German (Deutsch)

German is a West Germanic language spoken mainly in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Belgium, Luxembourg and Italy. It is recognised as a minority language in Czech Republic, Denmark, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Namibia, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, South Africa, Vatican City and Venezuela. There are also significant German-speaking communities in the USA, Canada, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Australia, South Africa, Chile, Paraguay, New Zealand and Peru.

Number of speakers

Standard German (Hochdeutsch) has around 90 million native speakers, and other varieties of German have some 30 million. There are about 80 million people who speak German as a second language, and many others study it as a foreign language.

Written German

The earliest known examples of written German date from the 8th century AD and consist of fragments of an epic poem, the Song of Hildebrand, magical charms and German glosses in Latin manuscripts. A short Latin-German dictionary, the Abrogans, was written during the 760s.

German at a glance

Native name: Deutsch [ˈdɔʏtʃ]
Language family: Indo-European, Germanic, West Germanic, High German
Number of speakers: c. 200 million
Spoken in: Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Lichtenstein
First written: AD 760s
Writing system: Latin script
Status: official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy (South Tyrol), Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Belgium and the EU; recognised minority language in the Czech Republic, Denmark, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Namibia, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, South Africa, Vatican City and Venezuela

German literature started to take off during the 12th and 13th centuries in the form of poems, epics and romances. Well-known examples include the epic Nibelungenlied (the Song of the Nibelungs) and Gottfried von Straßburg's Tristan. The language used is now known as mittelhochdeutsche Dichtersprache (Middle High German poetic language). During this period Latin was gradually replaced by German as the language of official documents.

Varieties of German used in writing

High German (Hochdeutsch)

High German began to emerge as the standard literary language during the 16th century. Martin Luther's translation of the Bible, which he completed in 1534, marks the beginning of this process. The language he used, based partly on spoken German, became the model for written German.

Swiss German (Schweizerdeutsch or Schwyzerdütsch)

A variety of German spoken by about 4 million people in Switzerland, occasionally appears in writing in novels, newspapers, personal letters and diaries.

Pennsylvania Dutch/German (Deitsch / Pennsylvania Deitsch / Pennsilfaanisch Deitsch)

Pennsylvania Dutch is a variety of German spoken by about 250,000 mainly in Pennsylvania, Ohio and Indiana in the USA, and in Ontario in Canada. The Pennsylvania Dutch newspaper Hiwwe wie Driwwe publishes poetry and prose in Pennsylvania Dutch, and there are a number of other publications featuring the language. Pennsylvania German is commonly referred to as Pennsylvania Dutch, however it is not a variety of Dutch.

Regional varities of German, or Mundarten, also occasionally appear in writing; mainly in 'folk' literature and comic books such as Asterix.

Written German script styles

Sütterlin

Sütterlin was created by the Berlin graphic artist L. Sütterlin (1865-1917), who modelled it on the style of handwriting used in the old German Chancery. It was taught in German schools from 1915 to 1941 and is still used by the older generation.

Sütterlin alphabet

Sample text in Sütterlin

Download a font for Sütterlin (TrueType, 56K)

Other versions of the Latin alphabet

Archaic Latin alphabet, Basque-style lettering, Carolingian Minuscule, Classical Latin alphabet, Fraktur, Gaelic script, Merovingian, Modern Latin alphabet, Roman Cursive, Rustic Capitals, Old English, Sütterlin, Visigothic Script

Modern German alphabet

The Modern German alphabet

Hear the German alphabet with example words:

Notes

The last four letters are officially considered separate letters of the German alphabet.
In Austria J is known as je [jeː]; Q is known as qwe [kveː], and the name of the Y is pronounced [ʏˈpsiːlɔn].
In Austria and Southern German ß is known as scharfes S. The capital version of this letter is rarely used: SS is usually used instead.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_orthography#Alphabet

German pronunciation

Hear how to pronounce German:

