Upper German

Upper German

Upper German is a group of High German dialects spoken mainly in the south of the German-speaking world. These dialects are part of the bigger family of High German languages. This family includes the standard German used in schools and media today.

The term "Upper German" helps us learn about how German has changed over time in different places. People who speak these dialects often live in areas such as Bavaria, Austria, and parts of Switzerland.

Learning about Upper German shows us the rich history and culture of these places. It helps us see how language can be different even inside one country. It also helps scientists and historians understand how people and ideas moved over many years.

History

During the time of Old High German, only two groups of dialects were called Upper German: Alemannic and Bairisch. Later, in the Middle High German time, East Franconian and sometimes South Franconian joined this group. Swabian then separated from Alemannic because of changes in how words were pronounced in New High German.

Main article: Old High German
Main articles: Alemannic, Bairisch
Main article: Middle High German
Main articles: East Franconian, South Franconian
Main article: Swabian

Family tree

Upper German is a group of dialects spoken in southern Germany. It includes the Alemannic and Bavarian groups. The High Franconian dialects, spoken up to the Speyer line, are sometimes included too. They have features of both Upper and Central German, so how they are classified can vary.

Upper German can be divided in different ways. One way includes North Upper German (East and South Franconian), West Upper German (Swabian and Alemannic), and East Upper German (Bavarian). Other groupings exist, showing the many different dialects in places like Baden-Württemberg, Switzerland, Austria, and more.

Langobardic (Lombardic)

Langobardic, also called Lombardic, was an old language that people stopped speaking around the year 1000. It is sometimes grouped with the Upper German languages because it changed in a special way called the High German consonant shift. However, some people are still unsure exactly where Langobardic belongs among the old German languages.