Varieties Of German Research Articles

The vowel space of multiethnolectal (Stuttgart) German.

The emergence of multiethnolects, i.e.specific speaking styles or varieties associated with second and third generation speakers from immigrant backgrounds, has been observed and studied in several major cities in Europe and elsewhere in theworld. The multiethnolect that is the focus of this study is one such variety of colloquial German. Most previous research on multiethnolectal German has focused on grammatical features. This paper reports on the first comprehensive study of the vowel system (vowel quality and global vowel space size) of multiethnolectal German, based on data from Stuttgart. The results show that the vowel space of multiethnolectal speakers is in generally more centralized than that of a comparison group. A more detailed analysis reveals that the linguistic background plays an important role, as speakers with a Turkish or South Slavonic language background are responsible for this effect.

Request for confirmation sequences in Low German

Abstract This article examines request for confirmation (RfC) sequences in Low German (LoG) conversation, a dialect variety of German. The study is based on both a quantitative analysis of 200 RfC instances and a qualitative analysis of selected excerpts in the framework of conversation analysis (CA). As for the question design of RfCs, declarative and phrasal formats, as well as modulations and tags prevail in the LoG data. Concerning the response design, LoG is characterized as a polarity system in which language contact with the high variety plays a decisive role in the answer possibility space. In particular, High German response tokens are predominantly used as unmarked response types, while LoG response tokens are deployed as marked types. Moreover, LoG seems to be a language between the poles of token- and repeat-type languages. Full repeats index different degrees of ‘markedness’ in LoG interaction. Contrary to previous studies on polar answers, repeats in LoG are frequently deployed as unmarked responses in subordinate lines of actions. Repeats are also used as more marked answers after understanding displays. This article attempts to stress the importance of investigating non-standard languages and variety contact in CA, thereby addressing the monolingual bias in research on polar questions.

The Treuhand and the Treuhanderschaft from the perspective of the specialised combined parallel-comparable corpus

Corpora-based analysis has become one of the major methodologies used in linguistics. However, it has not been widely applied in legalese studies. The paper makes an attempt to discuss the usefulness of the specialized combined parallel-comparable corpus while dealing with the legal language. The effectiveness is presented on the example of the Treuhand and the Treuhänderschaft. The research is based on the comparative analysis as well as the corpus-based analysis of the terms related to the Treuhand and the Treuhänderschaft presented in two varieties of German: Standard German spoken in Germany and Liechtenstein’s German. The corpus-based analysis reveals the juridical-semantic differences and the problematics of the verbal realization of the concepts. These hinder a proper interpretation and complicate the process of translation. The major solution is found through the specification of meaning by renaming. This solution may acquire the greatest importance in today’s world, because the process of globalization widens the area of utilization of the Treuhand and the Treuhänderschaft and any obscurity or incomprehensibility can cause problems during cross-national linguistic and juridical activities.

On the asymmetry of wh-doubling in varieties of German and Dutch

Abstract This paper combines experimental, theoretical and quantitative approaches to syntactic microvariation. The empirical goal is to clarify the situation with respect to wh-doubling (also: wh-copying) in varieties of German and Dutch. With a large-scale survey in the German and Dutch language areas we sought to establish which speakers allow wh-doubling, which speakers allow right-complexity, i.e., configurations in which the lower copy of the wh-dependency is more complex that the higher one, and which speakers allow left-complexity, i.e., the reverse, with a more complex higher copy. We also wanted to know whether there are associations between these properties, to identify groups of speakers and dialects. We found three types of grammars: (i) a grammar that allows both wh-doubling and right- and left-complexity, (ii) a grammar that allows wh-doubling and has a strong preference for right-complexity over left-complexity, and (iii) a grammar that does not allow any wh-doubling configuration. This shows that there is a clear limit to variation in this domain. Grammars with a preference for left-complexity do not exist. We then point out the consequences of these findings for the copy theory of movement, and for analyses that enrich this theory with the option of partial deletion.

Auditives Dekodierungstraining zur Unterstützung der Dolmetscherausbildung: Die Rolle der deutschen Sprachvarietäten und der neuen Technologien

The paper aims to propose a reflection on the importance of German varieties in the preparation of interpreters. Like many other languages, German is classified as a pluricentric language, i. e. a language officially spoken in more than one centre or nation. This makes it a very variegated language that boasts a multitude of both standard and non-standard varieties. The task of interpreters who choose German as a foreign language is therefore to be able to understand and translate into another language what is spoken by native speakers of German, many of whom, according to the previous statement, often speak different varieties. To do this, the interpreters’ preparation must consider the inclusion of the different language varieties of both standard and non-standard German, especially at the level of auditory decoding, in order to facilitate the understanding of the message at a receptive level. Starting from the definition of a pluricentric language, this contribution will highlight the main difficulties of interpreters at the level of listening comprehension, most of which are found at the level of auditory decoding, before proposing training aimed at decoding the different varieties of standard and non-standard German realised through the use of new technologies.

