, thu bist in himile}}
:{{lang|gsw|uuihi namu dinan}}
:{{lang|gsw|qhueme rihhi di<sup>i</sup>n}}
:{{lang|gsw|uuerde uuillo diin,}}
:{{lang|gsw|so in himile, sosa in erdu}}
:{{lang|gsw|prooth unseer emezzihic kip uns hiutu}}
:{{lang|gsw|oblaz uns sculdi unsero}}
:{{lang|gsw|so uuir oblazem uns skuldikem}}
:{{lang|gsw|enti ni unsih firleit in khorunka}}
:{{lang|gsw|uzzer losi unsih fona ubile}}

Due to the importance of the [[Carolingian]] abbeys of [[Abbey of St. Gall|St. Gall]] and [[Reichenau Island]], a considerable part of the Old High German corpus has Alemannic traits. Alemannic [[Middle High German]] is less prominent, in spite of the [[Codex Manesse]] compiled by Johannes Hadlaub of [[Zürich]]. The rise of the [[Old Swiss Confederacy]] from the fourteenth century led to the creation of Alemannic [[Swiss chronicles]]. [[Huldrych Zwingli]]'s Bible translation of the 1520s (the 1531 [[Froschauer Bible]]) was in an Alemannic variant of [[Early Modern High German]]. From the seventeenth century, written Alemannic was displaced by [[Standard German]], which emerged from sixteenth century Early Modern High German, in particular in the wake of [[Martin Luther]]'s Bible translation of the 1520s. The 1665 revision of the Froschauer Bible removed the Alemannic elements, approaching the language used by Luther. For this reason, no binding orthographical standard for writing modern Alemannic emerged, and orthographies in use usually compromise between a precise phonological notation, and proximity to the familiar Standard German orthography (in particular for loanwords).{{Citation needed|date=January 2023}}

[[Johann Peter Hebel]] published his {{lang|de|Allemannische Gedichte}} in 1803. Swiss authors often consciously employ [[Helvetism]]s within Standard German, notably [[Jeremias Gotthelf]] in his novels set in the [[Emmental]], [[Friedrich Glauser]] in his [[Crime fiction|crime stories]], and more recently [[Tim Krohn]] in his ''Quatemberkinder''.{{Citation needed|date=January 2023}}

The poet [[Ida Ospelt-Amann]] wrote and published exclusively in the dialect of [[Vaduz]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Phaf-Rheinberger |first=Ineke |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ooYTEAAAQBAJ&dq=Ida+Ospelt-Amann&pg=PA76 |title=Ricardo Porros Architektur in Vaduz und Havanna |date=2021-01-12 |publisher=Books on Demand |isbn=978-3-7526-8278-6 |pages=76 |language=de}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QS8tAQAAIAAJ&q=Ida+Ospelt-Amann |title=Allmende |date=1998 |publisher=J. Thorbecke |pages=7 |language=de}}</ref>

== Characteristics ==
* The [[diminutive]] is used frequently in all Alemannic dialects. Northern and eastern dialects use the suffix ''-le''; western varieties  (e.g. northern Alsace) uses the suffix ''-el'' /l̩/; southern dialects use the suffix ''-li'' (Standard German suffix ''-lein'' or ''-chen''). As in standard German, these suffixes cause umlaut. Depending on dialect, 'little house' may be ''Heisle'', ''Hiisel'', ''Hüüsle'', ''Hüüsli'' or ''Hiisli'' (Standard German ''Häuslein'' or ''Häuschen''). Some varieties have plural diminutives in ''-ler'', ''-la'' or ''-lich''.
* Northern variants of Alemannic (Swabian and Low Alemannic), like standard German, pronounce ''ch'' as a uvular or velar {{IPA|[χ]}} or {{IPA|[x]}} (''[[Ach-Laut]]'') after back vowels (''a'', ''o'', ''u'') and as a palatal {{IPA|[ç]}} consonant (''[[Ich-Laut]]'') elsewhere. High Alemannic, Lake Constance Alemannic and Highest Alemannic dialects exclusively use the ''Ach-Laut''.
* In most Alemannic dialects, the past participle of the verb meaning ''to be'' (''sein'' in standard German, with past participle ''gewesen'') derives from a form akin to {{lang|gsw|gesein}} (''gsi'', ''gsìnn'', ''gsei'' etc.).

