Contents.English Alternative forms. ( obsolete)Etymology +‎, English from the 17th century,.The various usages of the adjective are introduced nearly simultaneously in the first half of the 17th century. The literal meaning “of the Goths” is found in the 1611 preface of the King James Bible, in reference to the Gothicke tongue.

• Gothic 3 German Speech Pack
• Gothic German Alphabet

Gothic 3 German Speech Pack

The generalized meaning of “Germanic, Teutonic” appears in the 1640s. Reference to the medieval period in Western Europe, and specifically the architecture of that period (“barbaric style”, initially a term of abuse), also appears in the 1640s, as does reference to “Gothic characters” or “Gothic letters” in typography.Pronunciation.

( ) : /ˈɡɒ.θɪk/. ( ) : /ˈɡɑ.θɪk/. Rhymes:Proper noun Gothic. An extinct, once spoken by the.Derived terms.Translations.

Non-statutory minority languageThis article contains phonetic symbols. Without proper, you may see instead of characters. For an introductory guide on IPA symbols, see.German ( Deutsch, pronounced ( )) is a that is mainly spoken in. It is the most widely spoken and official or co-official language in, in, the. It is one of the three official languages of and a co-official language in the in. The languages that are most similar to German are the other members of the West Germanic language branch, including, the,. There are strong similarities in vocabulary with, and, although those belong to the group.

German is the second most widely spoken, after English.One of the, German is a to almost 100 million people worldwide and the most widely spoken native language in the. German is the third most commonly spoken foreign language in the EU after English and, making it the second biggest language in the EU in terms of overall speakers. German is also the second most widely taught foreign language in the EU after English at primary school level (but third after English and French at lower secondary level), the fourth most widely taught non-English language in the US (after, and ), and the second most commonly used scientific language as well as the third most widely used language on websites after. The are ranked fifth in terms of annual publication of new books, with one tenth of all books (including e-books) in the world being published in the German language. In the, German and French are the most sought-after foreign languages for businesses (with 49% and 50% of businesses identifying these two languages as the most useful, respectively).German is an with four for nouns, pronouns and adjectives (nominative, accusative, genitive, dative), three genders (masculine, feminine, neuter), two numbers (singular, plural),. It derives the majority of its vocabulary from the ancient Germanic branch of the language family.

A portion of the words are derived from and, and fewer are borrowed from. With standardized variants (, and Standard German), German is a. It is also notable for its, with many unique varieties existing in Europe and also other parts of the world.

Italy recognizes all the German minorities in its territory as national historic minorities and protects the varieties of German spoken in several regions of besides South Tyrol. Due to the limited intelligibility between certain varieties and, as well as the lack of an undisputed, scientific difference between a 'dialect' and a 'language', some German varieties or dialect groups (e.g. Or ) are alternatively referred to as 'languages' or 'dialects'. Contents.Classification Modern is a descended from the branch of the.

The Germanic languages are traditionally subdivided into three branches:,. The first of these branches survives in modern, and, all of which are descended from. The East Germanic languages are now extinct, and the only historical member of this branch from which written texts survive is. The West Germanic languages, however, have undergone extensive dialectal subdivision and are now represented in modern languages such as, German, and others. The in EuropeWithin the West Germanic language dialect continuum, the and lines (running through - and -, respectively) serve to distinguish the Germanic dialects that were affected by the (south of Benrath) from those that were not (north of Uerdingen).

The various regional dialects spoken south of these lines are grouped as dialects (nos. 29–34 on the map), while those spoken to the north comprise the (nos.

19–24) and (no. 25) dialects. As members of the West Germanic language family, High German, Low German, and Low Franconian can be further distinguished historically as, and, respectively. This classification indicates their historical descent from dialects spoken by the Irminones (also known as the Elbe group), Ingvaeones (or North Sea Germanic group), and Istvaeones (or Weser-Rhine group).is based on a combination of - and Upper Franconian and Bavarian dialects, which are and Upper German dialects, belonging to the Irminonic dialect group (nos. German is therefore closely related to the other languages based on High German dialects, such as (based on – no. Also closely related to Standard German are the dialects spoken in the southern, such as ( – no. 34), and the various Germanic dialects spoken in the of, such as (mainly Alemannic, but also Central- and (no.