New sources of agronomic traits of spring barley for the conditions of the southern zone of the Central region of the Russian Federation

The purpose of the research is to study a new assortment of spring barley in the conditions of the Ryazan region (southern zone of the Central region of the Russian Federation) and identify sources of agronomic traits for their further use in hybridization. The observation, study and comparison of 11 new varieties of spring barley (standard – Nadezhny) was carried out in 2020–2022 on a natural infectious background (the soil was dark gray forest heavy loamy). It was found that the highest average yield over the years of the research was in the varieties Znatnyy (Russia) – 6.38 t/ha, Ellinor (Germany) – 6.02 t/ha and Kufal (Belarus) – 5.98 t/ha. There were identified low–growing forms - the German varieties KWS Vermont and Ellinor, the height of which was in the range of 63–67 cm and varied little over the years of the research (CV, % = 3.9...6.0). The lowest protein content in the grain was in the German varieties Ellinor (12.31 %), KWS Harris (12.43 %) and the French variety Rapid (12.69 %). In order to improve the quality of forage, a group of high-protein barley was identified: Pamyati Chepeleva (15.31 %) (Russia), Kufal (14.61 %), Znatnyy (14.10 %). According to the length of the ear, the varieties Bente (8.2 cm) (Germany) and Znatnyy (8.0 cm) stood out. It has been established that the varieties of Pamyati Chepeleva and Laureate (Switzerland) have the highest productive bushiness – 4.0 and 4.4. The largest number of grains in the ear was observed in the Znatnyy variety – 23.4 pcs. All the studied source material had high resistance to phytopathogens and lodging. The new varieties identified in the research process are a valuable source material for the development of new highly competitive varieties of spring barley for the conditions of the Central region of Russia.

Effect of a QTL on wheat chromosome 5B associated with enhanced root dry mass on transpiration and nitrogen uptake under contrasting drought scenarios in wheat.

A sufficient nitrogen supply is crucial for high-quality wheat yields. However, the use of nitrogen fertilization can also negatively influence ecosystems due to leaching or volatile atmospheric emissions. Drought events, increasingly prevalent in many crop production areas, significantly impact nitrogen uptake. Breeding more efficient wheat varieties is necessary to achieve acceptable yields with limited nitrogen and water. Crop root systems play a crucial role as the primary organ for absorbing water and nutrients. To investigate the impact of an enhanced root system on nitrogen and water use efficiency in wheat under various irrigation conditions, this study conducted two experiments using precision phenotyping platforms for controlled drought stress treatment. Experiment 1 involved four contrasting winter wheat genotypes. It included the Chinese variety Ning0604, carrying a quantitative trait locus (QTL) on chromosome 5B associated with a higher root dry biomass, and three elite German varieties, Elixer, Genius, and Leandrus. Experiment 2 compared near-isogenic lines (NIL) of the three elite varieties, each containing introgressions of the QTL on chromosome 5B linked to root dry mass. In both experiments, nitrogen partitioning was tracked via isotope discrimination after fertilization with 5 Atom % 15N-labeled KNO3-. In experiment 1 the quantification by 15N isotope discrimination revealed significantly (p < 0.05) higher nitrogen derived from fertilizer in the root organ for Ning0604 than those of the three German varieties. In experiment 2, two out of three NILs showed a significantly (p < 0.05) higher uptake of N derived from fertilizer than their respective recipient line under well-watered conditions. Furthermore, significantly lower transpiration rates (p < 0.1) were observed in one NIL compared to its respective recipient. The combination of the DroughtSpotter facility coupled with 15N tracer-based tracking of N uptake and remobilization extends the insight into the impact of genetically altered root biomass on wheat NUE and WUE under different water availability scenarios. The study shows the potential for how a modified genetic constitution of the locus on wheat chromosome 5B can reduce transpiration and enhance N uptake. The dependence of the observations on the recipient and water availability suggests a need for further research to investigate the interaction with genetic background traits.

Swift Prosodic Modulation of Lexical Access: Brain Potentials From Three North Germanic Language Varieties.

