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<div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif">===========================================<br>L O W L A N D S - L - 28 August 2009 - Volume 01<br></font><font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><font color="#999999"><a href="mailto:lowlands@lowlands-l.net">lowlands@lowlands-l.net</a> - <a href="http://lowlands-l.net/">http://lowlands-l.net/</a><br>
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<div><font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif">From: Roger Thijs, Euro-Support, Inc. <</font><a href="mailto:roger.thijs@euro-support.be"><font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif">roger.thijs@euro-support.be</font></a><font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif">></font></div>
<div><font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif">Subject: LL-L Language varieties<br><br>De Standaard of today has a full page on the progression of Brabantish as local form of Dutch in Northern Belgium.<br>Â <br>Here is a log of the page in pdf from the subscribers-only part of the website:<br>
</font><a href="http://www.euro-support.be/tmp/brab/brab.pdf"><font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif">http://www.euro-support.be/tmp/brab/brab.pdf</font></a><br><font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif">Â <br>For those who are new to the list.<br>
 <br>The Belgian North, now forming a region called "Vlaanderen", has Dutch, as official language.<br>It consists of the provinces:<br>- West-Flanders: formerly part of the County of Flanders<br>- East Flanders: also formerly part of the County of Flanders<br>
- Flemish Brabant: formerly part of the Duchy of Brabant<br>- Antwerp: also formerly part of the Duchy of Brabant<br>- (Belgian) Limburg: most of it formerly part of the County of Loon, a fief of the principality of Liège<br>
 <br>Main dialect groups:<br>- (West)-Flemish in West-Flanders, with a transition area towards Brabantish in East-Flanders<br>- Brabantish: in Vlaams Brabant and Antwerp<br>- Limburgish in Limburg<br> <br>Confusion:<br> <br>
The word "Flemish" can have different meanings:<br> <br>- For the French it is as good as a synonym for Dutch. The County of Flanders was closest to France, even (formally) part of the French kingdom till 1520. (compare with "allemand" for German)<br>
 <br>- The official Dutch in Belgium has some local vocabulary and particularities. I would define it as "Belgian Dutch". Some call it "Flemish" though. Since, in the last 3 decades, the Northern Belgian provinces formed a region, that got the name "Vlaanderen", the name "Flemish" also applies anyhow to the new combination of the 5 provinces. When, in the mid nineties, Brabant was split in a walloon part and a Northern part, the latter got the name "Vlaams Brabant", a contradictio in terminis. But "Brabantish Brabant" would not sound very good and "Noord Brabant" already is the name of a province in the Netherlands.<br>
 <br>- Some "heimat"-writers intentionally included dialect vocabulary in their publications in Dutch. It may be a bilingual combination: narrative in Dutch, dialogs in dialect or close to (Claes wit Brabantish), or a direct inclusion of local vocabulary in the narrative part (Steuvels, Gezelle with Flemish)<br>
 <br>- Since parishes often have their particular variety of dialects, immigrants, originally speaking an other variety, adapt partly. It is felt cute to share some local color and a "regiolect" developts.<br> <br>
- A special regiolect developped over a large area, under influence of migration towards houses on new land divisions, and it got the name "Verkavelingsvlaams". It found its ways in TV soap and tends to develop towards an kind of accepted standard. It is not based on "Flemish" nor "Limburgish" dialects but largely on "Brabantish" dialects. This is where the article is all about.<br>
 <br>Regards,<br>Roger<br><br>----------<br><br>From: R. F. Hahn <</font><a href="mailto:sassisch@yahoo.com"><font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif">sassisch@yahoo.com</font></a><font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif">><br>
Subject: Language varieties<br><br>Thanks for the handy overview, dear Roger.<br><br>And in French Flanders? West Flemish, I take it.<br><br>Regards,<br>Reinhard/Ron<br>Seattle, USA</font></div>
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