32) dialects) and (Central Franconian – no. 29).After these High German dialects, standard German is (somewhat less closely) related to languages based on Low Franconian dialects (e.g. Dutch and Afrikaans) or Low German/Low Saxon dialects (spoken in northern and southern ), neither of which underwent the High German consonant shift.

As has been noted, the former of these dialect types is Istvaeonic and the latter Ingvaeonic, whereas the High German dialects are all Irminonic; the differences between these languages and standard German are therefore considerable. Also related to German are the Frisian languages— (spoken in – no. 28), (spoken in – no. 27), and (spoken in – no. 26)—as well as the Anglic languages of.

These dialects are all members of the Ingvaeonic family of West Germanic languages which did not take part in the High German consonant shift.History. Main article:The begins with the during the, which separated (OHG) dialects from. This involved a drastic change in the pronunciation of both and voiceless ( b, d, g, and p, t, k, respectively). Main article:While there is no complete agreement over the dates of the (MHG) period, it is generally seen as lasting from 1050 to 1350. This was a period of significant expansion of the geographical territory occupied by Germanic tribes, and consequently of the number of German speakers. Whereas during the Old High German period the Germanic tribes extended only as far east as the and rivers, the MHG period saw a number of these tribes expanding beyond this eastern boundary into territory (this is known as the ). Along with the increasing wealth and geographic extent of the Germanic groups came greater use of German in the courts of nobles as the standard language of official proceedings and literature.

A clear example of this is the mittelhochdeutsche Dichtersprache employed in the court in as a standardized supra-dialectal written language. While these efforts were still regionally bound, German began to be used in place of Latin for certain official purposes, leading to a greater need for regularity in written conventions.While the major changes of the MHG period were socio-cultural, German was still undergoing significant linguistic changes in syntax, phonetics, and morphology as well (e.g. Of certain vowel sounds: hus (OHG 'house') →haus (MHG), and weakening of unstressed short vowels to ə: taga (OHG 'days')→ tage (MHG)).A great wealth of texts survives from the MHG period. Significantly, among this repertoire are a number of impressive secular works, such as the, an telling the story of the -slayer (c. 13th century), and the, an verse poem by (c. 1203), as well as several and courtly romances such as.

(Also noteworthy is the, the first book of laws written in (c. The abundance and especially the secular character of the literature of the MHG period demonstrate the beginnings of a standardized written form of German, as well as the desire of poets and authors to be understood by individuals on supra-dialectal terms.The Middle High German period is generally seen as ending with the decimation of the population of in the of 1346–1353. Early New High German. Other (7.3%)Due to the as well as German being the second most widely spoken language in Europe and the third most widely taught in the US and the EU (in upper secondary education) amongst others, the (or 'Germanophones') spans all inhabited continents.

As for the number of speakers of any language worldwide, an assessment is always compromised by the lack of sufficient, reliable data. For an exact, global number of native German speakers, this is further complicated by the existence of several varieties whose status as separate 'languages' or 'dialects' is disputed for political and/or linguistic reasons, including quantitatively strong varieties like certain forms of (e.g., ) and /Plautdietsch. Mostly depending on the inclusion or exclusion of certain varieties, it is estimated that approximately 90–95 million people speak German as a, 10–25 million as a, and 75–100 million as a. This would imply approximately 175–220 million German speakers worldwide. It is estimated that also including all persons who are or were taking German classes, i.e., regardless of their actual proficiency, would amount to about 280 million people worldwide with at least some knowledge of German.Europe and Asia. Main article:In Europe, German is the second most widely spoken mother tongue (after Russian) and the second biggest language in terms of overall speakers (after English).

The area in central Europe where the majority of the population speaks German as a first language and has German as a (co-)official language is called the '. It comprises an estimated 88 million native speakers and 10 million who speak German as a second language (e.g. Main article:Namibia was of the from 1884 to 1919. Mostly descending from German settlers who immigrated during this time, 25–30,000 people still speak German as a native tongue today. The period of German colonialism in Namibia also led to the evolution of a Standard German-based language called ', which became a second language for parts of the indigenous population. Although it is nearly extinct today, some older Namibians still have some knowledge of it.German, along with English and was a co-official language of Namibia from 1984 until its independence from in 1990. At this point, the Namibian government perceived Afrikaans and German as symbols of and colonialism, and decided English would be the sole official language, stating that it was a 'neutral' language as there were virtually no English native speakers in Namibia at that time.

