NationMaster - Encyclopedia: German as a minority language

German-speaking minorities live in many countries and on all six inhabited continents: the countries of the former Soviet Union, Poland, Romania, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Belgium, Italy, the United States, Latin America, Namibia, Israel, and Australia. These German minorities, through their ethno-cultural vitality, exhibit an exceptional level of heterogeneity: variations concerning their demographics, their status within the majority community, the support they receive from institutions helping them to support their identity as a minority. The definition of a minority group can vary, depending on specific context, but generally refers to either a sociological sub-group that does not form either a majority or a plurality of the total population, or a group that, while not necessarily a numerical minority, is disadvantaged or otherwise has... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Latin America consists of the countries of South America and some of North America (including Central America and some the islands of the Caribbean) whose inhabitants mostly speak Romance languages, although Native American languages are also spoken. ... Demographics is a shorthand term for population characteristics. Demographics include race, age, income, mobility (in terms of travel time to work or number of vehicles available), educational attainment, home ownership, employment status, and even location. ...

Amongst them are small groups (such as those in Namibia) and many very large groups (such as the almost 1 million non-evacuated Germans in Russia and Kazakhstan or the near 500,000 Germans in Brazil), groups that have been greatly "folklorised" and almost completely linguistically assimilated (such as the Germans in the USA or Australia), and others, such as the true linguistic minorities (like the German minorities in Argentina and Brazil, in western Siberia or in Romania and Hungary); other groups, which are classified as religio-cultural groups rather than ethnic minorities, (such as the Eastern-Low German speaking Mennonites in Paraguay, Mexico, Belize or in the Altay region of Siberia) and the groups who maintain their status thanks to strong identification with their ethnicity and their religious sentiment (such as the groups in Upper Silesia, Poland or in South Jutland in Denmark). Siberian Federal District (dark red) and the broadest definition of Siberia (red) Udachnaya pipe Siberia (Russian: , Sibir; Tatar: ) is a vast region of Russia constituting almost all of Northern Asia. ... The Mennonites are a group of Christian Anabaptist denominations based on the teachings and tradition of Menno Simons. ... The Altai is a mountain range in central Asia, where Russia, China, Mongolia and Kazakhstan come together, and where the great rivers Irtysh, Ob and Yenisei have their sources. ... Siberian Federal District (dark red) and the broadest definition of Siberia (red) Udachnaya pipe Siberia (Russian: , Sibir; Tatar: ) is a vast region of Russia constituting almost all of Northern Asia. ... Map of Upper Silesia, 1746 Upper Silesia (Polish: GÃ³rny ÅšlÄ…sk, German: Oberschlesien, Czech: HornÃ Slezsko) is the south-eastern part of Silesia, a historical and geographical region of Poland (Opole Voivodship and Silesian Voivodship) and of the Czech Republic (Silesian-Moravian Region). ... Jutland Peninsula Jutland (Danish: Jylland; German: JÃ¼tland; Frisian JutlÃ¢n; Low German JÃ¶tlann) is a peninsula in northern Europe that forms the only non-insular part of Denmark and also the northernmost part of Germany, dividing the North Sea from the Baltic Sea. ...

The status of the language around the world

German is an official language in the following regions/countries in Europe

The region of Schleswig (former English name: Sleswick, Danish: SÃ¸nderjylland or Slesvig, Low German: Sleswig, North Frisian: Slaswik or Sleesweg) covers the area about 60 km north and 70 km south of the border between Germany and Denmark. ... Transylvania (Romanian: Transilvania or Ardeal, Hungarian: ErdÃ©ly, German: SiebenbÃ¼rgen, Serbian: Transilvanija, Turkish: Erdel, Slovak: Sedmohradsko or TransylvÃ¡nia, Polish: SiedmiogrÃ³d) forms the western and central parts of Romania. ... South Tyrol-Alto Adige (Italian: Alto Adige, German and Ladin: SÃ¼dtirol; official in Italian: Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano - Alto Adige, official in German: Autonome Provinz Bozen - SÃ¼dtirol, official in Ladin: Provinzia AutonÃ²ma de Balsan - SÃ¼dtirol) is an autonomous province of Italy that belongs to the region...

