Heidi spricht kein Deutsch

http://fabooks.wordpress.com/

Oh dear!

I have the sneaking suspicion that I will be sticking to written German and letting my husband master the art of dropping single words into conversation at the appropriate moment to give the illusion that we know what is going on...

Well that’s worrying! I am in the middle of planning a trip to study German in Zurich or Zug which will set me back around £10,000!

I am sure you have good reasons for learning German here. If you do not then I would suggest you start planning a trip to an area where the spoken German is closer to the standard written version...

Mr Brown seems to be a well-balanced individual - with a large chip on each shoulder...

He should perhaps get out less.
.

Well, my hubby is German and has not encountered much of a problem here in Zug, providing he nods and smiles a lot ...

Which German?

1. The written language. You need that for formal purposes, e.g. permits, legislation, taxes, financials, etc. And reading the newspaper, the handbooks, the cooking instructions on the grocery packing, the pamphlets enclosed with medicines, etc. Most language schools teach this.
2. The spoken "dialect" language for chatting, flirting and informal banter with colleagues, neighbors, etc. A few evening classes teach this.

Much disappointment and distress can be avoided by regarding German and Swiss-German as distinct, albeit related languages.

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you can split the program. Take one course in Standard-German (2 to 3 hours per day) and one course in Züri-Tüütsch (1 to 2 hours)

Oh that would be good! Honestly, I have no aspirations of living or working in Germany, however I would like to live in the Zurich/Zug area mainly for family reasons. Although learning German would still have it’s benefits of course!

Do you know of any language schools which offer this service that you speak of? A mix of both? The majority of the ones I have found are simply just for German I believe.

Oh! Somehow I hadn't put it together that you were coming to Zürich / Zug to learn German, I was wondering what language course was going to cost that much!


Depending upon the time you'll be here, I think a different tack will be better for learning Swiss German than taking a language class.

While it is not true for everyone, for me, it is much easier to learn languages based on context. I took French and Japanese in school (way back when) and remember hardly a thing. The Japanese I remember the most is words I learned when living there as a child in a local neighborhood (opposed to living on a military base). The Spanish I never studied I know (understand) because of all of the Mexican families who I would work with when I worked as an optician for 15+ years.

So, I'd offer that it is a good idea to take German classes ("High" German) but look for some hobby type things to do while you're here that will "force" you to mingle with the folks in your community. While day-to-day they do not generally speak High German (any more than we speak "The Queen's English" in any of the English speaking countries), they do learn it in school so if you speak to them as you learn, they can respond... and over time you will pick up the local dialect as well.


Ruminating over these things happens often for me. I imagine some poor soul who has gone to England to learn to speak (and presumably read and write) English, only to find themselves in one of the areas that are incredibly dialect heavy.

Just imagine the problems someone who only knows "formal" English would have understanding what's going on if they find themselves in the "Deep South" in the US. There are also spoken dialects I hear when watching stuff like Britain's Got Talent that really, I have to ponder over and play back a time or three before I figure out what's been said.

So, my point here is that it does actually work both ways. English dialects can be just as tough to figure out for someone who is taught (and only knows) "proper" grammar as it is for folks to figure out Swiss German when their only exposure (through language classes) is to High German.

www.alemania.ch offers both High german courses and Swiss German classes.

Good luck!

For Dialect I just found

http://www.allegra-sprachenzentrum.c...eutsch_14.html

for Standard German I might mention
www.benedict.ch
where a Palestinian friend learnt really excellent German

Just consider that there is no such thing like "Standard Swiss German" - whereever you go in this country, you'll notice that there are small to huge differences between the dialects spoken. Teachers, too, might speak Bärndüütsch, Züritüütsch or Sanggallerdüütsch with its zillions of variables. So be careful if you spend your money for a language course that promises to teach you "Swiss German" (Alemannic, it actually is).

I expect a school in Zürich or Zug NOT to employ a teacher speaking Bärntüütsch. It is clear that a foreigner in Zürich will learn Züritüütsch or something thelike while a foreigner in Basel will learn Baaaslerisch there. But that is similar with all languages. The Arabic-teacheress from Haifa/Damascus will teach you al-Arabiyah al-Dimashk while her colleague from Gaza/Cairo will teach rather al-Arabiyah al-Misr.

Thank you for the useful advice everyone. I think as long as I choose a decent/recommended school around the Zurich area, I’ll be fine.

I suppose it’s similar in England as well… I can barely understand people from Liverpool are with their “scouse dialect”, hehe.