German, Afrikaans and several indigenous languages became 'national languages' by law, identifying them as elements of the cultural heritage of the nation and ensuring that the state acknowledged and supported their presence in the country. Today, German is used in a wide variety of spheres, especially business and tourism, as well as the churches (most notably the German-speaking ), schools (e.g. The ), literature (German-Namibian authors include Giselher W. Hoffmann), radio (the produces radio programs in German), and music (e.g. The is one of the three biggest newspapers in Namibia and the only German-language daily in Africa.

South Africa Mostly originating from different waves of immigration during the 19th and 20th centuries, an estimated 12,000 people speak German or a German variety as a first language in. One of the largest communities consists of the speakers of 'Nataler Deutsch', a variety of, concentrated in and around. The small town of in the Province also has a mostly German-speaking population.

The South African constitution identifies German as a 'commonly used' language and the is obligated to promote and ensure respect for it. The community is strong enough that several German International schools are supported such as the.North America. Main articles:, andIn the United States, the states of and are the only states where German is the most common language spoken at home after English. German geographical names can be found throughout the Midwest region of the country, such as and many other towns in; (North Dakota's state capital), and (named after a town near Odessa in Ukraine) in North Dakota;, Weimar, and in Texas; Corn (formerly Korn), Kiefer and Berlin in Oklahoma; and, and in Wisconsin.South America Brazil. Knowledge of German as a in the member states (+), in per cent of the adult population (+15), 2005.Like and, German has become a classic second foreign language in the western world, as ( in the US) is well established as the first foreign language.

German ranks second (after English) among the best known foreign languages in the EU (on a par with French) as well as in. In terms of student numbers across all levels of education, German ranks third in the EU (after English and French) as well as in the United States (after Spanish and French). In 2015, approximately 15.4 million people were in the process of learning German across all levels of education worldwide. As this number remained relatively stable since 2005 (± 1 million), roughly 75–100 million people able to communicate in German as foreign language can be inferred assuming an average course duration of three years and other estimated parameters.

According to a 2012 survey, 47 million people within the EU (i.e., up to two thirds of the 75–100 million worldwide) claimed to have sufficient German skills to have a conversation. Within the EU, not counting countries where it is an official language, German as a foreign language is most popular in and, namely the, the,.

German was once, and to some extent still is, a in those parts of Europe. Standard German. Knowledge of Standard German within the states of the European UnionStandard German has its base from the, which was translated by and originated from the Saxon court language as a convenient norm. However, there are places where the traditional regional dialects have been replaced by new vernaculars based on standard German; that is the case in large stretches of but also in major cities in other parts of the country. It is important to note, however, that the colloquial standard German differs greatly from the formal written language, especially in grammar and syntax, in which it has been influenced by dialectal speech.Standard German differs regionally among German-speaking countries in and some instances of and even. This variation must not be confused with the variation of local.

Even though the regional varieties of standard German are only somewhat influenced by the local dialects, they are very distinct. German is thus considered a.In most regions, the speakers use a continuum from more dialectal varieties to more standard varieties depending on the circumstances.Varieties of Standard German. The national and regional standard varieties of GermanIn German, German are distinguished from of.The varieties of standard German refer to the different local varieties of the standard German. They differ only slightly in lexicon and phonology.

Gothic German Alphabet

In certain regions, they have replaced the traditional German dialects, especially in Northern Germany.In the German-speaking parts of, mixtures of dialect and standard are very seldom used, and the use of Standard German is largely restricted to the written language, though about 11% of the Swiss residents speak High German (aka Standard German) at home, but mainly due to German immigrants. This situation has been called a medial. Is used in the Swiss education system, while is officially used in the Austrian education system.A mixture of dialect and standard does not normally occur in Northern Germany either.

