Hi, so
I am kind of new here (old account, but using it is kind new). And I heard that german has many dialects, so the german lingQ 101 - Getting started is which one? Because I am also watching some videos on youtube, and I have one book here (not really useful).
If someone can answer me, I will really appreciate it.
Almost all material you’ll find to learn German, and that certainly includes Lingq, is written/pronounced in the so-called “Hochdeutsch”, which is the standard, supra-dialectal form of German. What is taught at schools, spoken (most of the time) at TV, etc.
You’ll be understood all over the German-speaking world if you speak it. Besides, many people in modern-day Germany / Austria speak this variety in their daily life, often at home and always in formal contexts.
Switzerland is a bit of an exception in that many people speak “Schwizerdütsch” in everyday life and even in semi-formal contexts. Schwizerdütsch is Switzerland’s group or related ways of speaking, which are considered a language, rather than a group of dialects.
Jolanda has a few lessons in Lingq teaching some Schwizerdütsch. As far as I know, it’s the only instance of a non-Hochdeutsch German variety being used here at Lingq.
Thanks! But is it north german or south german? I know that my book teachs north german, the one here too? I mean, about the pronunciation
I don’t think your book teaches Northern German. It’s probably Hochdeutsch. Hochdeutsch is supra-regional.
Maybe it means that the chosen accent is more similar to what you can hear in Northern Germany or something like that but rest assured it’s not in any northern dialect.
All school textbooks teach you ‘Standarddeutsch’ or ‘Hochdeutsch’.
There are some dialects in different parts of Germany, but every native speaker will answer you in Hochdeutsch if you ask him in it.
It isn’t a problem at all.
Thanks!
Thanks!
Short answer: There are different versions of “Hochdeutsch” that are similar bu not identical and there are different accents. It´s not a big problem though :==
Long answer: German content creators here on LingQ have different accents and speak whatever is considered Hochdeutsch in their country, but they don´t speak in their regional dialects.
Somebody from Bavaria usually sounds different than somebody from Berlin. The melody is different, the R is different (“French R” in Berlin, mostly “Spanish R” in Bavaria) etc.
German Hochdeutsch: Mir ist kalt. (I´m cold)
Swiss Hochdeutsch: Ich habe kalt.
German Hochdeutsch: Ich habe gestanden. (I stood OR I confessed)
Austrian Hochdeutsch: Ich habe gestanden (I confessed)…Ich BIN gestanden (I stood)
Dialects are not standardized, are used in a particular region and not a particular country.
Hochdeutsch: Ich bin nach Hause gefahren. (I drove back home.)
Berlinerisch: Ik bin´na Hause jefahn.
Hochdeutsch: Ich habe meinen Schlüssel im Auto gelassen. (I left my key in the car.)
Berlinerisch: Ik hab meen Schlüssel im Auto jelassn.
I noticed that in Steiermark, they say “wo kommst du?” instead of “woher kommst du?”. I don’t know if this is just a thing in that region or if it is quite normal.
I heard one of the differences between the Austria/Bayern and the rest of Germany (and I should make it clear that Austria is of course not part of Germany) is the use of sein and haben in the perfect. I asked somebody once if one should say “ich bin geschwommen” or “ich habe geschwommen” and the reply was that in the north, they would tend to say it with haben and in the south with sein.
I see, thanks. I was afraid of using my book and lingQ and get everything mixed up in the end