{{cleanup|reason="[[Allgäu]]erisch" – compare [[:de:Allgäuerisch]], it's not a single dialect, so something more is needed (a further specification if it is Alemannic proper or Swabian, or of the location, ...)|date=October 2021}}
{|class="wikitable"
|+ Some conjugated forms of the verb ''to be'' in Alemannic dialects
|-
! English<br />(standard German) !! Low Swabian !! Alsatian<br />Lower High Alsace !! [[Allgäu]]erisch !! Lower<br />Markgräflerland !! Upper Swabian !! Eastern Swiss German !! Western Swiss German !! [[Sense District|Sensler]]
|-
! I am<br /><span style="font-weight: normal">(ich bin)</span>
| I ben || Ìch bì || I bi || Ich bi || I bee || I bi || I(g) bi {{IPA|[ɪɡ̊ b̥ɪ]}} || I bü/bi
|-
! you (sg.) are<br /><span style="font-weight: normal">(du bist)</span>
| du bisch || dü bìsch || du bisch || du bisch || d(o)u bisch || du bisch || du bisch {{IPA|[d̥ʊ b̥ɪʒ̊]}} || du büsch/bisch
|-
! he is<br /><span style="font-weight: normal">(er ist)</span>
| er isch || är ìsch || är isch || är isch || är isch || är isch || är isch {{IPA|[æɾ ɪʒ̊]}} || är isch
|-
! she is<br /><span style="font-weight: normal">(sie ist)</span>
| sia isch || sa ìsch || sia isch || sie isch || si isch || si isch || si isch {{IPA|[sɪ ɪʒ̊]}} || sia isch
|-
! it is<br /><span style="font-weight: normal">(es ist)</span>
| es isch || äs ìsch || as isch || as isch || äs isch || äs isch || äs isch {{IPA|[æz̊ (əʒ̊) ɪʒ̊]}} || as isch
|-
! we are<br /><span style="font-weight: normal">(wir sind)</span>
| mr sen(d) || mìr sìn || mir send/sönd || mir sin || mr send || m(i)r send/sön/sinn || mir sy {{IPA|[mɪɾ si]}} || wier sy
|-
! you (pl.) are<br /><span style="font-weight: normal">(ihr seid)</span>
| ihr sen(d) || ìhr sìn || ihr send || ihr sin || ihr send || i(i)r sönd/sind || dir syt {{IPA|[d̥ɪɾ sit]}} || ier syt
|-
! they are<br /><span style="font-weight: normal">(sie sind)</span>
| se sen(d) || sa sìn || dia send || si sin || dia send || si sind/sönd || si sy {{IPA|[sɪ si]}} || si sy
|-
! I have been<br /><span style="font-weight: normal">(ich bin ... gewesen)</span>
| i ben gwäa || ìch bì gsìì || i bi gsi || ich bi gsi || i bee gsei || i bi gsi || i bi gsy {{IPA|[ɪ(ɡ̊) b̥ɪ ksiː]}} || i bü/bi gsy
|}

== See also ==
* [[Alemannic separatism]]
* [[German dialects]]
* [[Muettersproch-Gsellschaft]]
* [[Muggeseggele]]
* [[Swiss German]]

== References ==
{{reflist|30em}}

== External links ==
{{InterWiki|code=als}}
* {{commons category-inline|Alemannic language}}
* {{Wiktionary-inline|Alemannic German}}
* [https://www.alemannische-seiten.de/alemannisch.php<!-- once was: http://www.badische-seiten.de/alemannisch.php --> Alemannic encyclopedia -German-]

{{Languages of Germany}}
{{Languages of Austria}}
{{Languages of France}}
{{Languages of Switzerland}}
{{Germanic languages}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:Alemannic German language| ]]
[[Category:Alemanni|Language]]
[[Category:German dialects]]
[[Category:Languages of Germany]]
[[Category:Languages of Switzerland]]
[[Category:Languages of Liechtenstein]]
[[Category:Languages of Piedmont]]
[[Category:Languages of Aosta Valley]]