Notes

b = [p] at the end of a syllable or before s or t, [b] before a vowel
ch = [χ] after a, o or u, [k] when followed by a, o or u at the beginning of a word, [ç] elsewhere.
chs = [ks] except in words where ch and s are pronounced separately, e.g. wachsam /'vaχ.zam/, höchst /'høç.st/
d = [t] at end of a syllable or before s or t, [d] before a vowel
e = [ə] in unaccented syllables
er = [ɐ] at the end of the syllable in an unstressed syllable, e.g. Lehrer /ˈle:ʀɐ/
g = [k] at end of a syllable or before s or t,[g] before a vowel, [ʒ] in some loanwords, ig = [iç] at the end of a word
h makes the vowel long when appearing after a vowel or morpheme boundry, [h] elsewhere
j = [ʒ] in loan words, [j] elsewhere
nk = [ŋk], e.g. trinken /ˈtʁiŋkən/
ng = [ŋ], e.g. bringen /ˈbʁɪŋən/
r = [ɐ] between a vowel (except a) and a consonant, e.g. Kurs /kʊɐs/ or between a vowel (except a or unstressed e), and the end of the word, e.g. der /dɛɐ/ or Futur /fʊˈtuːɐ/
- silent between a and a consonant, e.g. Markt /makt/ or between a and the end of the word, e.g. Haar /ha:/
- [ʁ] at the beginning of words and between a consonant and a vowel, e.g. trinken /ˈtʁiŋkən/
- [ʀ] between two vowels, e.g. hören /ˈhø:ʀən/
s = [z] between vowels or before a vowel at the beginning of a word, [ʃ] before t or p at the beginning of words and [s] elsewhere. sk = [ʃ] in Ski [ʃi:]
t = [ts] in the -tion of Latin loanwords, e.g. Intention [ɪntɛn'tsɪo:n]
v = [v] in loan words
y = [y] in words derived from Greek, [i] or [j] elsewhere
dsch, ph, qu and y only appear in loan words

Download an alphabet chart for German (Excel)

Sample text in German

Alle Menschen sind frei und gleich an Würde und Rechten geboren. Sie sind mit Vernunft und Gewissen begabt und sollen einander im Geist der Brüderlichkeit begegnen.

Hear a recording of this text

Translation

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
(Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights)

Sample videos in German

Find German Tutors, Teachers and Lesson Help

Links

Information about the German language
http://www.lowlands-l.net/anniversary/deutsch-info.php
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_language
https://www.clozemaster.com/blog/topics/language-learning/learn-german/
https://www.howtolearnalanguage.info/languages/german/alphabet

Online German courses
http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/german/
http://www.deutsch-lernen.com
http://www.deutschakademie.de/online-deutschkurs/english/
http://www.deutsched.com
http://www.yesgerman.com/
http://learn-german-easily.com
http://leicht-deutsch-lernen.com
http://polymath.org/german.php
http://ilovelanguages.org/german.php
http://ablogaboutlanguages.blogspot.co.uk/p/free-german-lessons-overview.html
http://www.studying-in-germany.org/learn-german/
http://www.hit-tuner.net/de/podcast/deutsch_lernen.html
https://www.lingoda.com/en/german/learning-material/cefr/A1.1
https://besser-deutsch.com/
http://www.germanpod101.com/

Germanic languages

Afrikaans, Alsatian, Bavarian, Cimbrian, Danish, Dutch, Elfdalian, English, Faroese, Flemish, Frisian (East), Frisian (North), Frisian (Saterland), Frisian (West), German, Gothic, Gottscheerish, Gronings, Hunsrik, Icelandic, Limburgish, Low German, Luxembourgish, Mòcheno, Norn, Norwegian, Old English, Old Norse, Pennsylvania German, Ripuarian, Scots, Shetland(ic), Stellingwarfs, Swabian, Swedish, Swiss German, Transylvanian Saxon, Värmlandic, Wymysorys, Yiddish, Yola, Zeelandic

Languages written with the Latin alphabet

Page last modified: 26.04.22

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