German is the mother tongue of 100 million people worldwide. A total of about 120 million people speak German. The first German dictionary was created by Johan Christoph Adelung in 1781. And in 1852, the brothers Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm began to compile a new dictionary. Work on it was completed only by 1961. Now he is constantly updated with new words. The German grammar is normalized during the 19th century.
Where do they speak German and why?
Those who are interested in which countries speak German, probably know about its prevalence throughout Europe. German is second only to English. The spread of German is associated not only with cultural characteristics, but also with business necessity.
Some believe that for a successful career, only knowledge of the English language is enough. But this is far from the case. Firstly, German is the official language of the European Union. In which countries do they speak German, and where is it official? After Germany it is Austria, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Belgium. Secondly, to work in many concerns and enterprises in Germany and even Europe, knowledge of the German language is required.
Why is German official in Austria?
Everyone who is looking for the answer to the question “In which countries do they speak German?” Must have heard of Austria. Here German is spoken, first of all, in view of the historical past of this country. At various times, Austria was part of the empires and kingdoms in which they spoke German.
Residents of this country use a special dialect - Bavarian. The name "Austria" was first mentioned only in the 18th century. Prior to this, Austria is part of Bavaria. Interestingly, throughout its history, Austria has also been part of such entities as the Holy Roman Empire, Austria-Hungary and the Third Reich.
Can a German and an Austrian be able to understand each other?
The dialect of the German language in Austria is so different from the generally accepted literary language that even a German and an Austrian cannot always understand each other. That is why the question “In which countries speak German except Germany” is not entirely correct. Some scholars are convinced that if Austria were geographically more distant from Germany, then the Austrian dialect of German would eventually turn into a separate language. And this new language could no longer be distinguished from the original version.
In which countries do they speak German other than Austria? Another state in which German is accepted as official is Switzerland. However, not everything is so simple here. The Swiss use official German only in written language. They conduct everyday conversation in a local dialect. Even instead of the word Danke, which means “Thank you,” they pronounce what came from the French Merci. Interestingly, in fact, in Switzerland, the most popular is now English. Even graffiti on the walls here like to write in English. And the inhabitants of Zurich call their city Little big city - “a small big city”.
What languages are actually spoken in Belgium
German, along with Flemish and French, is the official language of Belgium. Education there can be obtained on any of them. However, de facto residents of this country speak only Flemish and French. Most of the Belgian population is Flemish - immigrants from Flanders. In the southern part of the country, the Walloons live - representatives of the French-speaking ethnic group. Near the eastern border of Switzerland there is a small population that mainly uses the German language for communication.
Interestingly, for a successful job, any resident of Belgium needs fluency in both the Flemish language and French. The French-speaking population has long been known for their dislike of the Flemish language. Why learn the language, say French-speaking Belgians, spoken by only 6 million people? Although, if we add the population of Holland to this figure , we get a slightly larger figure - 22 million people.
German dialects in Germany
In fact, the question “In which countries do they speak German officially?” in a certain sense it will not sound quite correct. The fact is that not many residents of German-speaking countries use the generally accepted literary version of the German language. Even in Germany they speak a huge variety of German dialects. These are Berlin, Kölsch ("Kelsch", a dialect of the city of Cologne), Bavarian and Berlin dialects, and many others. The literary version, which broadcasts news on television and prints newspapers, is called Hoch Deutsch ("Hoch Deutsch").
Literary German. Is it universally accepted everywhere?
Now almost every diversified university graduate can list in which countries they speak German. However, this does not mean that in these regions German is actually used in its traditional sense. Literary German does not apply to countries such as Austria, Switzerland and Luxembourg. It is believed that Austrian German is most similar to the German that is spoken in Germany.
Interestingly, in Switzerland and Luxembourg, when showing news, you can see subtitles in the literary language Hoch Deutsch. Most of the entertainment and radio broadcasts are in local German. When traveling to Germany, you must also remember the following rule: you can never tell a German that he speaks a dialect, since the representative of each region considers his version of German to be the only true one.
German dialect and features of the Swiss mentality
From the Swiss-German language, however, some new concepts appeared that became generally accepted. For example, this is the well-known word "muesli". And also “decis”, or “resti” - the name of traditional Swiss potato pancakes. They say that the Swiss national character is a bizarre mixture of the spirit of a peasant and a frugal banker.
For example, the Swiss often say: "It's dark, like in a cow." Most likely, this phrase originated somewhere in the peasant outback, on alpine pastures. Another proverb that came to Sweden from the German language is also known: Die Morgenstunde hat Gold im Munde. Literally, it translates as “Morning hour carries gold in the mouth” - its analogue may be Russian “He who rises early, God serves him.”
However, in addition to confusion with German dialects, the Swiss have more to break their heads. After all, there are four official languages in this country - in addition to German, it is Romansh, Italian and French. Therefore, on the packaging of Swiss milk, there is hardly any place for the image of a cow - the entire package is dotted with the composition and storage rules in all four languages.
Where else is German studied
In addition to the interest in which countries speak German, the list can be replenished by those states where German is studied as part of the school curriculum. Hoch Deutsch is studied as a foreign language in the Scandinavian countries, in the Netherlands, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia and even Japan. And German is often taught in secondary schools in Belarus.