Aside from riding in horse driven carriages, the Amish culture is also widely known for their interesting dialect. In an article by J. William Frey, he goes into depth about the differences and uniqueness of the Amish language.
More prominently in Pennsylvania, the Amish people use at least three different languages in their day-today lives; American High German, Pennsylvanian Dutch and of course English. The Pennsylvanian Dutch more resembles Palatine German folk speech even though there have been several exterior influences that have come into contact with it since the year 1683. American High German has only been spoken by the Amish beginning in past century, and the only reason it has flourished there in Pennsylvania is because of the Lutheran and Reformed pulpits. Most outsiders to the Amish culture dismiss the use of the Pennsylvania Dutch they use and describe it more as, “garbled English in the mouths of ignorant farmers who speak with a heavy Dutch accent!” (Frey 85).
However as much as most people would consider them to be trilingual, technically the Amish culture can only be considered bilingual as the use of American High German is not frequently used by them. In this day and age, the Amish people can no longer converse in High German and instead only hear it when their parents read aloud from the German Bible, hymn and prayer books or scriptural passages. In contradiction to the information above the Frey explains that there is an exception to speaking three different languages in the Amish culture. The Old Order Amish of Lancaster County actually do speak three different languages and do so often.
Frey delves into the explanation that in Lancaster County, the Amish that preside there speak a mix of Amish High German and Pennsylvania Dutch English. A hangover from the German-preaching days, Amish High German has some peculiarities in pronunciation (typically Amish), that have been spoken in the last century. The Amish that live in Lancaster County also speak English; however, Frey surmises that it is one of the three languages that are “forced” among them. They only use it when speaking with non-Amish people in different towns or cities, or in public schools. Frey describes it as “American English built on a framework of Pennsylvania Dutch phonemic patterns and interjected continually with whole or part loan-translations from the dialect” (Frey 86). Frey then goes into depth explaining the phonetic rules and stipulations of the Amish language and gather that there are English loan-words used by the Amish.
Finally, Frey explains the schedule of events held at church in the Amish culture. He talks about the foods that are served before and after the service as well as where women and men sit, when they stand, when they kneel and the time capacity of one of these religious services. Frey concludes his article by saying that there is a lot more research that could be done to delve further into exploring the languages used by the Amish, and that not only would it take a lot of time but also a lot of effort on one’s part.
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By: Lamonica Bettes Amish ‘Triple-Talk’ by J. William Frey discusses the three languages that Pennsylvania Dutch speaks. The dialects include Pennsylvania Dutch (German), which resembles Palatine German folk speech, High German (American High German), American English. Although these are the basic forms of the languages used by Amish speaking people, the dialects differ within certain Amish cultures in different states. The topic of ‘triple-talk’ comes into play when author Frey focuses on the dialect of the Old Older Amish of Lancaster County. The author says that the Amish people that speak the Old Older Amish are trilingual. Within this socio-religious and linguistic group the Amish speak an intermixed tongue that includes Amish Pennsylvania Dutch, Amish High German, and Pennsylvania Dutch English. Amish Pennsylvania Dutch is like the dialect spoken in other sections of eastern Pennsylvania by non-Amish groups, and is understood by anyone from those regions who converse with the local Amish people. Amish High German is used mainly for preaching, praying, and singing hymns. Then there’s Pennsylvania Dutch English, which is a form of English used only when speaking to non-amish people as in schools, towns, etc. Within each section of the article Frey shows the pronunciation of letters as well as words used within the ‘triple-talk’ dialect. Within each description of the three dialects the author shows how words are formed. The relation between English and Amish language was also shown by the fact that “loan words” are sometimes used in the Amish language. Loan words are words or letters from the English language. Then the author concludes the article by saying, “In conclusion we may say that the linguistic problems presented by the 'triple-talk' of the Old Order Amish are many. Each of the three tongues influences the other two to some degree.”
The article is focus on an Amish language has involved three dialects which are Pennsylvania Dutch, High German and New High German. They are almost the same but sometimes the consonants or vowels are different in the same words. It makes me related to the Chinese dialects. Although most people call the Chinese language as Mandarin, we still have many kinds of dialects subordinate the Mandarin. Like me, my mother language is not Mandarin, it is Cantonese. There are many differences between Mandarin and Cantonese even though they are also called Chinese and use most of common Chinese words. Except Cantonese, there is Beijing dialect, Shanghai dialect, Sichun dialect and so on. Therefore, I think it is the situation which is similar to the Amish language.
