Alsatian language

Encyclopedia : A : AL : ALS : Alsatian language

This inscription in Alsatian on a window in Eguisheim, Alsace, reads:
Dis Hausz sted in Godes Hand - God bewar es vor Feyru
("This house stands in God's hand - God beware it for fire")

Alsatian (French Alsacien, German Elsässisch) is a Low Alemannic German dialect spoken in Alsace, a region in eastern France which has passed between French and German control many times.

Though not readily intelligible to speakers of standard German, it is closely related to other nearby Alemannic dialects, such as Swiss German, Swabian, and Badisch with French influences. It is often confused with the Frankish language, a more distantly related German Western Franconian dialect. Both are called alsacien in French.

Many speakers write in standard German, although street names (formerly only in French, now bilingual in some places, especially Strasbourg) may use local spellings.

As the constitution of the Fifth Republic states that French is the language of the Republic, no regional language is granted any official status in France. However, the French government has included Alsatian in the list of languages of France.

Microsoft has announced an Alsatian version of Office 2007.

Examples

External links

• [Euromosaic - German in France] - The status of German Languages in France.

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