According to most models of spoken word recognition, listeners probabilistically activate a set of lexical candidates, which is incrementally updated as the speech signal unfolds. Speech carries segmental (speech sound) as well as suprasegmental (prosodic) information. The role of the latter in spoken word recognition is less clear. We investigated how suprasegments (tone and voice quality) in three North Germanic language varieties affected lexical access by scrutinizing temporally fine-grained neurophysiological effects of lexical uncertainty and information gain. Three event-related potential (ERP) studies were reanalyzed. In all varieties investigated, suprasegments are associated with specific word endings. Swedish has two lexical "word accents" realized as pitch falls with different timings across dialects. In Danish, the distinction is in voice quality. We combined pronunciation lexica and frequency lists to calculate estimates of lexical uncertainty about an unfolding word and information gain upon hearing a suprasegmental cue and the segment upon which it manifests. We used single-trial mixed-effects regression models run every 4 ms. Only lexical uncertainty showed solid results: a frontal effect at 150-400 ms after suprasegmental cue onset and a later posterior effect after 200 ms. While a model including only segmental information mostly performed better, it was outperformed by the suprasegmental model at 200-330 ms at frontal sites. The study points to suprasegmental cues contributing to lexical access over and beyond segments after around 200 ms in the North Germanic varieties investigated. Furthermore, the findings indicate that a previously reported "pre-activation negativity" predominantly reflects forward-looking processing. https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.25016486.

Il Sistema informativo per la terminologia giuridica bistro: funzionalità e potenzialità

bistro is the Information System for Legal Terminology in Italian, German and Ladin created by the Institute for Applied Linguistics of Eurac Research. It aims at disseminating legal terminology in South Tyrol and supporting international communication. It targets a diversified audience, from law professionals to translators and from students to any citizen who needs support in understanding and translating legal texts and documents. What distinguishes bistro from other terminological resources is that it systematically takes into consideration the different varieties of German and Ladin. Each German term published in bistro includes an indication of which legal system(s) use(s) the term (i.a. Austria, Germany, Switzerland, South Tyrol). The same applies to Ladin terms that are marked according to which language variety they belong to. In this article, we will describe bistro focusing on its content, functions, approach and objectives. We will look in depth at the preliminary methodological reflections for developing a termino­logical resource of this kind. We will pay particular attention to the search and filter functions by language, legal system and legal domain. A particular focus will be laid on the criteria for formulating definitions, an important data category. Finally, we will give insights into future developments and perspectives.

Vereinfachte Formen des DACH-Deutschen im DaF-Unterricht

The paper presents regulated varieties of German in their national (DACH) variants. These include, above all, Leichte Sprache, Einfache Sprache, Klarsprache, Plain Language or bürgernahe Sprache. The individual language varieties are developed for diverse target groups and a common denominator that connects the addressees is their ability, which is limited for various reasons, to perceive and understand the standard form of the German language. The target group of the restricted language varieties can also include GFL learners for whom the German language in its standard variants poses a linguistic challenge in the initial phase of learning. At the same time, there is often a considerable need, especially among adult language learners, to read, listen to and understand factual, practical or fictional texts. The paper gives examples from teaching practice of how the need for less barrier-free communication can be met through a targeted, learner-oriented use of the simplified language variant in GFL lessons.

АНГЛИЦИЗМЫ В АВСТРИЙСКОМ ВАРИАНТЕ НЕМЕЦКОГО ЯЗЫКА

The article discusses loanwords from English in the Austrian variety of German. It deals with linguistic and extralinguistic reasons of foreign borrowings, language policy of German-speaking countries in relation to foreign language vocabulary, classification of English loanwords, as well as key aspects of their adaptation in Austrian German. In addition, the article sums up approaches to the study of English loanwords (mainly based on printed and digital newspapers) and describes the difficulties and prospects of research in this area.

Reconstructing historical language contact between Slavic languages and Austrian varieties of German: theoretical assumptions, methodological approaches and general results

Abstract Undisputedly, slavic languages have had a considerable influence on german and the attitudes towards multilingualism in austria. This article portrays theoretical reflections, new findings and innovative methodological approaches to the reconstruction of historical language contact between slavic languages and austrian varieties of german. These approaches were jointly developed within the task cluster on language contact of the austrian special research programme “german in austria. Variation – contact – perception”. In this context, the implications of historical and recent slavic-german multilingualism on german in austria are of special interest. The paper concludes with an overview of preliminary research results, methodological lessons learnt and considerations for further sociolinguistic research in historical contexts.