The traditional varieties there are Low German, whereas Standard German is a High German 'variety'. Because their linguistic distance is greater, they do not mesh with Standard German the way that High German dialects (such as Bavarian, Swabian, and Hessian) can.Dialects. The continental dialectsGerman is a member of the of the, which in turn is part of the. The German dialects are the traditional local varieties; many of them are hardly understandable to someone who knows only standard German, and they have great differences in,. If a narrow definition of based on is used, many German dialects are considered to be separate languages (for instance in the ). However, such a point of view is unusual in German linguistics.The German dialect continuum is traditionally divided most broadly into and, also called.

However, historically, High German dialects and Low Saxon/Low German dialects do not belong to the same language. Nevertheless, in today's Germany, Low Saxon/Low German is often perceived as a dialectal variation of Standard German on a functional level even by many native speakers. The same phenomenon is found in the eastern Netherlands, as the traditional dialects are not always identified with their Low Saxon/Low German origins, but with Dutch. The variation among the German dialects is considerable, with often only neighbouring dialects being mutually intelligible. Some dialects are not intelligible to people who know only Standard German.

However, all German dialects belong to the dialect continuum of High German and Low Saxon.Low German and Low Saxon. The (yellow) and (orange) dialectswas the of the. It was the predominant language in Northern Germany until the 16th century. In 1534, the was published. The translation is considered to be an important step towards the evolution of the. It aimed to be understandable to a broad audience and was based mainly on and varieties. The Early New High German language gained more prestige than and became the language of science and literature.

Around the same time, the Hanseatic League, based around northern ports, lost its importance as new trade routes to and the were established, and the most powerful German states of that period were located in Middle and Southern Germany.The 18th and 19th centuries were marked by mass in in schools. Gradually, Low German came to be politically viewed as a mere dialect spoken by the uneducated. Today, Low Saxon can be divided in two groups: Low Saxon varieties with a reasonable Standard German influx and varieties of Standard German with a Low Saxon influence known as. Sometimes, Low Saxon and varieties are grouped together because both are unaffected by the High German consonant shift.

However, the proportion of the population who can understand and speak it has decreased continuously since. The largest cities in the Low German area are and.Low Franconian. TheThe dialects are the dialects that are more closely related to than to. Most of the Low Franconian dialects are spoken in the and in, where they are considered as dialects of Dutch, which is itself a Low Franconian language. In Germany, Low Franconian dialects are spoken in the northwest of, along the.

The Low Franconian dialects spoken in Germany are referred to as or Low Rhenish. In the north of the German Low Franconian language area, North Low Franconian dialects (also referred to as Cleverlands or as dialects of ) are spoken.

These dialects are more closely related to Dutch (also North Low Franconian) than the South Low Franconian dialects (also referred to as East and, east of the, ), which are spoken in the south of the German Low Franconian language area. The South Low Franconian dialects are more closely related to Limburgish than to Dutch, and are transitional dialects between Low Franconian and. The dialects are the easternmost Low Franconian dialects, and are transitional dialects between North- and South Low Franconian, and (Low German), with most of their features being North Low Franconian. The largest cities in the German Low Franconian area are and.High German. High vista golf course. Further information:German does not have any (as English th). The th sounds, which the English language still has, disappeared on the continent in German with the consonant shifts between the 8th and the 10th centuries.

Main article:The German language is used in German literature and can be traced back to the, with the most notable authors of the period being and.The, whose author remains unknown, is also an important work of the epoch. The fairy tales collections collected and published by in the 19th century became famous throughout the world.Reformer and theologian, who was the first to translate the Bible into German, is widely credited for having set the basis for the modern 'High German' language. Among the most well known poets and authors in German are,. Thirteen German-speaking people have won the:, and.(1749–1832)(1759–1805)(1785–1863)(1875–1955)(1877–1962)German loanwords in the English language. The status of Low German as a German variety or separate language is subject to discussion. The status of Luxembourgish as a German variety or separate language is subject to discussion. The status of Plautdietsch as a German variety or separate language is subject to discussion.

Germany's prestige was reflected in efforts by Chileans to bring German knowledge to Chile in the late 19th century. Institutions like the and, aimed at were heavily influenced by Germany. In the second half of the 19th century Germany displaced France as the prime role model for Chile. This however met some criticism when wrote disparangingly about a 'German bewichment'. German influence in science and culture declined after, yet German remained highly prestigious and influential after the war.Citations.