German has a presence in the following regions/countries in Europe

Location Administration Capital Strasbourg Regional President Adrien Zeller (UMP) (since 1996) DÃ©partements Bas-Rhin Haut-Rhin Arrondissements 13 Cantons 75 Communes 903 Statistics Land area1 8,280 kmÂ² Population (Ranked 14th) - January 1, 2005 est. ... Coat-of-arms of Galicia or Galicja Galicia (Ukrainian: , Polish: , German: , Hungarian: ) is an historical region in East Central Europe, currently divided between Poland and Ukraine. ... Moselle is a dÃ©partement in the northeast of France named after the Moselle River. ... Map of Upper Silesia, 1746 Upper Silesia (Polish: GÃ³rny ÅšlÄ…sk, German: Oberschlesien, Czech: HornÃ Slezsko) is the south-eastern part of Silesia, a historical and geographical region of Poland (Opole Voivodship and Silesian Voivodship) and of the Czech Republic (Silesian-Moravian Region). ...

German has a presence in following countries in Africa

German has a presence in following countries in The Americas

World map showing the Americas The Americas are the lands of the Western hemisphere historically considered to consist of the continents of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions. ... The Amish (IPA: , Pennsylvania Dutch: ) are an Anabaptist Christian denomination found in the United States and Ontario, Canada, that are known for their restrictions on the use of modern devices such as automobiles and electricity and for their plain dress. ...

Latin America

At least one million German speakers live in Latin America. There are German speaking minorities in almost every South American and Central American country, including Argentina, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Colombia, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela. South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ... Map of Central America Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. ...

In the eighteenth century only isolated or small groups of German emigrants left for Latin America. However this pattern was reversed at the start of the last century as a tidal wave of German emigration begun. German emigration to the Americas totalled 200,000 people during the eighteenth century. During the 1880's, during the wave of mass emigration, this figure was reached annually. The Handbuch des Deutschtums im Ausland (The Germans Abroad Handbook) from 1906 puts a figure of 11 million people in North and South America with a knowledge of the German language, of which 9 million were in the USA. Although the USA was the focal point for emigration in the 19th century, emigration to Latin America was also significant for differing economic and political reasons. (17th century - 18th century - 19th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 18th century refers to the century that lasted from 1701 through 1800. ... World map showing the Americas The Americas are the lands of the Western hemisphere historically considered to consist of the continents of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions. ...

90% of German Latin American emigrants in the 19th century went to the five Cono Sur countries: Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay and Chile. In the last third of the century emigration to Argentina increased after the "Heydtschen Reskript" (1859) made emigration to Brazil harder. In the 1880's and 1890's German emigration to Latin America grew and in some years was the destination of up to 30% of German emigrants. During the Nazi period - until the ban on emigration came in to effect in 1941 - some 100,000 Jews from Central Europe, the vast majority of which were German speaking, moved to South America with 90% of these moving to the Cono Sur. From the start of the 20th Century until 1946 80% of Jews lived in Europe but by the end of World War II this was reduced to 25%, however after the war over 50% of Jews now lived in the Americas. This change was aided by Jewish emigration groups such as the Hilfsverein deutschsprechender Juden (later to become Asociación Filantrópica Israelita) which was based in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The majority of German minorities in Latin America - as well as elsewhere around the world - experienced a decline in the use of the German language. The main cause of this decrease is the integration of communities, often originally sheltered, into the dominant society, and then modernisation after assimilation into society which confronts all immigrant groups. Map that frames the area named Southern Cone The term Southern Cone (Spanish: Cono Sur, Portuguese: Cone Sul) refers to a geographic region composed of the southernmost areas of South America. ... (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999... Combatants Major Allied powers: United Kingdom Soviet Union United States Republic of China and others Major Axis powers: Nazi Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Harry Truman Chiang Kai-Shek Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tojo Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead... World map showing the Americas The Americas are the lands of the Western hemisphere historically considered to consist of the continents of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions. ... Buenos Aires (English: ; originally , City of the Most Holy Trinity and Port of Saint Mary of the Fair Winds;[1] pronounced ) is the capital of Argentina and its largest city and port. ... Latin America consists of the countries of South America and some of North America (including Central America and some the islands of the Caribbean) whose inhabitants mostly speak Romance languages, although Native American languages are also spoken. ...