ReplyDeleteThis article was interesting, I had no idea that the Amish speak three dialects/languages. I don't really think incorporating parts of language could be considered trilingual, as the author said. Most cultures borrow pieces of other languages into their own, and only the test of time is to say how much one uses it or not. I understand the use of different dialects but I it's hard for me to relate to how much of each language one is using, since English is my only language. I assume it must be very hard for the Amish to keep all of their traditions alive considering they have a small following and do not utilize any modern conveniences.
ReplyDeleteBefore reading this article I did not know that the Amish spoke up to three different languages and dialects. I had never been introduced to their culture so I find this article very interesting. I wonder how they continue with their traditions and live in such a confined way. But from the article it seems that their languages has withstood time. I also wonder which language they are introduced to first, or which they are comfortable using.
ReplyDeleteI was unaware prior to reading this article that Amish people speak multiple languages. I knew that they spoke a language other than English becuase of religion reasons such as reading different biblical works. I'm assuming that the reason Amish people speak multiple languages would be strictly because of religion purposes since they're not a very international people and don't really have the need to learn other languages for the intentions of speaking to multiple cultures. I think it's very interesting that there is a completely different culture--the Amsih--amongst our usual American culture. It's also interesting that they even speak differently than most Americans.
ReplyDeleteI did not know that Amish people spoke other languages than English.Therefore, I found this article to be of some interest. Also, I thought it was odd that they speak forms of German, because I did not know that Amish people were mostly German. Moreover, I think that it makes sense that a sub-culture like this one would have their own dialect and language, because they are their own kind of world.
ReplyDeleteIn this article it focuses on the Amish Language in which they use as dialect. Little did I know and I am sure the rest of the class did not know is that the Amish people use three different dialects. Those would be Pennsylvania Dutch, High German and New High German. Can we say that this is simply amazing! I found this article very interesting because of the way they have different languages to communicate, I only thought that they used English as there primary language. Then again most cultures or if any use different languages to be used into there language. Because I use English as my primary language I can also speak spanish but because I am from Chicago I tend to use "Spanglish." This is incorporating Spanish and English together which is very funny. All in all I truly believe that this article was really boring and less interesting to read. Kind of made me sleepy when I read it.
ReplyDeleteI really believe that this article really made me take into account that every culture has many ways of dialect in which one specific culture can have various dialect. Which is why I explain that the Amish dialect is a very interesting one to look upon, because they have three total dialects which are various of German language. I assumed in the beginning before reading this excerpt was that the Amish only spoke English but I guess I cannot judge the book by its cover. One of the many reasons I believe they have an amount of dialect is due to the fact of language carrying over other languages in which the Amish possessed three. culture nowadays does that, plentiful cultures carries over different language in which some people adapt to different languages for a similar example is spanish and English many americans wants to speak Spanish to be "Bilingual." Lastly, I believe that the summary written by the specific student did a tremendous job detailing wonderful examples.
ReplyDeleteThe Amish language blog
ReplyDeleteWhile I was not aware that the Amish had a different dialect, the news comes as no surprise. Considering their extremely secluded lifestyle, their way of speaking has been able to be nurtured without any outside influence. What did come, as a shock though was when the article referred to the Amish as being Bi-lingual or “can only be considered Bi-lingual” I didn’t know there was that much complexity, I assumed Amish communities spoke English, maybe a different dialect but not an entire language different. The end of the summery also mentions how a particular protocol is expected of men and women. Along with a different phonetic rule and stipulations of the Amish language. It is interesting to think that an entire subculture could create their own completely independent from the rest of society, even in the context of language. Which is where many subcultures sort of stem their identity. And I think this subculture is no different.
In reading the article it was interesting to find out that the Amish people speak multiple languages; these languages being Dutch and two forms of German as well as English. I believe the uses of different dialects are necessary and beneficial, because it is a way of communicating different meanings and understandings of a particular language. Also because they up hold certain cultures and it would be terrible to lose those cultures in our history. This article brought upon some thoughts, such as how was the Amish people able to function throughout time with the three different languages. I imagine that it would be hard, simply because here in the United States we still have not figured out ways of communicating with people who do not speak our native language. Overall the article was insightful and it opened up my mind to the reality that certain cultures embrace more than one language and fluently utilize it.
ReplyDeleteLike many of my classmates, I thought that it was interesting to learn that Amish speak multiple languages. I have grew up near an Amish community and can remember often times going to the Amish store with my mom to buy some of their spices and home made products. I have only heard them speak English so I found this to be quite shocking.