Mass, Iteration, and Pejoration: On the Evolution of Iterative Adverbs from Indefinite Quantifiers in German Varieties

This article deals with the formal and functional development of aspectual adverbs from indefinite quantifiers in German. More specifically, it focuses on the functions of adverbs that prompted their development into different iterative markers. Through a corpus analysis of spoken language data, insights were gained into the semantic spectrum of the nonstandard adverb als ‘always’. This adverb can be classified as an iterative and, in certain contexts, as a habitual marker, which has undergone a similar development to the standard language adverb viel ‘much’. The article shows that lexical markers of iterativity and—to some extent—habituality may suggest new avenues for variation and change research. It traces the development of the habitual function of als and offers new perspectives for in-depth analyses of the evolution of lexical aspectuality marking.*

German and Romance varieties in contact in northeastern Italy

Northeastern Italy offers several sites where a variety of German is in contact with Italian, Italo-Romance, or Rhaeto-Romance: All of these contact situations vary according to sociolinguistic and extralinguistic factors, such as the composition of the speech community, structure of linguistic repertoires, language status, standardization, and demography. These factors combine into more or less coherent speech community types that, in turn, constrain the typology of contact linguistic phenomena that can be observed. In this contribution, based on the trilingual region of South Tyrol, a few emblematic case studies will be discussed focusing on insertional mechanisms that occur in speech. Based on the outcomes of a larger research project and drawing on various corpora of conversational data, quantitative and qualitative aspects of this contact situation will be explored in more detail.

Schleswig – a region of longitudinal language contact

The topic of this article is the structural similarity of neighbouring language varieties belonging to two different branches of the Germanic languages. The German-Danish border region (Schleswig/Sønderjylland) is characterized by longitudinal language contact between West and North Germanic varieties, which have developed common features not to be found in other varieties of these languages spoken outside the contact area. These shared features are the results of regional multilingualism, language contact, and/or of language shift(s). This paper focuses on syntactical convergences. Examples of different aspects of convergences are presented, covering mainly convergences from the North Germanic regional language of South Jutish to West Germanic varieties (Low German, North Frisian, and Standard German regiolect), and from Standard German to the Standard Danish variety spoken by members of the Danish minority on the German side of the border since 1920.

Morphosyntactic innovations in linguistic border zones: Evidence from Northern Germany and Eastern Poland

Border zone varieties are sometimes known for peculiar uses of morphosyntactic constructions involving function words. This paper focuses on two such constructions from two distant border zones: a) the innovative use of the preposition dla ‘for’ in Eastern Polish dialects in the Polish-Lithuanian-Belarusian-Ukrainian border zone, where these constructions appear in dative contexts that are reserved to the dative only outside the border zone, and b) the innovative use of the conjunction un ‘and’ in Low German varieties in the Danish-German border zone, where it combines with the infinitive in many functional settings. While the literature describes the origin of these innovative constructions as a result of the contact situation, not much is known about the distribution of these innovative constructions, especially their relation to functionally equivalent, but “unmarked” constructions that are not restricted to the border zone. This paper is a comparative corpus study of the variation between unmarked and innovative constructions in two distant border zones, based exclusively on dialect material. It argues that the restrictions, emergence and expansion of the innovations show a comparable pattern when measured against the distribution of their unmarked counterparts. The paper shows that the introduction of a new, innovative alternative to preexisting unmarked ones is a way to deal with the multiplied relations between functionally equivalent constructions in a plurilingual border zone.

Economically valuable characteristics and breeding indices of spring barley varieties of different ecological and geographical origin in the conditions of the Ryazan region

