Austrian German (Österreichisches Deutsch) is the national standard variety of the German language spoken in Austria and South Tyrol. Current distribution of Human Language Families A language family is a group of related languages said to have descended from a common proto-language. ... The Indo-European languages comprise a family of several hundred related languages and dialects [1], including most of the major languages of Europe, as well as many spoken in the Indian subcontinent (South Asia), the Iranian plateau (Southwest Asia), and Central Asia. ... ISO 639-1 is the first part of the ISO 639 international-standard language-code family. ... ISO 639-2 is the second part of the ISO 639 standard, which lists codes for the representation of the names of languages. ... ISO 639-3 is an international standard for language codes. ... Articles with similar titles include the NATO phonetic alphabet, which has also informally been called the “International Phonetic Alphabet”. For information on how to read IPA transcriptions of English words, see IPA chart for English. ... Unicode is an industry standard allowing computers to consistently represent and manipulate text expressed in any of the worlds writing systems. ... A variety of a language is a form that differs from other forms of the language systematically and coherently. ... German (called Deutsch in German; in German the term germanisch is equivalent to English Germanic), is a member of the western group of Germanic languages and is one of the worlds major languages. ... The Autonomous Province of Bolzano-Bozen[1][2] (Italian: Provincia autonoma di Bolzano; German: Autonome Provinz Bozen; Ladin: Provinzia autonòma de Balsan), also called Alto Adige/Südtirol (Italian: Alto Adige; German: Südtirol; Ladin: Adesc Aut[3][4] or Sudtirol; English: Alto Adige or South Tyrol), is an...

As German is a Pluricentric language, Austrian German is not a dialect, it is another standard variety in addition to the High German spoken in Germany. Much like the relationship between American and British English, Austrian German is simply another standard form of the German language. There is no standardized Austrian language but a variety of High German dialects are spoken. Besides the Germanic languages discussed here, minority languages such as Slovenian, Croatian, and Hungarian are spoken in parts of the country. A pluricentric language is a language with several standard versions. ... A variety of a language is a form that differs from other forms of the language systematically and coherently. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... A dialect (from the Greek word διάλεκτος, dialektos) is a variety of a language characteristic of a particular group of the languages speakers. ... A minority language is a language spoken by a minority of the population of a country. ...

Overview

• Standard German, called "High German" (German: Standardsprache by philologists, but generally referred to as Hochdeutsch) in Austria.
• Vorarlbergerisch, spoken in Vorarlberg, is an Alemannic dialect similar to Swiss German.
• All other dialects belong to the Austro-Bavarian group, which is a common language throughout much of the country and closely related to "Bayerisch" or Bavarian German.

Standard German is the prescriptive norm variant of the German language used as a written language, in formal contexts, and for communication between different dialect areas. ... Vorarlbergerisch (or Vorarlbergisch) is a Germanic dialect spoken in Vorarlberg, a province of Austria. ... Vorarlberg is the westernmost state (Land) of Austria. ... Alemannic German (Alemannisch) is a group of dialects of the Upper German branch of the Germanic language family. ... Swiss German (Schweizerdeutsch, Schwyzerdütsch, Schwiizertüütsch, Schwizertitsch) is any of the Alemannic dialects spoken in Switzerland. ... Austro-Bavarian or Bavarian is a major group of Upper German varieties. ...

