Sociolinguistic Artifacts

In this video Constantino de Miguel explains the different dialects of German. He highlights two main groups: Hochdeutsch (high German) and Niederdeutsch or Plattdeutsch (low German). Each of these are further divided into subcategories which represent regional variations. The Alemannic dialect is spoken in the southwest of Germany, Switzerland, and part of France. Another notable dialect is Bavarian. This is spoken mostly in Bavaria and Austria. Next, Franconian is spoken in the region of Franconia which is spread across Bavaria, Baden-Württemburg, and Thuringia. In addition to these, there is also Swabian, Low German, and Low Saxon. De Miguel also talks about other German dialects from before the German unification in 1870.