Austrian German
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The official language of Austria is German. The variety used is called Austrian German, which contains minor differences in vocabulary and pronunciation: it is much more mild, liberal and melodious unlike the German in Germany which is harsh, arrogant and even somewhat mastering. The varieties are mostly mutually intelligible. However, the native language of almost all Austrians is not German, but instead various local dialects of the Austro-Bavarian language, replaced by Alemannic in Vorarlberg. Both are closely related but not always mutually intelligible with each other and German, especially not the Southern Austro-Bavarian dialects and Alemannic. On the other hand, practically everyone except many people over 70 and rural people over 50 can also speak German, again using the Austrian variety, as a second language, and as the official language, it is also expected to be used in modern day schools. Vienna is a special case. The original Austro-Bavarian (Wienerisch) dialects have practically disappeared (except among older people) and been replaced with a single Wienerisch/German mix language, which is the result of Wienerisch growing closer to German. And right now, among children, this is also disappearing, as the German language is in the process of taking over as the first language in Vienna, so most Viennese children today use German as their mother tongue and Wienerisch as a second language, and in fact, a few speak no Wienerisch at all. This Germanization has also been slightly noticed in other parts of the country, such as Salzburg and Graz, where Austro-Bavarian, however, for the moment, remains the mother tongue of the vast majority in these places.
The differences - die Unterschiede - der Unterschied
[edit | edit source]Austro-Bavarian is closely related to German. But there are many differences between the two.
| ENGLISH | GERMAN | AUSTRO-BAVARIAN |
|---|---|---|
| respectable | solide | frank |
| flat tyre | Reifenpanne | Patschn |
| helmet | Helm | Blechhaubn |
| I am | ich bin | i bin |
| you are | du bist | du bist |
| he is | er ist | er is |
| we are | wir sind | mia san |
| you are | ihr seid | ihr sads |
| they are | sie sind | dei san |
| I go to school. | Ich gehe in die Schule. | I geh int Schui. |
| We play chess. | Wir spielen Schach. | Mia schpün Schach. (schpü ma Schach.) |
Substanives - Hauptwörter - Hauptwerta
[edit | edit source]Singular - Plural
| English S. | English Pl. | German S. | German Pl. | Austro-Bavarian S. | Austro-Bavarian Pl. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| the peach | the peaches | der Pfirsich | die Pfirsiche | da Pfirsich | die Pfirsich |
| the dog | the dogs | der Hund | die Hunde | da Hund | die Hund |
| the cat | the cats | die Katze | die Katzen | di Kotz | die Kotzn |
| the candle | the candles | die Kerze | die Kerzen | di Kerzn | die Kerzn |
| the face | the faces | das Gesicht | die Gesichter | des Gsicht | die Gsichta |
| the book | the books | das Buch | die Bücher | des Buach | die Biacha |
The cases - die Fälle - dei Fälle
[edit | edit source]First case - erster Fall - ertsa Foi
- m: der Sessel - da Sessl (the chair)
- f: die Bluse - die Blusn (the blouse)
- n: das Halstuch - des Hoistuach (the neckerchief)
Second case - zweiter Fall - zweita Foi
- m: des Sessels - vom Sessl (3rd case!!!) ... there is no second case in the Austrian language
- f: der Bluse - von da Blusn (3rd case)
- n: des Halstuches - vom Hoistuach (3rd case)
Third case - dritter Fall - dritta Foi
- m: (von) dem Sessel - (von) dem (vom) Sessl
- f: (von) der Bluse - (von) da Blusn
- n: (von) dem Halstuch - (von) dem (vom) Hoistuach
Forth case - vierter Fall - viata Foi
- m: den Sessel - den Sessl
- f: die Bluse - dei Blusn
- n: das Halstuch - des Hoistuach
Weblinks
[edit | edit source]- Österreichisch-Deutsches Wörterbuch -- Austrian-German dictionary (in German)