Subgroups

Ordinarily, these dialects are considered to belong either to the Central Austro-Bavarian or Southern Austro-Bavarian subgroups, with the latter encompassing the languages of the Tyrol (including South Tyrol), Carinthia, and Styria and the former including the dialects of Vienna, Upper Austria, and Lower Austria. As the dialect spoken in Vorarlberg is more closely related to Swiss German than to other Austrian dialects, most Austrians have difficulty in understanding it. The Central Austro-Bavarian Germanic dialects forming a subgroup of the Austro-Bavarian dialects. ... Southern Austro-Bavarian is a term describing Germanic dialects which are part of the Austro-Bavarian group. ... Coat of arms of Tyrol: *[1] The Tyrol is a historical region in Western Central Europe, which includes the Austrian state of Tyrol (consisting of North Tyrol and East Tyrol) and the Italian regions known as the South Tyrol and Trentino. ... The Autonomous Province of Bolzano-Bozen[1][2] (Italian: Provincia autonoma di Bolzano; German: Autonome Provinz Bozen; Ladin: Provinzia autonòma de Balsan), also called Alto Adige/Südtirol (Italian: Alto Adige; German: Südtirol; Ladin: Adesc Aut[3][4] or Sudtirol; English: Alto Adige or South Tyrol), is an... Carinthia (German: Kärnten, Slovenian: Koroška) is the southernmost Austrian state or Land; it is chiefly famous for its mountains and lakes. ... Styria redirects here. ... “Wien” redirects here. ... Upper Austria (Ober sterreich) is one of the nine federal states or Bundesl nder of Austria. ... Map of Lower Austria showing districts and the four quarters (Waldviertel in green, Weinviertel in red, Mostviertel in yellow and Industrieviertel in blue) Lower Austria (de: Niederösterreich) is one of the nine states or Bundesländer in Austria. ... Swiss German (Schweizerdeutsch, Schwyzerdütsch, Schwiizertüütsch, Schwizertitsch) is any of the Alemannic dialects spoken in Switzerland. ...

Intercomprehensibility and regional accents

While strong forms of the various dialects are not normally comprehensible to Northern Germans, there is virtually no communication barrier to speakers from Bavaria. The Central Austro-Bavarian dialects are more intelligible to speakers of Standard German than the Southern Austro-Bavarian dialects of Tyrol. Viennese, the Austro-Bavarian dialect of Vienna, is most frequently used in Germany for impersonations of the typical inhabitant of Austria. The people of Graz, the capital of Styria, speak yet another dialect which is not very Styrian and more easily understood by people from other parts of Austria than other Styrian dialects, for example from western Styria. For other uses, see Bavaria (disambiguation). ... The Central Austro-Bavarian Germanic dialects forming a subgroup of the Austro-Bavarian dialects. ... Southern Austro-Bavarian is a term describing Germanic dialects which are part of the Austro-Bavarian group. ... Tyrol (German: , Czech: ) is a state or Bundesland, located in the west of Austria. ... The Viennese language is an East Central Austro-Bavarian dialect spoken mostly in the Austrian capital of Vienna. ... “Wien” redirects here. ... The Grazer Schloßberg Clock Tower Graz [graːts] (Slovenian: Gradec IPA: /gra. ... Styria redirects here. ... Styria redirects here. ...

Simple words in the various dialects are very similar, but pronunciation is distinct for each and, after listening to a few spoken words it may be possible for an Austrian to realise which dialect is being spoken. However, in regard to the dialects of the deeper valleys of the Tyrol, other Tyroleans are often unable to understand them. Speakers from the different states of Austria can easily be distinguished from each other by their particular accents (probably more so than Bavarians), those of Carinthia, Styria, Vienna, Upper Austria, and the Tyrol being very characteristic. Speakers from those regions, even those speaking Standard German, can usually be easily identified by their accent, even by an untrained listener. Coat of arms of Tyrol: *[1] The Tyrol is a historical region in Western Central Europe, which includes the Austrian state of Tyrol (consisting of North Tyrol and East Tyrol) and the Italian regions known as the South Tyrol and Trentino. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Carinthia (German: Kärnten, Slovenian: Koroška) is the southernmost Austrian state or Land; it is chiefly famous for its mountains and lakes. ... Styria redirects here. ... “Wien” redirects here. ... Upper Austria (Ober sterreich) is one of the nine federal states or Bundesl nder of Austria. ... Coat of arms of Tyrol: *[1] The Tyrol is a historical region in Western Central Europe, which includes the Austrian state of Tyrol (consisting of North Tyrol and East Tyrol) and the Italian regions known as the South Tyrol and Trentino. ... Standard German is the prescriptive norm variant of the German language used as a written language, in formal contexts, and for communication between different dialect areas. ...

