| Series | German pages |
|---|---|
German/Deutsch |
|
| Script | Latin |
| Family | Indo-European |
| Sub-Family | Germanic, West Germanic |
| Estimated native speakers | 105 million |
| Spoken in | Germany, Austria, Belgium, Lietchenstien, Luxembourg, Switzerland, EU |
Introduction
Germany has always been divided into several states and each with their own dialects and even languages.
The History of German begins in the 5th-10th century with the language known as Old High German. Which was spoken in southern Germany parts of Austria and varying communities throughout Switzerland, South Bohemia and Gaul.
What made this form of German unique compared to the other West-Germanic dialects such as English was that it underwent a change around the 5th century known as the High German Consonant shift, meaning the consonant system of German remained largely the same compared to it's West-Germanic cousins. The Grammar had very little change, remaining similar to Old Saxon, Dutch etc
By the 11th century all forms of vowels in unstressed syllables had been reduced to one "e". This is considered the beginning of Middle High German.
Middle High German is generally accepted as being the period of 1050 to 1350.
It was followed by Early New High German in the period 1350 to 1650.
From this period can be what is considered Modern or Standard German. It originated from a unifying force of wanting to be understand in a written format.