Specific reasons for language change from German to the national language usually derive from the desire of many Germans to belong to their new communities after the end of World War II. This is a common feature amongst the German minorities in Latin America and those in Central and Eastern Europe: the majority of countries where German minorities lived had fought against the Germans during the war. With this change in situation the members of the German minorities, previously communities of status and prestige, were turned in to undesirable minorities (though there were widespread elements of sympathy for Germany in many South American countries as well). Central Europe is the region lying between the variously and vaguely defined areas of Eastern and Western Europe. ... Eastern Europe is the eastern region of Europe variably defined. ...

For many German minorities WWII thus represented the breaking point in the development of their language. In some South American countries the war period and immediately afterwards was a time of massive assimilation to the local culture (for example during the Getúlio Vargas period in Brazil). ... GetÃºlio Dornelles Vargas (pron. ...

Historical development and current language situation of German minorities

Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Paraguay show some clear demographic differences that effect the minority situation of the German language: Brazil and Argentina are massive countries and offers large amounts of land for immigrants to settle. The population density of the Cono Sur countries is relatively small (Brazil has 47 inhabitants/km², Chile has 45/km², Argentina and Paraguay both have 31/km², data from 1993), but there are major differences in the areas settled by Germans: Buenos Aires Province, which was settled by Volga Germans, has a far higher population density that that of the Chaco in northern Paraguay (with 10 inhabitants/km²). Argentina and Chile have a far greater proportion of city dwellers (86% and 84% repectively), while Brazil is 75% urbanised, and Paraguay is just 47% urbanised. In relation to the population of Argentina, it can be called a "white country" (85% of the population is "European", with a large number of Italians). Brazil is a multi-ethnic country and the statistics show this to be true. According to Baranow (1988: 1266) 120 languages are spoken there. With a combined "White" and "Mestizo" (descendants of European and indigenous blood) population percentage of only 65%, it differs fundamentally from the other states dealt with here, although this is less true in the South of Brazil. In Chile and Paraguay the percentage of Mestizos is 92% and 91% respectively, while the indigenous element is important throughout the country in Paraguay, and indeed Guaraní is the second official language. The Buenos Aires province (IPA: , Spanish: Provincia de Buenos Aires) is the wealthiest and most populated province of Argentina. ... The Volga Germans are ethnic Germans living near the Volga River and the Black Sea, maintaining German culture, German language, German traditions and religions: Evangelical Lutherans or Roman Catholic. ... There are things that have the name Chaco: South America: Gran Chaco, a region in South America Chaco Province, Argentina in the northeastern part of the country Chaco, a region in Paraguay Chaco Department, historical in Paraguay and proposed in Bolivia Gran Chaco Province, Bolivia (in Tarija Department) Chaco War... This article is about the continent. ... Mestizo (Portuguese, MestiÃ§o; French, MÃ©tis: from Late Latin mixticius, from Latin mixtus, past participle of miscere, to mix) is a term of Spanish origin used to designate the people of mixed European and indigenous non-European ancestry. ... GuaranÃ (local name: avaÃ±eáº½ ) is an Amerindian language of South America that belongs to the TupÃ-GuaranÃ subfamily. ...

German in Argentina

There are about 300,000 German speakers and around 1 million ethnic Germans, of which 200,000 hold German citizenship. This makes Argentina one of the countries with the largest number of German speakers and is second only in Latin America to Brazil. In the 1930s there was about 300,000 german descendants^[1]. Regional concentrations can be found in the provinces of Entre Ríos and Buenos Aires (with around 50,000 - 60,000) as well as Misiones and in the general area of the Chaco and the Pampas. Map of Argentina highlighting the province Entre RÃos is a province of Argentina, it lays and borders north of Buenos Aires Province, south of Corrientes Province, east of Santa Fe Province, and west of Uruguay. ... Buenos Aires (English: ; originally , City of the Most Holy Trinity and Port of Saint Mary of the Fair Winds;[1] pronounced ) is the capital of Argentina and its largest city and port. ... Misiones is one of the 23 provinces of Argentina, located in the northeastern corner of the country in the Mesopotamia region. ... The pampas (from Quechua for plain) are the fertile lowlands that extend across c. ...