Several of the dialects have been influenced by contact with non-Germanic linguistic groups, such as the dialect of Carinthia, where in the past many speakers were bilingual with Slovenian, and the dialect of Vienna, which has been influenced by immigration during the Austro-Hungarian period, particularly from what is today the Czech Republic. The dialects of South Tyrol has been influenced by the Italian language, in particular with many loan words. Austria-Hungary, also known as the Dual monarchy (or: the k. ... The Autonomous Province of Bolzano-Bozen[1][2] (Italian: Provincia autonoma di Bolzano; German: Autonome Provinz Bozen; Ladin: Provinzia autonòma de Balsan), also called Alto Adige/Südtirol (Italian: Alto Adige; German: Südtirol; Ladin: Adesc Aut[3][4] or Sudtirol; English: Alto Adige or South Tyrol), is an... Italian ( , or lingua italiana) is a Romance language spoken by about 63 million people,[1] primarily in Italy and Switzerland. ... A loanword (or a borrowing) is a word taken in by one language from another. ...

Interestingly, the geographic borderlines between the different accents (isoglosses) coincide strongly with the borders of the states and also with the border to Bavaria, with Bavarians having a markedly different rhythm of speech in spite of the similarities in the language as such. Isoglosses on the Faroe Islands An isogloss is the geographical boundary of a certain linguistic feature, e. ... For other uses, see Bavaria (disambiguation). ...

Grammar

Perfect tense

In Austria, as in the German speaking parts of Switzerland and in southern Germany, verbs that express a state tend to use sein as the auxiliary verb in the perfect tense, as well as verbs of movement. Verbs which fall into this category include sitzen (to sit), liegen (to lie) and in parts of Carinthia, schlafen (to sleep). Therefore the perfect tense of these verbs would be ich bin gesessen, ich bin gelegen and ich bin geschlafen respectively. For some verbs which fall into this category, the use of sein as the auxiliary in the perfect can change to haben to avoid confusion between two verbs that would otherwise look the same in this tense, as in the case of stehen (to stand) and gestehen (to confess). In the perfect these would be ich bin gestanden and ich habe gestanden respectively. In linguistics, an auxiliary (also called helping verb, auxiliary verb, or verbal auxiliary) is a verb functioning to give further semantic or syntactic information about the main or full verb following it. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ...

Vocabulary

There are many Austrian terms which differ from standard German. These include Jänner (January) rather than Januar, Feber (February) rather than Februar, heuer (this year) rather than dieses Jahr and a whole series of foods and vegetables such as: Erdäpfel (potatoes) German Kartoffeln, Faschiertes (ground beef) German Hackfleisch, Fisolen (green beans) German Gartenbohne, Karfiol (cauliflower) German Blumenkohl, Karotte (carrot) German Möhre, Kohlsprossen (Brussels sprouts) German Rosenkohl, Marillen (apricots) German Aprikosen, Paradeiser (tomatoes) German Tomaten, Palatschinke (pancakes) German Pfannkuchen and Topfen (cottage cheese) German Quark.

Standard German in Austria

A street sign in Vienna, "Fußgeher" is normally replaced with "Fußgänger" in Germany.

