High German
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English
Alternative forms
Etymology
Calque of German Hochdeutsch.
Noun
High German (countable and uncountable, plural High Germans)
- (countable) A native or inhabitant of the southern highlands of Germany; a High German speaker.
- Any of a group of West Germanic languages or dialects spoken in the southern highlands of Germany.
- The standard variety of High German as spoken and written throughout the German language area.
- 1989, Alfred Wyler, Dialect and High German in German-speaking Switzerland, page 15:
- There is a widespread reluctance to speak High German in German-speaking Switzerland, and many Swiss prefer to speak even bad French or English to people who do not speak Swiss dialect.
- 2010, Dankwart Koehler, In Different Worlds: From POW to PhD, page 49:
- We, the students, also were supposed to speak High German, but, like our teachers, we did so with a fairly strong Swabian accent.
- 2016, Nicole Egger, Hoi: Your New Swiss German Survival Guide, page 15:
- Many foreigners who learn to speak High German complain that Swiss people only reluctantly reply in High German. Apparently Swiss people generally don't like to speak High German. Why is that so? For the Swiss, High German is a foreign language.
Usage notes
The use of High German to refer exclusively to Standard High German (after German Hochdeutsch) is sometimes avoided in scholarly discourse but may be found, especially otherwise.
Synonyms
- (language): High Dutch
- (Standard High German): Standard High German, SHG, Standard German
Meronyms
(language):
- SHG (= Standard High German), Standard German
- Middle German, Central German
- Upper German
- Yiddish
Related terms
(language):
- Middle High German, MHG
- New High German, NHG
- Old High German, OHG
- SHG (= Standard High German)
Translations
person
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any of a group of West Germanic languages
|
Standard High German
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See also
Adjective
High German (not comparable)
- From or pertaining to the southern region of Germany; speaking High German.
- 1751, [Tobias] Smollett, The Adventures of Peregrine Pickle , volumes (please specify |volume=I to IV), London: Harrison and Co., , →OCLC:
- I used to harrangue the mob, in broken English, under pretence of being an High German doctor.
- Written or spoken in High German; pertaining to High German.
- 1983, Philip Baldi, An Introduction to the Indo-European Languages, page 128:
- Yiddish is a High German language [...]