Pennsylvania Dutch programs so popular that prospective students have to be turned away

That's according to an article here on the revival of Pennsylvania Dutch (Deitsch) and courses taught on the language in such places as Emmaus and Quakertown. The courses are next to free, costing only $25 for 14 weeks.

As is often the case, a good way to compare Deitsch with modern German is to take a look at the Our Father, as the Wikipedia page for the language shows. You can see that words ending in -er often become -ah, and also pf- will become p- as with many regional varieties of German.

	Writing system 1 (English-based)		Modern German (close translation)	Modern German (standard wording)
	Unsah Faddah im Himmel,		Unser Vater im Himmel,	Vater unser im Himmel,
	dei nohma loss heilich sei,		Deinen Namen lass heilig sein,	geheiligt werde dein Name,
	Dei Reich loss kumma.		Dein Reich lass kommen.	Dein Reich komme.
	Dei villa loss gedu sei,		Deinen Willen lass getan sein,	Dein Wille geschehe,
	uf di eaht vi im Himmel.		auf der Erde wie im Himmel.	wie im Himmel, so auf Erden.
	Unsah tayklich broht gebb uns heit,		Unser tägliches Brot gib uns heute,	Unser tägliches Brot gib uns heute,
	Un fagebb unsah shulda,		Und vergib unsere Schulden,	Und vergib uns unsere Schuld,
	vi miah dee fagevva vo uns shuldich sinn.		wie wir denen vergeben, die uns schuldig sind.	wie auch wir vergeben unseren Schuldigern.
	Un fiah uns naett in di fasuchung,		Und führe uns nicht in die Versuchung,	Und führe uns nicht in Versuchung,
	avvah hald uns fu'm eevila.		aber halte uns vom Üblen [fern].	sondern erlöse uns von dem Bösen.
	Fa dei is es Reich, di graft,		Für Dein ist das Reich, die Kraft	Denn Dein ist das Reich, und die Kraft
	un di hallichkeit in ayvichkeit.		und die Herrlichkeit in Ewigkeit.	und die Herrlichkeit in Ewigkeit.
	Amen.		Amen.	Amen.

Is Deitsch a good language to learn for those that live in the area but are actually more interested in learning standard German? Sure it is, if that's the only way you can find a place to immerse yourself in the language. If you happen to be from that part of Pennsylvania and want to learn German but don't have anywhere (or the money) to do so, then it makes sense to learn Deitsch. German speakers themselves nearly all speak another version of the language at home anyway. It all depends on one's learning style - if you need that immersive environment and the easiest way to do it is with Deitsch, then that's what you do.

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Pennsylvania German (Deitsch) also doing great, many young people learning the language

Along with the recent post on the success Basque is having in remaining a vibrant and living language, here's another one on another language in a similar situation: Pennsylvania German or Deitsch, which most thought was going to die out a few decades ago, but is doing quite well including attaining a large number of young adherents. I'm curious how many more of these stories we're going to need before we finally realize that languages don't just die out by being small: they die out by being small and not having the requisite technology or local support to stay alive. Take a small language, add internet access, some local interest and a non-threatening national government, and it can be kept alive and vibrant with not all that much difficulty at all. Here's how Deitsch is doing:

To paraphrase Mark Twain, the rumors of its death have been greatly exaggerated.

Its demise has been predicted since the early 18th century and it's still here.

Any way you say it, Pennsylvania German, Pennsylvania Dutch, Deitsch or Pennsilfaanisch Deitsch is not just alive, it's actually gaining some measurable traction, as a younger generation - two generations removed from fluency - have moved past the historic stigmas and have embraced the culture.

It's a complete reversal from the oldest living generation of dialect speakers who made a conscious choice not to pass it down, particularly during World War I and World War II.

"We're on the cusp of a resurgence of people who are from the culture learning the language as something that is part of their own personal lives," said Zach Langley, 25, a graduate student studying 1930s dialect radio scripts at Kutztown University, which offers courses in Pennsylvania German studies.

unn:

"Pennsylvania German has actually been written down since they (the Germans) got here," said Rob Lusch, instructor of Pennsylvania German at Kutztown. "The big problem is the concept of standardized spelling. Each region has its own variation in spelling and usage. That's the challenge. I would like to see one universal spelling system across the board."

unn:

Over 300 men attended the Numeral Ains Grundsau Lodge gathering in Germansville, Lehigh County, including Paul Kunkle, 82, former schoolmaster for the Grundsau Lodge dialect schools.

"I made a prediction a couple years ago that 15 years from now you're not going to hear very much Pennsylvania Dutch anymore," said Kunkle, who first learned the language against his parents' wishes by eavesdropping on co-workers at a grocery store.

But he was wrong. Since the Grundsau Lodge started offering 14-week classes on the dialect, 4,040 diplomas have been awarded. He said he constantly runs into former students who have found some practical application for the language. He also believes it's important to adhere to the culture's many life lessons.

They of course also have their own Wikipedia, which is quite easy to understand if you know some German. Here are some examples of standard German (left) with Deitsch on the right:

Hochdeitsche Schreib-Schprooch	Kernraum (Mannheimer Gegend)
Luft	Luft
Wiese	Wies
Kind	Kind
Was?	Was?
euch	eich, euch
sind	sin
Haus	Haus
Dorf	Dorf [Darref]
Bruder	Bruder
hinten	hinne
nichts	nix
ich	ich

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