ReplyDeleteI think this topic is interesting because it provides a contrasting case to the speech patterns of other minority ethnic groups living in the US. A minority non-English speaking population in the US seems to typically transition from speaking only their native language and maybe whatever amount of English will get them by, to their children being fluently bi-lingual, to later generations often adopting English completely and dropping their native tongue (this is of course a very broad generalization, but of all the German, Italian, Polish and other ethnic populations living in the US now, how many of them actually speak the language of their ancestors anymore?). This transition process occurs because while their are indeed numerous cultures and languages in America, English is the de facto language of the culture, and immigrants typically need or feel the need to acquire it in order to assimilate into society. The case with the Amish is different, however, because their culture is based on not assimilating. Their community is intentionally separate from the surrounding society, so speaking English is not so important. Many immigrant cultures have been insular like this for at least the first couple generations or so, but the Amish, since they are not necessarily "immigrants" in the typical sense, have no interest in assimilating into the mainstream society, therefore their non-English languages can survive so long as their communities remain insular.
ReplyDeleteI thought that this article was very interesting. I was not aware that Amish people spoke multiple different languages, I thought that they only spoke English. To learn that they speak Dutch as well as German made me think of Amish people a little differently. I also thought it was interesting that because of all the different languages that they use they have created a completely different dialect, using parts from all three languages. I have always had an interest in the Amish, so I like that this article talked about something that is not typically discussed by many.
ReplyDeleteThe article focuses on the Amish, and their ability to speak three different languages. This article was not very interesting; however both students a wonderful job summarizing. But, I do like the fact that the Amish speak three different languages; they might be different when it comes to secular beliefs, but it nice to know that there are some Americans (even if they are a bit odd) that know different languages. I grew up learning two different languages, and it always concerned me when my peers only knew one.
ReplyDeleteI live out in the country and talk to them all the time. I guess I am just so used to it I never noticed they talked in a different dialect. It is interesting though that a german like dialect is in there. I mayself have never picked up on this. Of course the ones out by my house don't talk much to people who are not amish, and for good reason really. But the AMish are nice people, they always wave. They also talk to me sometimes, I find it odd they have an accent and I never noticed.
ReplyDeleteI thought this article was very interesting, and I learned something new. The Amish speak three different dialects. That is 100% more than I thought. I had no idea they didn't speak English like we do. The Amish are nothing new to me. My Oma use to take us to Arthur to the Amish grocery store on Saturdays. The Amish culture is fascinating, and now I know a little more about them.
ReplyDeleteThe Article ‘Triple-Talk’ by J. William Frey discusses the three languages that Pennsylvania Dutch speak. I have had several encounters with Amish people they are very hard working and honest people and I have alot of respect for them. I can honestly say I never knew that the Amish have more than one language and I actually found this article to be very interesting. Many believe that Amish are a minority but really they are a sub-group of Americans and they stay true to their beliefs which I find very admirable.
ReplyDeleteBefore reading this article I was not aware that the Amish spoke a variety of three different languages. I knew that they spoke a variant of one of the three old German tongues, as well as a little English. It is interesting to see how little this group's language has been influenced over the years. I believe that most of their vowels, but may be wrong, are similar to the OE(Old English) pronunciations before they were raised coming into ME(Middle English). I hope that a study can be created on this language of theirs before it changes too much.
ReplyDeleteThis was very interesting article. /first of all I never even heard of Amish language. It was very intriguing to learn about more about different cultures and beliefs. I feel like now that I have read this i now have a broader outlook on the various aspects of life.
ReplyDeleteIt is very interesting to learn that the Amish culture has three different dialects involved within in it. To me, this makes it seem hard to learn all three dialects in order to be able to communicate. Although I do understand where the author is coming from, I do not believe that the three 'dialects' are, in their own, each a separate language. I feel as if they are just slightly different from each other while borrowing and adding a few different things.
ReplyDeleteThis article was very interesting to read because I did not have any prior knowledge about Amish people and their language. I found it very interesting that they speak three languages/dialects. I agreed with the author when he talked about incorporating parts of language could be considered trilingual. I always just assumed the language Amish people spoke was English. I know the Amish are strict in religion, so I would assume that has something to do with the multiple languages. It was interesting to me to read about the Amish because I went to visit where they live in Pennsylvania. Being able to read an article like this let me make a connection between seeing them in person and actually reading about them on paper. The Amish have a lifestyle that is very different from what we know. So once reading the details of the article, it was not too surprising to read about the different dialects.
ReplyDeleteThis article was extremely interesting and informative.Its amazing the Amish have three different dialects and uses them all. I thought the Amish were very straight forward and sort of stuck in old times, but really language wise they are past us "modern" folks. This article allowed me to open my eyes to different values and different attributes other cultures can offer.
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