| Also Known As: Cimbrian Language,Tzimbro,Zimbrisch
Description:
Cimbrian (German: Zimbrisch or Tzimbrisch) refers to any of several local Upper German dialects spoken in northeastern Italy. The speakers of the language are known as Zimbern.
Cimbrian is a German dialect which is related to Austro-Bavarian and is sometimes classified as a Southern Austro-Bavarian dialect. However, as there are many essential differences in grammar as well as in vocabulary and pronunciation, it is practically unintelligible for people speaking Standard German or Austro-Bavarian, the latter being also spoken in the province of Bolzano-Bozen.
The earliest record of a movement of Bavarians to Verona dates to ca. 1050 (Bayerische Staatsbibliothek Cod. lat. 4547). The settlement continued during the 11th and 12th centuries.
A theory of Lombardic origin of the Zimbern was proposed in 1948 by Bruno Schweizer and again in 1974 by Alfonso Bellotto. The debate was again revived in 2004 by Cimbrian linguist Ermenegildo Bidese. The majority of linguists remains committed to the hypothesis of medieval (11th to 12th century) immigration.
The presence of Germanic-speaking communities in Italy was discovered by the Italian humanists in the 14th century, who associated them with..... full article at Wikipedia |