The article presents the results of research conducted in the collection nursery of spring barley in the conditions in 2020–2022. The purpose of the research is to identify economically valuable traits and calculate breeding indices of selected sources of spring barley of different ecological and geographical origin in the conditions of the forest–steppe zone of the Ryazan region for inclusion in the hybridization program. It was revealed that the varieties Reliable (RF) and Dzivosny (Belarus) had the highest productivity in the conditions of the region with an average yield of 6.48 and 6.40 t/ha, respectively. It was found that the shortest straw had the German varieties KVS Vermont and Ellinor, whose height is in the range of 63-67 cm and varies little over the years of research (CV, % = 3.9 ...6.0). According to the length of the ear, the varieties Bente (Germany) (8.2 cm), Jaromir and Noble (8.0 cm) (RF) stood out. It was revealed that the maximum number of grains in the ear is formed by the Yaromir and Noble varieties – 23.7 pcs. and 23.4 pcs., respectively. According to grain size, the varieties Kufal, Raider (Belarus) and Bente were distinguished, having a mass of 1000 grains of more than 50.0 g. When calculating the breeding indices, it was found that the productivity of domestic varieties was influenced by the Canadian Ki index (r= +0.829) and the harvest index of KHOZ, % (r= +0.559), the Belarusian varieties of the IPPR plant productivity index (r= +0.478), German varieties Ki (r= +0.747) and the linear density index ear of LPC (r = +0.604). On average, according to the number of selected indices, the Noble and Dzivosny varieties come out on top – the maximum indicators for three indices, Yaromir (RF), Ataman (Belarus), KVS Harris, KVS Vermont, Beatrice (Germany) – in second place – for two indices. The varieties of spring barley distinguished by the individual studied positive signs and their complex are recommended for use in breeding programs.

Vowel and consonant quantity in two Swiss German dialects and their corresponding varieties of Standard German: effects of region, age, and tempo.

The diglossic situation in German-speaking Switzerland entails that both an Alemannic dialect and a Swiss standard variety of German are spoken. One phonological property of both Alemannic and Swiss Standard German (SSG) is contrastive quantity not only in vowels but also in consonants, namely lenis and fortis. This study aims to compare vowel and plosive closure durations as well as articulation rate (AR) between Alemannic and SSG in the varieties spoken in a rural area of the canton of Lucerne (LU) and an urban area of the canton of Zurich (ZH).In addition to the segment durations, an additional measure of vowel-to-vowel+consonant duration (V/(V+C)) ratios is calculated in order to account for possible compensation between vowel and closure durations. Stimuli consisted of words containing different vowel-consonant (VC) combinations. The main differences found are longer segment durations in Alemannic compared to SSG, three phonetic vowel categories in Alemannic that differ between LU and ZH, three stable V/(V+C) ratio categories, and three phonetic consonant categories lenis, fortis, and extrafortis in both Alemannic and SSG. Most importantly, younger ZH speakers produced overall shorter closure durations, calling into question a possible reduction of consonant categories due to a contact to German Standard German (GSG).

Fast-Speech-Induced Hypoarticulation Does Not Considerably Affect the Diachronic Reversal of Complementary Length in Central Bavarian.

This study investigated a sound change in progress by which the Central Bavarian dialect feature of complementary length between consonant and the preceding vowel is giving way to the unrestricted combination possibility of long (Vː) and short (V) vowels with following longer fortis (Cː) and shorter lenis (C) stops, respectively. This 2 × 2 system is also found in the standard variety of German. While previous studies have regarded any such findings of convergence toward Standard German as being a result of language contact, the present study specifically tested the possibility of fast-speech-induced hypoarticulation being a system-internal driver of this change. The focus of this study was on acoustic cues to the postvocalic stop. Following the apparent-time paradigm, acoustic analyses of 10 younger and 10 older dialect speakers revealed that (1) younger dialect speakers produced both VC and VːCː (both formerly illegal in the dialect), but (2) older dialect speakers produced only VːCː sequences with duration patterns similar to those of the control group of 10 Standard German speakers. Analyses of various dependent variables further showed (3) the (apparently) delayed emergence of aspiration as an additional cue to the fortis-lenis contrast in Western Central Bavarian particularly in younger dialect speakers, (4) no considerable effect of speech rate on the dispersion of and overlap between any of the four vowel-plus-stop combinations, and (5) the irregular spread of this change that appears to be gradual. As such, the findings support a model of linguistic change that also accounts for gradual changes in dialect borrowing.

Deconstructing the myth of Standard German: Navigating language ideologies in the L2 German university classroom

AbstractPrevious research has established a connection between Standard Language Ideology (SLI) and prestige and power and has highlighted the existence of a dominant cultural narrative that idealizes Standard High German as a provider of cultural elevation and unity, viewing nonstandard Germanic varieties as exotic. Nevertheless, scholars have likewise emphasized the importance of familiarizing L2 German students with the standard and nonstandard regional and dialectal varieties that are widely used within and across Germanic‐speaking countries. Through a grounded ethnographic approach involving classroom observations and interviews, the study suggests that the L2 German university students observed seemed to believe in the superiority of Standard German despite efforts by their instructors to counter this belief. The study extends previous research by illustrating L2 German instructors' negotiation strategies, used to highlight the communicative legitimacy of German and Austrian dialects to their students.