Thread: Would you like to have Swiss German as an official language in place of High German?
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Old 16.04.2007, 16:24
haggis haggis is offline
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Re: Would you like to have Swiss German as an official language in place of High Germ
Quote:
AbFab
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I think there is a lot of misunderstanding of what Swiss-German is and what it means for its users. For a native English-speaker the concept is nearly impossible to understand.
The Old Scots language was just as far removed from English as Swiss German is from Hochdeutsch. But usage of Scots has shrunk dramatically over the decades and there are lots of words my Gran used in everyday speech which are rarely heard now. Gaelic has suffered an even worse fate.

By contrast, the various Swiss tongues appear to be alive and kicking and used in all sectors of society. The Swiss people have embraced international methods of communication such as English, Standard German and French but have also managed to cling passionately to their own unique dialects.

I admire them for that.
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