Aachen dialect
Encyclopedia
Aachen dialect is the name of the dialect of Ripuarian Franconian spoken in the German Rhineland city of Aachen
. This dialect, as part of the large West Germanic
dialect continuum
, is to a large extent similar to the dialects spoken in Eschweiler
and in Stolberg
.
Aachen dialect has a tonal component, which, like Welsh English
, is often described as "singsongy" by the layman. It is perhaps closest to the Vaals
(Vólsj), Bocholtz (Boches) and Kerkrade
(Kirchröadsj) dialects, which are spoken in the Netherlands
, only few miles away.
This article is based on its German equivalent.
Aachen
Aachen has historically been a spa town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Aachen was a favoured residence of Charlemagne, and the place of coronation of the Kings of Germany. Geographically, Aachen is the westernmost town of Germany, located along its borders with Belgium and the Netherlands, ...
. This dialect, as part of the large West Germanic
West Germanic languages
The West Germanic languages constitute the largest of the three traditional branches of the Germanic family of languages and include languages such as German, English, Dutch, Afrikaans, the Frisian languages, and Yiddish...
dialect continuum
Dialect continuum
A dialect continuum, or dialect area, was defined by Leonard Bloomfield as a range of dialects spoken across some geographical area that differ only slightly between neighboring areas, but as one travels in any direction, these differences accumulate such that speakers from opposite ends of the...
, is to a large extent similar to the dialects spoken in Eschweiler
Eschweiler
Eschweiler is a municipality in the district of Aachen in North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany on the river Inde, near the German-Belgian-Dutch frontier, and about 15 km east of Aachen and 50 km west of Cologne.- History :...
and in Stolberg
Stolberg
- Towns in Germany :* Stolberg, Saxony-Anhalt in the district of Sangerhausen in Saxony-Anhalt, seat of the counts of Stolberg* Stolberg in the district of Aachen in North Rhine-Westphalia, part of the Duchy of Jülich until 1794, awarded to Prussia in 1815* Stollberg, in the Erzgebirgskreis in the...
.
Aachen dialect has a tonal component, which, like Welsh English
Welsh English
Welsh English, Anglo-Welsh, or Wenglish refers to the dialects of English spoken in Wales by Welsh people. The dialects are significantly influenced by Welsh grammar and often include words derived from Welsh...
, is often described as "singsongy" by the layman. It is perhaps closest to the Vaals
Vaals
Vaals is a town in the extreme southeastern part of the Dutch province of Limburg, which in its turn finds itself in the southeastern part of the Netherlands....
(Vólsj), Bocholtz (Boches) and Kerkrade
Kerkrade
Kerkrade is a town and a municipality in the southeastern Netherlands.It is the western half of the divided region and de facto city, taken together with the eastern half, the German town of Herzogenrath...
(Kirchröadsj) dialects, which are spoken in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, only few miles away.
Words
- The word Prentekopp (Standard German: Printenkopf) is a well used swear word
- Hömmele instead of the words sehr (very) or viel (a lot/much) - e.g. "Das hat aber hömmele Geld gekostet!" (But that cost a lot of money!)
- Öcher Mösch is a nicknameNicknameA nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....
for the Aachen boys choir (German: Aachener Domspatzen) - Trottwa is used for pavementSidewalkA sidewalk, or pavement, footpath, footway, and sometimes platform, is a path along the side of a road. A sidewalk may accommodate moderate changes in grade and is normally separated from the vehicular section by a curb...
from the FrenchFrench languageFrench is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
trottoir - Paraplü for an umbrellaUmbrellaAn umbrella or parasol is a canopy designed to protect against rain or sunlight. The term parasol usually refers to an item designed to protect from the sun; umbrella refers to a device more suited to protect from rain...
influenced by the FrenchFrench languageFrench is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
parapluie
Phrases
- A way to say goodbye in the sense of Bon VoyageBon VoyageBon voyage is a French phrase borrowed into English meaning, literally, "good journey", and usually translated as meaning "have a good trip".Bon voyage may also refer to:-Film and television:...
is Komm jut zuhaus, waa!? - Ich hab kalt! instead of Mir ist kalt! is used to mean "I'm cold" in English. (Standard Dutch: Ik heb het koud)
- To ask the way, Kennst du dich hier? is used rather than Kennst du dich hier aus?.
- The answer Hier kenn ich mich nicht! follows the same idea
- Och Herm! is said when expressing pity (Standard Dutch: Och arme)
- Au Hur! (lit. old whore, Standard Dutch: Oude hoer) is used as a statement of astonishment in every circumstance, often coupled with the ubiquitous waa. In somewhat higher society, the stand-in swear word Au Banan! (old banana) is particularly used.
- The interjection Aah suae? is also prevalent instead of the standard German versions Ach so? (So?) and Tatsächlich? (Really?).
- The waa (originally "is it true?") somehow resembles the English "isn't it?", or "is it?" that some speakers customarily append to their sentences. Standard German would be nicht wahr? or oder?. In Standard Dutch the corresponding question tag is "of wat", the 't' being silent in most southern dialects; meaning 'or what?'.
Literature
- Ludewig Rovenhagen: Wörterbuch der Aachener Mundart, Aachen, 1912.
- Prof. Dr. Will Herrmanns, Rudolf Lantin (editor): Aachener Sprachschatz. Wörterbuch der Aachener Mundart. Beiträge zur Kultur- und Wirtschaftsgeschichte Aachens und Seiner Umgebung, Band 1. Im Auftrag des Vereins „Öcher Platt“ für den Druck überarbeitet und herausgegeben von Dr. Rudolf Lantin. 2 Bände. Verlag J. A. Mayer, 1970. ISBN 3-87519-011-4
- Adolf Steins: Grammatik des Aachener Dialekts. Herausgegeben von Klaus-Peter Lange. Rheinisches Archiv Band 141. Böhlau-Verlag, Kölle, Weimar, Wien, 1998. ISBN 3-412-07698-8
- Dr. Karl Allgeier, Jutta Baumschulte, Meinolf Baumschulte, Richard Wolfgarten: Aachener Dialekt - Wortschatz, Öcher Platt - Hochdeutsch und Hochdeutsch - Öcher Platt. Öcher Platt e.V. Aachen, 2000.
External links
- http://www.oecher-platt.de/
This article is based on its German equivalent.