Missingsch

[R. F. Hahn]

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'''Missingsch''' is a type of [[Low German]]-coloured [[dialect]]
or [[sociolect]] of [[German language|German]]. 
It is characterised by Low-German-type structures and the presence of
numerous [[loanword]]s (especially [[calque]]s) from Low German in German (“[[High
German]]”).


A more technical definition of “Missingsch” is that it
is a type of [[language contact|contact variety]], specifically a type of
German variety with a “Low German” ([[Low Saxon language|Low Saxon]]) [[substratum]].
This is the result of linguistic, cultural, educational and political [[Germanisation]]
of the region that is now Northern [[Germany]]. This process of
Germanisation began in earnest in the late [[seventeenth century]], after the
demise of the [[Hanseatic League]] and thus
the erosion of its [[Middle Low German|Middle-Saxon]]-speaking power. Pressures
to adopt German and at the same time being held back by insufficient access to
formal (by now solely German language) education in the lower social classes
led to various stages of transition from “Low German” to “High German.” These
generally low-prestige language varieties continued to be spoken (rarely
written) until the late [[twentieth century]], though some people still
continue and promote them now, very often for their supposed entertainment
value, typically in comical veins. 


From a linguistic point of view, Missingsch varieties
did not become extinct as such. They merely developed into more “cleaned-up”
northern varieties of German, varieties that use numerous Missingsch elements, especially
in their casual registers. As such, Missingsch has been influencing the
development of Standard German, mostly indirectly by way of northern German
dialect contributions. Obvious examples are Low Saxon loanwords such as ''tschüß''
‘bye’ (cf. Low Saxon ''adschüüß'', ''tschüüß''). However, most influences are
not as clearly noticeable as they involve [[lexicon|lexical]] and [[idiom|idiomatic]]
choices. 


There are numerous parallel cases to that of
Missingsch. These are found in many situations in which languages came to be
supplanted by other languages. Within a Northern European context there is the
case of [[Stadsfries]] in the northern parts of the [[Netherlands]] and the
case of [[sociolect]]s of [[Scottish English]] that have particularly strong [[Scots
language|Scots]] characteristics.


While there have been many varieties of Missingsch
throughout Northern Germany, those of larger cities are best known, such as
those of [[Hamburg]], [[Bielefeld]], [[Bremen (city)|Bremen]], [[Flensburg]] and
[[Gdańsk|Gdańsk/Danzig]].


The name “Missingsch” refers to the city of [[Meissen]] (''Meißen''), which lies outside the traditional
Saxon-speaking region (although the state in which it is situated at one time
acquired the misleading name ''Saxony'', originally the name of what is now Northern Germany). Meissen’s
Central German dialect was considered exemplary and was highly influential
between the [[fifteenth century]] and the establishment of Modern Standard
German. The name ''Missingsch'' is the Low Saxon equivalent of what in German
is ''Meißnerisch'', rather than, as often stated, derived from the German name ''Meißnerisch''.


Contrary to popular belief, Missingsch is not a
dialect of Low German. Furthermore, Missingsch it is not simply “German with a
Low German [[accent]],” as which it is often described. Its “Low German” (Low
Saxon) influences are not restricted to its [[phonology]] but involve [[morphology|morphological]]
and [[syntax|syntactic]] structures (sentence construction) and its [[lexicon]]
(vocabulary) as well. It is a ''type'' of German variety with the minimally
qualifying characteristic of a clearly noticeable “Low German” (Low Saxon) substratum.  


Traditional German varieties of [[Berlin]] qualify as Missingsch as well, though
few people think of ''Berlinerisch'' as a Missingsch variety these days. Berlin is still surrounded by traditionally Low-Saxon-speaking
areas of the southeastern or [[Brandenburg]]
type. Before it became the center of the [[Prussia|Prussian]] state, Berlin, too, was Low-Saxon-speaking.
As such it adopted German earlier than did other northern centers. Typical ''Berlinerisch''
is thus technically a Missingsch group with an additional [[Western Slavic]] (probably
Old [[Lower Sorbian]]) substratum, since before [[Saxon]] [[colonisation]] the
area was [[Slavic languages|Slavic]]-speaking.


In the novel ''Schloss Gripsholm'' by [[Kurt Tucholsky]]
broaches the issue of Missingsch and provides samples.


==Phonological and Grammatical Characteristics==


*Missingsch [[phonology]] tends to be closely related,
if not identical, to that of the corresponding Low Saxon varieties. Noteworthy
among these in the of Northern Low Saxon area are the following:


**Lengthening of short [[vowel]]s before [[sonorant]]s,
without any other change of articulation; e.g. ''Ball'' [baˑl] ‘ball’, ''Kind''
[kʰɪ͂ˑnt] ‘child’, ''auch'' [ʔaˑʊx] ‘also’, ''Land'' [la͂ˑnt] ‘land’, ‘country’


**A noticeable degree of [[nasalisation]] before [[syllable]]-final
nasal [[consonant]]s; ''Kind'' [kʰɪ͂ˑnt] ‘child’, ''Köm" [kʰø͂ːm] ‘caraway schnaps’, ''lang'' [la͂ˑŋk] ‘long’


**assimilation of /d/ to preceding /n/; e.g. ''Kinder''
= ''Kinner'' [kʰɪ͂ˑnɝ]
‘children’, ''anders'' = ''anners'' [ʔa͂ˑnɝs] ‘different’


**consonant [[aspiration]] limited to the syllable
with main [[stress]]; e.g. ''Pocke'' [ˈpʰɔke] (Standard [ˈpʰɔkʰə]) ‘pock’, ''pikant''
[piˈkʰa͂ˑnt] (Standard [pʰiˈkʰant]) ‘spicy’, ''Peter'' [ˈpʰeːtɝ] (Standard [ˈpʰeːtʰɚ]) ‘Peter’, ''Papa'' [ˈpʰapa] (Standard [ˈpʰapʰɑ] or [pʰɑˈpʰɑ]) ‘dad’ (Unaspirated variants tend to be heard and spelled as voiced by
the average North German, thus ''Pogge'', ''Peder'' and ''Pabba''.)


****


The grammar of classical "Missingsch" is
mostly Low German, and the vocabulary is a mixture of High German and Low
German.


Some examples (Low German, High German, and English in
parenthesis):


*''Lang mich
mal die Kanne Miich'' (Lang mi mol de Melkkann) (Gib mir bitte das
Milchkännchen) (Give me the milk pitcher please)


*''Sitzen gehen schallst du erst, wenn de Vadder da is''
(Sitten gahn schallst du iers, wenn de Vadder dor is) (Du wirst dich erst
hinsetzen, wenn dein Vater da ist) (Only sit down when father is there)


*''Ich tu dich blots ankucken, denn wirst du klar
kriegen was die Klock geslagen hat''. (Ik do di blots ankieken, denn schallst
du klorkreegen, wat de Klock slaan hett) (Ich schaue dich nur an, dann wirst du
schon wissen, was die Uhr geschlagen hat) (I only have to look at you, then you'll
know what's what)


In the last example, it becomes very obvious that "Missingsch"
is not a Low German variety: it uses "was" instead of the Low German "wat".
More distinctive is the use of the High German "ich" instead of the
Low German "ik".


==See also==


*[[Hamburgisch]]


*[[Creole language]]


 


[[Category:German language]]


[[de:Missingsch]]


[[nds:Missingsch]]


 


 




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