DUTCH

Sarah Bimberg

LANGUAGE SPREAD
Language Family:
Indo European
Germanic
West Germanic
Low Franconia
Dutch

Language purism: In the past,

Dutch has sometimes been
considered dialects of German. But in
the case of Low German spoken in
Eastern Netherlands and Northern
Germany, it could be considered a

Language
Diffusion/Colonization:

New Netherlands
Dutch East Indies Indonesia
Suriname
Belgium
Carribean Islands Aruba, Bonaire,
Curaao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, Saint
Martin
Dutch New Guinea

MAPS
Dutch language distribution throughout the world:
Europe:

Dutch throughout

LANGUAGE EVOLUTION TIMELINE

3000 B.C.: Indo-European language can be traced back.
1000-500 B.C.: Germanic language splits from Indo-European language
600 A.D: Dutch, English, and German went their separate ways.
600-1200: Old Dutch period. Little records of the language because the Low Countries didnt read or write.
1200-1500: Middle Dutch period. Low countries populations increased and cities grew up in the south. The
townspeople began to use the language.
1600-1700: The most changes of the Dutch language occurred during these centuries. During this time
period the North Netherlands flourished and standardized the language. The first official Dutch translation
of the bible was made in 1637. Broadly speaking the Dutch language acquired many characteristics during
these centuries that are still present today.
1800s: Standardization continued in the Netherlands, but in Belgium it was very difficult under multiple
rules but more than half of the Belgian population was Dutch-speaking.
1900s: The language battle in Belgium is still not over. Belgian Dutch and Dutch of Netherlands began to
develop equally together. Radio, television and education, and considerable mobility on the part of the
population, all work to the advantage of a standard language, and to the further suppression of the
dialects. Immigration and foreigners have changed the pronunciation of the Dutch language. Belgium and
Netherlands are still working toward standardizing the language and creating a common spelling system.

STANDARD VS. VARIANT LANGUAGES

Dialects:
Flemish dialect in Belgium

Dutch Creole

Location

Status

In Flanders - Oost-Vlaams, Antwerps,

Brabants/Brussels, and Limburgs

Berbice

Guyana

Extinct

Skepi

Guyana

Extinct

Negerhollands

US Virgin
Islands

Extinct

Petjo

Indonesia

Extinct/criticall
y endangered

The present Dutch standard language is

derived from Old Dutch dialects spoken in the
Low Countries that were first recorded in the
Salic law, a Frankish document written around
510.

Javindo

Indonesia

Extinct

Ceylon
PortugueseDutch

Sri Lanka

Extinct/criticall
y endangered

Standard Dutch is very similar to most Dutch

dialects

Mohawk Dutch

United States

Extinct

Dutch dialects are not spoken as often as they

used to be. Nowadays only older people speak
these dialects in the smaller villages,

Standard forms:

OFFICIAL LANGUAGES

Official Language in:

Aruba
Belgium
Curacao
Netherlands
Sint Maarten
Suriname
Benelux
European Union
Union of South American
CARICOM nation

LANGUAGE AND TERRITORY

The Flemish Movement:
Flemish language: Flemish or Belgian Dutch is the Dutch language as spoken in Flanders, the northern part
of Belgium
The 19th- and 20th-century nationalist movement of Flemish-speaking people in Belgium sought political
and cultural equality with, or separation from, the less numerous but long-dominant French-speaking
Walloons.

Timeline:
1788: Jan Baptist Chrysostomus Verlooy, a jurist and politician from the Southern Netherlands, wrote
an essay, the first sign of life of the Flemish movement: a plea for the native language, but also for
freedom and democracy.
1815: Protestant Dutch king, Willem, declared Dutch to be the only official language
October 4, 1830, Belgian separatists declared the independence of Belgium from the Netherlands.
1850s & 1860s: Cultural organizations promoting the Dutch language and Flemish culture were
founded
1861: The first Flemish political party, the Meetingpartij was founded in Antwerp
1920s: the first Flemish nationalist party was elected.
1930s: the Flemish Movement grew ever larger and Dutch was recognized for the first time as the sole

TOPONYMS
Toponym origins from New
Netherland:
Bronck's River -The Bronx, New York
Staten Eylandt Staten Island, New York
Lange Eylandt Long Island, New York
Sant Hoek - Sandy Hook, New Jersey
Conyne Eylandt Coney Island, New York
Breuckelen Brooklyn, New York
Flushing Flushing, New York

LANGUAGE CHANGE
Dutch language influences:
German
Brabantic
Yiddish
French
Dutch influenced English and German
as well.

ARTICLES
#1: English is Key to International Success:
http://
www.guampdn.com/article/20150524/OPINION02/3052
40010/English-key-international-success
#2: Surinamese Head to the Polls:
http://
www.telesurtv.net/english/telesuragenda/Surinames
e-Head-to-the-Polls-20150525-0009.html