However, she don’t see. Neither would people just who was born in new Lehigh Valley, also some that have Pennsylvania German forefathers, at all like me.
“My personal sister and i knew English however, spoke when you look at the dialect in the domestic,” said Jane Roberts, 65, from Nazareth. “However, we had been produced fun from in school while the we were growers and had a feature. More youthful people were embarrassed so we don’t fess as much as the latest facts we had an effective Pennsylvania Italian language records. Particular mothers failed to also show it to their people, so that they would not be produced fun of.”
One of the few yearly gatherings to have Pennsylvania Germans, Parece Versammle Fescht an enthusiastic der Bushkill, might be kept Friday within the Allen Township. No body commonly notice when Roberts is known as “Chane” by their cousin, however, just a handful will be able to carry on good conversation when you look at the dialect.
As the a child I found myself called good nixnootzich (good for nothing) of the my personal uncle, and you may a good glutzkupp inside my clumsy adolescent many years.
I additionally dutifully memorized you to definitely mystical phrase, “Kannst du Micka fange?” and its own reaction, “Ja, wann sie hucke bliebe,” and that loosely means “Can you connect flies? Yes, once they stay still.”
What exactly taken place so you can an effective dialect one to a couple years back you can expect to become read almost everywhere regarding the avenue off Allentown into the rural farmlands? And why carry out supporters of your own dialect unfortuitously anticipate it does disappear from inside the less than two decades? Continue reading