Hessian dialects

Spoken in

• Indo-European Germanic West Germanic high German Central German West Middle German Rhine Franconian Hessian

Hessian is a dialect of the German language area, which is characterized by the fraction of the High German consonant shift as a Central German dialect and Rhineland-Palatinate and North Rhine-Westphalia spoken mainly in Hesse, but also in francs.

Hessian forms together with the Palatine on the one hand and a mixed between Hessian, Palatine, Südfränkisch ( " the Baden " ) and East Frankish in the Rhine -Main -Neckar region on the other hand the Rhine Franconian. Also Lorraine is partially counted the Rhine Franconian.

The lack of transition from p> ( p) f ( Appel instead of apple) features the Rhine Franconian together with the Moselle Franconian and the Ripuarian as a West Central German dialect.

Geographical Distribution

The distribution area of the Hessian dialect is geographically approximated by Diemel, Werra, Taunus, Westerwald and Rothaargebirge limited and thus takes the largest surface area in part of the federal state of Hesse and part of Rhineland -Palatinate (Westerwald, Rheinhessen, Taunus ), North Rhine -Westphalia ( Wittgenstein) and Bavaria ( Bavarian Lower Main) a.

Linguistic Description

As a linguistic border, the isoglosses are I ( Hessian ) / ks ( Low German ) and make ( Hessian ) / maken ( Low German ) north to the Lower Saxon and Westphalian, Pund ( Hessian ) / fund ( Thuringia ) east to Thuringia, Pund ( Hessian ) / pound ( East Frankish ) and Appel ( Hessian ) / apple ( East Frankish ) east to the East Frankish what ( Hessian ) / wat ( Ripuarian / Moselle Franconian ) west to the Moselle Franconian tight ( Hessian ) / fescht ( Palatine ) for Rhine Franconian / Palatine / East Frankish Mixed south.

How to recognize the limiting isoglosses subject to the Hessian of the High German consonant shift with respect to t > s and k > ch / h, the transition p> f shows it but other than that Ostmitteldeutsche not.

The border to the Low German language area is characterized by a very narrow here spatially limited Isoglossenbündel - Benrather line that is different from the west and east hardly fanned out here. This so-called linguistic border (better: maken - making or ik- I line) between Low German and Middle German language varieties or indeed the Hessian part of the dialect continuum, but is probably the most keenly trained transition region in the German language area.

In contrast, the boundary is marked to the south by particularly wide-ranging isoglosses and correspondingly blurred. The transition to the Palatine, to the East Frankish and Thuringia is fluid.

The Hessian is a hand characterized by residual populations particularly archaic words whose root words in other dialects or languages ​​hardly seem like idrecken / itarucken for rumination, densen / Dinsen for " with all his might to pull something " and honor ( ears ) for plow / plow.

A characteristic feature is the lack of distinction between voiced and unvoiced s or sh and ch between on the one hand and on the other hand sch. Tend to be pronounced all these sounds voiced, so that phonetically eg between church and cherry or between white and as the difference is hardly heard. This results also in High German in part to hypercorrection ( cherry tree cherry tree instead )

On the other hand, people have started very early in hessischsprachigen areas to educate the children only in high German pronunciation, to make it easier for the children in the school. This was mainly the exclusive use of High German in school in the 19th century (especially after 1866 in the annexed territories of Prussia ) here. In urban areas, the speaker base that really speaks Hessian dialect and not just a Hessian colored colloquial, today largely extinguished.

Grammar

As each language is also distinguished the Hessian not only through the vocabulary from. The grammar is different from standard German. Most striking is that in the conjugation (inflection ) shows the verb ( action word): The preterite ( past tense ) is missing in the south completely and is replaced by the perfect tense ( present perfect ). Therefore, the native speaker is wondering if he in marginal areas phrases such as " I went " " he ran " or " drank " hears instead of " am ish gange ", " he is gelaafe " and "se hot Drunk ". The attempt to introduce the past tense in the Hessian is not productive. Rather, this is perfect also in other parts of Germany on the way to replace the past tense. A second striking difference is in the declination ( diffraction ) of the noun (main word): The genitive is omitted in favor of the dative. Instead of " George's book," it is therefore called " the book vum Schorsch " or " the Schorsch soi book". However, this form is not a specialty of southern landscapes, but a German general trend.

Subdivision

• Niederhessisch (lower on the rivers Fulda and Eder )

• Oberhessisch ( an der Lahn, upper Eder, Wittgenstein, Vogelsberg, Wetterau up to the Spessart )
• Südhessisch ( in and around Frankfurt am Main, Wiesbaden, Aschaffenburg, Darmstadt and northern district of Gross -Gerau )
• Westhessisch ( Herborn / Limburg )

Previously handed the Oberhessische to south of the Main ( in Rodgau ). Further south began the Palatine, where already the Upper German fescht spoke rather firmly.

History

The current area of ​​distribution of the Hessian dialect is BC attributed to the Celtic culture after the archaeological location until at least 200. In Roman times the two settlement centers of Fulda and Eder Diemel in the north and on the Lahn is described in the south of the Germanic tribe of the Chatti, whose designation by the High German consonant shift to Hesse was in the area. Can be said about changes in the Hessian dialect in sound level, vocabulary and geographic distribution due to lack of vernacular records before the modern era little. Political changes suggest a loss of the language area in the north of the Lower Saxony and an expansion to areas south of the Vogelsberg and the Lahn area, for the Frankish period in the early Middle Ages. See Hessengau.

Hessian vernacular

In everyday language, a dialect of High German discoloration has emerged, even if they (depending on the speaker ) of the High German written language is closer than the Hessian dialect. The term Hessian is used colloquially for the dialect discolored colloquial language throughout the political state of Hesse.

Hessian dialect in media and culture

Influence of the media

Particularly strongly to the popular belief, the dialects of southern Hesse were " Hessian " par excellence ( as " Fernsehhessisch " known), probably among others the distinct comedic tradition of southern Hesse in the media has contributed (see below). For better identification of the " Südhessische " Therefore, more and more the term " Äbbelwoihessisch " ( Apfelweinhessisch ) is used. Regardless of the Darmstadt Local Posse Datterich Ernst Elias Niebergall (see link below " Hessian Game Community") in the 19th century or the Mainz dialect play " The Merry Vineyard " by Carl Zuck Mayer - - In the past, developed this on Shrove Tuesday, the National Theatre (for as in the Frankfurt National Theatre of Liesel Christ and Lia Woehr ) and in the dialect literature (eg Friedrich and Adolf Stoltze ).

Popular culture

In Frankfurt there with Rezi * BABBEL, the Frankfurter dialect recitation theater, dialect programs around Friedrich Stoltze (1816-1891) and other vernacular poets of the 19th century since 1995.

There are new Central Hessian dialect groups, as the group Agrimony ( Hessian hinterland ) in the district of Marburg -Biedenkopf and the groups Fäägmeel and CORK ( Gießen district ). Their texts, songs and pieces correspond largely still the regional base dialects in Central and Upper Hesse.