Case Systems in German Dialects

Abstract

1.1. The problem. This paper deals with regional variations in one aspect of German grammar-the case inflection of nominal parts of speech.* In German dialects, as in Standard German, case is a category of every noun phrase, determined by its function in the sentence. Of the several constituents of a noun phrase, the noun itself is least often inflected for case. More frequently, the case of the noun phrase is exhibited by the determiners and such adjectives as may be contained in it. Noun phrase substitutes-the pronouns-are particularly sensitive indicators of the case of a phrase. Inflection for case in the determiners and adjectives is accomplished by means of suffixes; in the pronouns, by suppletion. The markers of case are almost always portmanteau morphs that are also involved in expressing other categories (number, gender, and determination) of the noun phrase. The present paper is concerned specifically with case distinctions in the regional equivalents of the definite article (Standard German der, die, das, etc. 'the'); the indefinite article (ein, eine, ein, etc. 'a'); the singular pronouns of the 1st person (ich, etc. 'I') and 3d person (er, sie, es, etc. 'he, she, it'); the 3d-pl.polite pronoun (sie, etc. 'they' or 'you'); and the 'strong' adjective (roughly, the form of an adjective when it is not preceded by an inflected determiner). It is assumed, in accordance with the well-known principles of descriptive linguistics, that a form is not fully identified unless its function in the system is specified. The primary emphasis in this paper is on functions within a system; specifically, the paper concentrates on case distinctions in the grammatical system of each geographical region. The concrete shape of the case markers is a secondary consideration. The paper shows that in the bulk of regional German, the case system is less elaborate than in Modern Standard German or in medieval German, but that the form of simplification has not been the same everywhere.