| Also Known As: Ost-oberdeutsch,Bavarian Austrian,Bavarian-austrian,Bayerisch,Bairisch,Bavarian
Description:
Austro-Bavarian or Bavarian is a major group of Upper German varieties. Like standard German, Austro-Bavarian is a High German language, but they are not the same language. However, Austro-Bavarian and Standard German have influenced each other and the vast majority of Austro-Bavarian speakers speak Standard German as well.
Austro-Bavarian is also used to refer to the dialect group which includes the Austro-Bavarian dialect discussed here, as well as the Cimbrian, Hutterite German, and Mócheno dialects of German.
The Austro-Bavarian language has its origins in the Germanic tribe known as the Bavarii, who established a tribal duchy, which covered much of what is today Bavaria and some of Austria in the early Middle Ages and was eventually subdued by Charlemagne. However, they gradually migrated down the Danube and into the Alps to all those areas where Austro-Bavarian dialects are spoken.
These areas had been provinces of the Roman Empire, and the languages of the population were based on Latin language, but this language was replaced by the Germanic dialects of the immigrants as the previous inhabitants were assimilated or forced out. This development contrasts with that in the..... full article at Wikipedia |
