The Austrian language. Official language of Austria

The Austrian language is a kind of standard German. He has his own written and oral form. It is used in Austria and in the north of Italy. This language is considered the most important in this area. It is he who is the main in the media and other formal situations. In everyday life, many Austrians use the Bavarian and Alemannic dialect of the German language.

Republic of Austria

The language, which is now official in the state, was born in the middle of the XVIII century. In 1774, the Empress Maria Theresa and her son Joseph II introduced compulsory schooling. At that time the Habsburg Empire was multilingual. The written standard was "High German". Significant influence on him had the Bavarian and Alemannic dialects. Linguist Johann Sigmund Popovich proposed to create a new standard. Its basis was to be the South German dialects. However, for practical reasons, it was decided to fix the "Saxon clerical" language as a standard. It was originally used as an administrative office in the Meissen and Dresden areas.

Modern Austria is a European state, its capital is Vienna. It borders on Germany in the north. The population of Austria is 8.66 million people. Native inhabitants predominate here. Among the national minorities are Germans, Serbs and Turks. The total area of the state is 83.879 square kilometers. Austrian German is softer and more melodic, which is facilitated by the widespread use of the suffix-l. This language is spoken by 88.6% of the population. Both the written and spoken language of the inhabitants of Austria differs from the official German. Most of all, it is similar to the Bavarian dialect.

Thus, the official Austrian language has the same geographical origin as Swedish and German proper. However, in each country there are dialects. This separate writing was used for many years. It is very complex in its grammatical structure and vocabulary. "Saxon clerical" language is not easy to understand even the native Austrians and Germans. There are a lot of special terms in it. This form does not have regional varieties, as it was used by the government, which has been based in Vienna for many years. Today it is used less and less, in the documents it is gradually replaced by standard German.

Modern Austrian language

The new written standard was developed by Josef von Sonnenfels. It is used in modern school textbooks since 1951. They are published by the Federal Ministry of Education, Art and Culture of Austria. Before that, for almost 300 years, the dialect spoken by the imperial family of the Habsburgs and knew was the standard. He had a great degree of nasal sounds compared to the modern version. Language was not fixed as a standard - it was spoken by a high society.

German is the official language in Austria according to the Constitution of the Republic. About 8 million people speak it. The law also fixes the languages of national minorities. In Carinthia and Styria, Slovenian is used, in Burgenland - Hungarian and Croatian.

As a dialect

The German language is pluricentric. Therefore, one can not say which of its forms, adopted as official in other states, is correct. The Austrian language seems to be one of the varieties of standard German. The situation is similar to the relationship between British and American English. There is a difference in some minor aspects (for example, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar), however, residents of Austria and Germany can communicate.

Standard German in Austria

The official dictionary defines the rules of grammar and pronunciation adopted in the state. The last reform occurred in 1996. However, the Republic of Austria uses the language somewhat differently than it does in Germany. Especially noticeable differences in culinary, economic and legal terms. This is due to the historical peculiarities of the formation of Austria and Germany as separate states from the end of the XIX century.

Grammar and vocabulary

The Austrian dialect of the German language, like the Swiss, uses the auxiliary verb sein in the perfect not only to express movement, but also state. In oral speech, the form of the preteritum is almost not used. An exception is some modal verbs. Austrian German also differs in lexical terms. For example, in Germany, January is called Januar. In Austria, Jänner, "this year" translates as heur, not dieses Jahr, "stairs" - Stiege, not Treppe, "chimney" - Rauchfang, not Schornstein. There are many administrative, legal and political terms, product names. Among them:

• Potatoes. In German - Kartoffeln. In the Austrian - Erdäpfel.
• Whipped cream. In German - Schlagsahne. In the Austrian - Schlagobers.
• Beef. In German - Hackfleisch. In the Austrian - Faschiertes.
• Green bean. In German - Kartoffeln. In the Austrian - Erdäpfel.
• Cauliflower. In German - Blumenkohl. In the Austrian - Karfiol.
• Brussels sprouts. In German - Rosenkohl. In the Austrian - Kohlsprossen.
• Apricots. In German - Aprikosen. In the Austrian - Marillen.
• Tomatoes. In German - Paradeiser. In the Austrian - Tomaten.
• Pancakes. In German - Pfannkuchen. In the Austrian - Palatschinken.
• Curd. In German - Quark. In the Austrian - Topfen.
• Horseradish. In German - Meerrettich. In the Austrian - Kren.

We must not forget about the "false friends" of the translator. Some words in both languages are written in the same way, but they have completely different meanings.

Regional aspects

Austrian German includes a number of dialects. They can be heard in everyday speech. It is easier for residents of Bavaria to understand the Austrians. Simple words are the same or very similar in many dialects, but they can be pronounced in different ways. It is often possible to understand where the interlocutor was born, almost immediately. After Austria's accession to the European Union, its official language was protected under Protocol No. 10. A total of 23 terms were identified that relate to agriculture. It should be noted that this is an unprecedented case. Austrian German is the only pluricentric language that is recognized by international or European legislation.