With German being a pluricentric language, Austrian dialects should not be confused with the variety of Standard German spoken by most Austrians, which is distinct from that of Germany or Switzerland. Distinctions in vocabulary persist, for example, in culinary terms, where communication with Germans is frequently difficult, and administrative and legal language, which is due to Austria's exclusion from the development of a German nation-state in the late 19th century and its manifold particular traditions. A comprehensive collection of Austrian-German legal, administrative and economic terms is offered in: Markhardt, Heidemarie: Wörterbuch der österreichischen Rechts-, Wirtschafts- und Verwaltungsterminologie. Peter Lang, 2006. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 509 pixelsFull resolution (1395 × 888 pixel, file size: 217 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Street Sign at Vienna illustrating the different use of German language in Austria Photographer:user:Dr. Meierhofer Date: 28th Dec 2006 File history Legend: (cur) = this... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 509 pixelsFull resolution (1395 × 888 pixel, file size: 217 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Street Sign at Vienna illustrating the different use of German language in Austria Photographer:user:Dr. Meierhofer Date: 28th Dec 2006 File history Legend: (cur) = this... A pluricentric language is a language with several standard versions. ... Standard German is the prescriptive norm variant of the German language used as a written language, in formal contexts, and for communication between different dialect areas. ... Food from plant sources Food is any substance normally eaten or drunk by living organisms. ... The term Administration, as used in the context of government, differs according to jurisdiction. ... Lady Justice or Justitia is a personification of the moral force that underlies the legal system (particularly in Western art). ... The term nation-state, while often used interchangeably with the terms unitary state and independent state, refers properly to the parallel occurence of a state and a nation. ...

When Austria became a member of the European Union, the Austrian variety of the German language (limited to 23 agricultural terms) was “protected” in the so-called Protocol no. 10 (1) regarding the use of specific Austrian terms of the German language in the framework of the European Union, which forms part of the Austrian EU accession treaty. Austrian German is the only variety of a pluricentric language recognised under international law / EU primary law. All facts concerning “Protocol no. 10” are documented in Markhardt, Heidemarie: Das österreichische Deutsch im Rahmen der EU, Peter Lang, 2005.

Regional dialects

• Viennese German
• Vorarlbergerisch

Viennese German is an East Central Austro-Bavarian dialect spoken mostly in the Austrian capital of Vienna. ... Vorarlbergerisch (or Vorarlbergisch) is a Germanic dialect spoken in Vorarlberg, a province of Austria. ...

See also

• Austro-Bavarian
• de:Kärntner Mundart Carinthian dialect, with examples (German)

Austro-Bavarian or Bavarian is a major group of Upper German varieties. ...

Literature

• Ammon, Ulrich: Die deutsche Sprache in Deutschland, Österreich und der Schweiz: Das Problem der nationalen Varietäten. de Gruyter, Berlin/New York 1995.
• Ammon, Ulrich / Hans Bickel, Jakob Ebner u. a.: Variantenwörterbuch des Deutschen. Die Standardsprache in Österreich, der Schweiz und Deutschland sowie in Liechtenstein, Luxemburg, Ostbelgien und Südtirol. Berlin/New York 2004, ISBN 3-11-016574-0.
• Grzega, Joachim: „Deutschländisch und Österreichisches Deutsch: Mehr Unterschiede als nur in Wortschatz und Aussprache.“ In: Joachim Grzega: Sprachwissenschaft ohne Fachchinesisch. Shaker, Aachen 2001, S. 7-26. ISBN 3-8265-8826-6.
• Grzega, Joachim: “On the Description of National Varieties: Examples from (German and Austrian) German and (English and American) English.” In: Linguistik Online] 7 (2000).
• Grzega, Joachim: “Nonchalance als Merkmal des Österreichischen Deutsch.” In: Muttersprache 113 (2003): 242-254.
• Muhr, Rudolf / Schrodt, Richard: Österreichisches Deutsch und andere nationale Varietäten plurizentrischer Sprachen in Europa. Wien, 1997
• Muhr, Rudolf/Schrodt, Richard/Wiesinger, Peter (eds.): Österreichisches Deutsch: Linguistische, sozialpsychologische und sprachpolitische Aspekte einer nationalen Variante des Deutschen. Wien, 1995.
• Pohl, Heinz Dieter: „Österreichische Identität und österreichisches Deutsch“ aus dem „Kärntner Jahrbuch für Politik 1999“
• Wiesinger, Peter: Die deutsche Sprache in Österreich. Eine Einführung, In: Wiesinger (Hg.): Das österreichische Deutsch. Schriften zur deutschen Sprache. Band 12. (Wien, Köln, Graz, 1988, Verlag, Böhlau)