| Languages of Liechtenstein | |
|---|---|
 German-language sign in Steg | |
| Official | German |
| Vernacular | Highest Alemannic, High Alemannic, Walser German, Swiss Standard German |
| Immigrant | Italian, Turkish, Portuguese [1] |
| Foreign | English, French |
| Signed | Swiss-German Sign Language |
| Keyboard layout | |
Liechtenstein's official language is German, and the principality is the smallest of the four countries in Europe populated by a majority of German speakers.
The local German dialect is Alemannic, a dialect (sometimes considered a language) belonging to a highly divergent group including Swiss German (spoken by all Swiss-Germans, the majority of the country), Alsatian (spoken in the Alsace region of France), Germans living in Baden-Württemberg and Bavarian Swabia, and Austrians living in Vorarlberg. Eighty-six percent of the country is "ethnic Alemannic", and are speakers of the language. Highest Alemannic is spoken in the south of the country, and High Alemannic in the rest of the country. It can be difficult to achieve mutual intelligibility between Alemannic and Standard German, especially with the Highest Alemannic variety.[ citation needed ]
Austrian German, Austrian Standard German (ASG), Standard Austrian German, or Austrian High German, is the variety of Standard German written and spoken in Austria. It has the highest sociolinguistic prestige locally, as it is the variation used in the media and for other formal situations. In less formal situations, Austrians use Bavarian and Alemannic dialects, which are traditionally spoken but rarely written in Austria.
German is a West Germanic language mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and official or co-official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the Italian province of South Tyrol. It is also a co-official language of Luxembourg and Belgium, as well as a recognized national language in Namibia. Outside Germany, it is also spoken by German communities in France (Bas-Rhin), Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, and Hungary (Sopron).
The High German dialects, or simply High German ; not to be confused with Standard High German which is commonly also called High German, comprise the varieties of German spoken south of the Benrath and Uerdingen isoglosses in central and southern Germany, Austria, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, Luxembourg, and eastern Belgium, as well as in neighbouring portions of France, Italy, the Czech Republic (Bohemia), and Poland. They are also spoken in diaspora in Romania, Russia, the United States, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Chile, and Namibia.
Liechtenstein, officially the Principality of Liechtenstein, is a German-speaking microstate located in the Alps between Austria and Switzerland. It is the sixth smallest nation worldwide. Liechtenstein is a semi-constitutional monarchy headed by the prince of Liechtenstein.
This article is about the demographic features of the population of Liechtenstein, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.
Swiss German is any of the Alemannic dialects spoken in the German-speaking part of Switzerland and in some Alpine communities in Northern Italy bordering Switzerland. Occasionally, the Alemannic dialects spoken in other countries are grouped together with Swiss German as well, especially the dialects of Liechtenstein and Austrian Vorarlberg, which are closely associated to Switzerland's.
Alsatian is the group of Alemannic German dialects spoken in most of Alsace, a formerly disputed region in eastern France that has passed between French and German control five times since 1681.
Standard High German (SHG), less precisely Standard German or High German, is the standardized variety of the German language used in formal contexts and for communication between different dialect areas. It is a pluricentric Dachsprache with three codified specific regional variants: German Standard German, Austrian Standard German and Swiss Standard German.
Alemannic, or rarely Alemannish, is a group of High German dialects. The name derives from the ancient Germanic tribal confederation known as the Alamanni.
Walser German and Walliser German are a group of Highest Alemannic dialects spoken in parts of Switzerland, Italy, Liechtenstein, and Austria (Vorarlberg).
The Walser people are the speakers of the Walser German dialects, a variety of Highest Alemannic. They inhabit the region of the Alps of Switzerland and Liechtenstein, as well as the fringes of Italy and Austria. The Walser people are named after the Wallis (Valais), the uppermost Rhône valley, where they settled from roughly the 10th century in the late phase of the migration of the Alamanni, crossing from the Bernese Oberland; because of linguistic differences among the Walser dialects, it is supposed that there were two independent immigration routes.
Schaan is the largest municipality of Liechtenstein by population. It is located to the north of Vaduz, the capital, in the central part of the country. As of 2019 it has a population of 6,039 making it the most populous administrative district in Liechtenstein. Representing an important traffic hub and industrial location of the country, Schaan covers an area of 26.8 km2 (10.3 sq mi), including mountains and forest. It is a municipality within the electoral district of Oberland in the Principality of Liechtenstein. Schaan contains four enclaves: Brunnenegg, Gritsch, Guschg, and Plankner Neugrütt.
Romandy is the French-speaking part of western Switzerland. In 2020, about 2 million people, or 22.8% of the Swiss population, lived in Romandy. The majority of the romand population lives in the western part of the country, especially the Arc Lémanique region along Lake Geneva, connecting Geneva, Vaud and the Lower Valais.
Highest Alemannic is a branch of Alemannic German and is often considered to be part of the German language, even though mutual intelligibility with Standard German and other non-Alemannic German dialects is very limited.
High Alemannic is a dialect of Alemannic German spoken in the westernmost Austrian state of Vorarlberg and in Switzerland and Liechtenstein.
Triesenberg is a municipality in Liechtenstein with a population of 2,636. Its area of 30 square kilometres (12 sq mi) makes it the largest municipality in Liechtenstein. The center of the municipality rests at an elevation of 884–1,000 metres (2,900–3,281 ft).
German dialects are the various traditional local varieties of the German language. Though varied by region, those of the southern half of Germany beneath the Benrath line are dominated by the geographical spread of the High German consonant shift, and the dialect continuum that connects German to the neighboring varieties of Low Franconian (Dutch) and Frisian.
The languages of Austria include German, the official language and lingua franca; Austro-Bavarian, the main dialect outside Vorarlberg; Alemannic, the main dialect in Vorarlberg; and several minority languages.
Swiss Standard German, or Swiss High German, referred to by the Swiss as Schriftdeutsch, or Hochdeutsch, is the written form of one of four official languages in Switzerland, besides French, Italian and Romansh. It is a variety of Standard German, used in the German-speaking part of Switzerland and Liechtenstein. It is mainly written, and rather less often spoken.
Ida Ospelt-Amann was a poet from Liechtenstein, who wrote in the Alemannic dialect of Vaduz. She is considered the most important of her country's dialect poets. Her works deal primarily with rural life, as well as with her home town of Vaduz, and its change over time.
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