Gottscheerish

Gottschee Risch ( proper name Göttscheabarisch, sometimes called its " Granish ") is a German dialect, which was the predominant language in the former German-speaking island in the Gottscheers in southern Carniola in Slovenia today to 1941.

Linguistic mapping

Gottschee Risch belongs to the Bavarian, and within the same to the south Bavaria dialects. The next it is the Carinthian dialects. Numerous ancient characteristics it shares with other German -speaking enclave dialects of the eastern Alpine region, including Pladen ( Sappada ) and Tischelwang ( Timau ) in Friuli and Zarz ( Sorica ) in Carniola (Slovenia).

Separated from the Carinthian the Gottscheer dialect developed since the establishment of the Gottscheers in space Gottschee 1330 about 600 years - nearly 700 years, if you count the history of the left in Slovenia residual group - as a separate dialect, with the separated by ridges part scenery several sub- dialects trained.

Today's sociolinguistic situation

Since the 19th century, many speakers of Gottschee Rischen came to the U.S.. 1941, the majority of Gottscheers was evacuated from the home in Lower Carniola. Only a few hundred Gottscheers remained. After the Second World War, the Gottscheer dialect in Yugoslavia was banned.

The Gottscheer dialect is now classified by UNESCO as " critically endangered language" ( critically endangered language). Most speakers live in the U.S., where it speak essentially still people in the oldest generation, who have spent their childhood in the Gottschee in Slovenia. In Canada, Austria and Germany, there are speaker, but speak as an everyday language usually English or High German or the local dialect of residence. The Gottscheer dialect is very little used, even within the family.

In Slovenia, there are some families, especially in the valley between Moschnitze Pöllandl ( Kočevske Poljane ) and Tschermoschnitz ( Črmošnjice ), in which the language is sometimes still used. Probably there are no more children who learn it as a mother tongue. The Gottscheers Altsiedlerverein in Krapf learning ( Obcice, community Dolenjske Toplice ) offered a number of years in addition to German prices and quotes in the Gottscheers dialect on, however, the interest for the German written language is much higher. Currently the association offers from Peter Kosler Gottschee ( Kočevje ) at the school Yurena in Novo Mesto, at the community college Gottschee and in Bistrita / Bistrica both German courses as well as courses in the Gottscheers dialect.

Phonology

The vowels of Gottschee Rischen essentially show the development of the Bavarian dialects. This also applies to the diphthongization of Middle High German î, û and iu [y ː ] as well as the elongation of the stem vowel. Some vowels are characteristic of the Carinthian (see a, â, ea and oa):

Short vowels

• A ( from e / ä, ë, and in loanwords ): nachtə (nights ) harzə (heart), katschə ( snake < Slovenian kača )
• Closed e ( from e and ö ): eng (angels), endrn (change ) lechr (holes)
• I ( from i and ii): khint ( child), jingar ( younger)
• Open o ( of a): hont (hand), bossr (water)
• ö ( between o and ö, out o): khöpf ​​(head), löch (hole)
• ü ( between u and u, from u): hünt ( dog), wünkhə (spark )

Long vowels

• â ( from æ, ë, ou, ÖU in contracted syllables and loan words ): bâr ( would ) gâbm (to give), Pam ( tree), PAMR (trees ), Geesthacht ( hawk ), Sable (saber, < Slovenian sablja )
• Closed ê ( from s): EDL ( noble ), HER ( Heer)
• î ( from i and ii): LIGN ( lie ), zîgl ( reins )
• ô ( between o and ö, out o): Khone ( wedding, < MHG kone "wife" ) OBM (top)
• Open û ( from â and a): Shume ( seed ), numeric (name )

Diphthongs

• Ai ( from î, iu and in contractions): baip ( wife ), laitə ( people ), gəlait ( down ), gərait ( spoken )
• Tn ( from û ): maüsch (mouse), haüsch (House)
• Au ( from al and ël ): builds (forest ), Hausch (neck)
• Ea ( from ê, ë œ and before r ): khlea ( clover), Shean ( beautiful), eardə (Earth)
• Iə ( from ie, iie and i before r ): liəp ( loving ), hiətə ( hats ), miər ( me)
• ( ô and o before r ) oa: proat ( bread), khoarn (grain )
• Oi ( from egg and contractions): ( said) schtoin (stone), ProIT ( wide), gəshoit
• Uə ( from â and a before l, n, r, s and dentals ): juər (year), huəshə (hare )
• üə ( from uo ): güət (good) tüən, ( do )

Unstressed vowels

The most important unstressed vowel schwa, which is represented by ə. It corresponds to the unstressed e in standard German. Middle High German -ary is -ar, for example, in guərtnar ( gardener ). The subjunctive ending is - öt (regional ait ), eg shûgöt, shûgait ( I said, " I would say ").