German in Brazil

The main variety of German in Brazil is Riograndenser Hunsrückisch and is found in the south of the country. The version of German there has changed over 180 years of contact with Portuguese as well as the languages of other immigrant communities. This contact has lead to a new dialect of German which concentrated in the German colonies in the southern province of Rio Grande do Sul. Although Riograndenser Hunsrückisch has long been the most widely spoken German dialect in southern Brazil, like all other minority languages in the region, it is experiencing very strong decline - especially in the last three or four decades. Riograndenser HunsrÃ¼ckisch (hunsriqueano riograndense) is a Brazilian variation of the German dialect HunsrÃ¼ckisch, which is originally from the HunsrÃ¼ck region of Germany (Rheinland-Pfalz). ... Talian (Brazils Italian/o italiano do Brasil) is a variety of Italian spoken mainly in the wine-producing area of the state of Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil. ... Flag of Rio Grande do Sul See other Brazilian States Capital Porto Alegre Largest City Porto Alegre Area 282,062 kmÂ² Population - Total - Density 10. ...

A strong stigma has been forming around the public use of this language. Today it is spoken mostly in private, in family circles and by the elder members of the community and in rural areas. It is very common for people not to admit that they know it and speak it in their most private environs, although there are cities where you can hear German on streets or parks as you can read in this article (Portuguese) from Deutsche-Welle.

German in Chile

Chile (with a population of 15 million) has an estimated 20,000 German speakers and around 300.000 ethnic Germans (from an estimated 30.000 German immigrants^[2]). The vast majority of these arrived after 1846 from several regions of Germany, initially from Hessen and Brandenburg, then from Württemberg and later from Silesia, Westphalia and lastly from Bohemia. During the first wave of German immigration (between 1846 and 1875) German colonies were primarily set up in the "Frontera" region. The second wave of immigration occurred between 1882 and 1914 and was mainly comprised of industrial and agricultural workers, mainly from eastern Germany; the third wave (after 1918) settled mainly in the cities. Hesse is also the name of the German writer Hermann Hesse, as well as the German mathematician Otto Hesse. ... (Lower Sorbian: Bramborska; Upper Sorbian: Braniborska) is one of Germanys sixteen BundeslÃ¤nder (federal states). ... Arms of the Kingdom of WÃ¼rttemberg The title of this article contains the character Ã¼. Where it is unavailable or not desired, the name may be represented as Wuerttemberg. ... Prussian Silesia, 1871, outlined in yellow; Silesia at the close of the Seven Years War in 1763, outlined in cyan (areas now in the Czech Republic were Austrian-ruled at that time) Silesia (Czech: ; German: ; Polish: ; Silesian: Åšlonsk / ÅšlÃ³nsk) is a historical region in central Europe. ... Westphalia (German: Westfalen) is a region in Germany, centred on the cities of Dortmund, Gelsenkirchen, MÃ¼nster, Bielefeld, and OsnabrÃ¼ck and included in the states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Lower Saxony. ... Flag of Bohemia Bohemia (Czech: ; German: ) is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western and middle thirds of the Czech Republic. ... 1846 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... 1875 (MDCCCLXXV) was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... 1882 (MDCCCLXXXII) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar. ... 1914 (MCMXIV) was a common year starting on Thursday. ...

German in Namibia

The German speaking minority in Namibia stems from the short lived German colonial period when thousands of German settlers and the Schutztruppe arrived. Today the language is used by 30% of white Namibians. The majority language of the white community is Afrikaans. German is a very vital language in Namibia and it has its own German-language newspaper the "Allgemeine-Zeitung". Flag of German South West Africa German South-West Africa (German: Deutsch-Südwestafrika or DSWA) was a colony of Germany from 1884 to 1915, when it was taken over by South Africa and administered as South-West Africa, later becoming Namibia. ... The Schutztruppe was the colonial armed force of Imperial Germany from the late 1800s to 1918 when Germany lost its colonies. ... Look up Wiktionary:Swadesh lists for Afrikaans and Dutch in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

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