Voiced and unvoiced consonants

The in Middle High German ( and in today's Standard German ) voiced consonant b is as in the Carinthian voiceless p spoken at the beginning of a syllable and the end, the consonants d and g at the end of a syllable as t, k That is tree like Pam in the Carinthian. From the Middle High German ancestral k is breathed (kh ), while in loanwords ungehauchtes k occurs, for example, kaschłe (basket, < Slovenian koš ) against khâfm (buy). Ungehauchtes k stands for Middle High German gg or ck, eg prükə (bridge), shnakə ( snail).

The l is spoken in the rule as written German, after a, o and ə but with backward curved blade ( ³ ). Before t it can be vocalized, then being spoken instead o a a. Thus, besides the shape of BOLT, the form builds for " forest ". The r is not vocalized and is always a tongue tip r.

The v [ * f] of the Middle High German - in NHG anlautendes f or v - is always spoken voiced as standard German w [v ]: wrûgn ( ask ), wuətər (father). In the final position, however, is unvoiced f: wraitof (cemetery), wenf ( five, see long form wenwai ). In the initial sound, there are f only in loanwords - mostly of Latin origin or borrowed from the written German - as fîwər (fever), flomə ( flame) or flinkh (fast). Middle High German w [ β * ] - and neuhochdeutsches w [v ] - might b: bûgə (Libra), zboi (two), buəs (what). These changes of f / v to [b ] come to [ v] and w also in other linguistic island Bavarian dialects, such as in Cimbrian.

As in the Carinthian falls anlautendes n- sometimes, so when washed (Nest), essl (hives ) and et (not ).

Distinction between Middle High German s and z

In Gottschee Rischen the distinction between Middle High German zz and z ( in final position ) * t is of Germanic one hand and s remained from Germanic * s on the other hand receive. While the former is realized as voiceless s [s ] stands for the latter voiced sh [ ʒ ] (pronounced like Slovenian ž and French j), before t, p, and in final sh [ ʃ ] (pronounced like Slovenian š and French ch), which coincides in this case in the debate with inherited sh [ ʃ ]. Examples are shûgn ( say ) and shbuərz (black ) and haüsch ( house) and schpakh ( bacon) over bossər (water) and dos ( this). In word-initial s occurs only in loanwords, eg sacrament and soldier. It is spoken always voiceless. Voiced s [z ] does not occur. The z [ ts ] remains unchanged in the initial position z, for example, zaün ( fence), as well tz, for example, khotzə ( cat).

Grammar

In the conjugation of verbs, there is large agreement with the other Bavarian dialects, so the forms of the 3rd person plural end in -nt. Also, the past tense is lost and is replaced by the Perfect. The prefix gə - the participle is not usually reduced. The subjunctive II is obtained and also gets in the strong verbs the ending- öt: nâmöt ( would take ).

Unlike in Bavaria no old dual forms in the second person plural are used in Gottschee Rischen. So stands for " her, you" do not it / Aus, enk, but iər, ai. Therefore, the corresponding verb forms receive no -s: iər shûgət ( you say see in Bavaria: it sagts ).

Many male nouns wear differently than in other German dialects the plural ending - ər or -r: PAMR (trees ), schtoindr (stones ). The reduction mission - lain is fully maintained, but can be shortened to -le. Wuətrsch haüsch ( father's house ) next to the Bavarian form in [ the ] wuətr Shain haüsch: the use of a preceding genitive forms Likewise, on -bl <-s occupied. The adverb schmoarönsch (morning ) is an abbreviation of " [ de ] s morning ".

Vocabulary

The vocabulary is predominantly bavarian with typical expressions such as ertokh (Tuesday), pfinstokh (Thursday), pfoit (shirt ) and gətunk (left). With the Carinthian it combines words such as lai ( only ) or different verbs in - azn such as gelmazn ( scream ). In addition, there are a number of loan words from Slovene and from the Church Latin and Italian by Joeken ( cry < Slovenian jokati. ) Râzle (duck, < Slovenian raca. ) Koasl (< Slovenian kozolec, also harpfə. Harpfe ), költər ( Quilt, Kolter, < ital coltre, Slovenian from there. kovter ) kölar ( collar, < ital collare ).

Documentation

The Gottscheer dialect is documented among others by song collections from the 19th century. A small dictionary was published in 1870, the first grammar of Hans Tschinkel 1908. In the monograph by Adolf Hauffen about the linguistic island in 1895 is described in a chapter of the language. A comprehensive dictionary of Walter Tschinkel appeared in 1973. Maridi From Tscherne, Gottscheer in Slovenia, was released in 2010 for the first time a Gottscheer - Slovenian Dictionary, 2006, a small songbook with Gottscheers songs.

Text Example: The Meererin ( də mêrarin )

One of the most famous Gottscheers folk songs is the song of the " Meererin " ( də mêrarin ), go back to the contents of the Gudrun saga. In addition to an insight into the Gottscheers mythology is obtained by parallel reading an impression of the Gottscheers dialect. Breathy kh here as in the original play by simply k: