Do dialects exist?
Is there only one type of Dutch, or are there others? This of course depends on how you look at things. Dialects obviously do exist, as in all languages. But in the Netherlands and Belgium (Flanders), are there typical characteristics that make it possible to confirm there are different geostyles?
Any Dutch speaker in Belgium or the Netherlands will tell you there is indeed a disparity. On a spoken level the difference is undeniable, but the written word is identical. At least it is officially…
One language for 22 million people
Spelling and grammar rules are uniform across the Netherlands and Flanders, but in order to be able to put our finger on the different geostyles in the two regions, it would be useful to spend a little time on the countries’ history. The development of Protestantism throughout the Middle Ages caused a rebellion in the north of the Netherlands as they then stood. This resulted in the independence of what was to become the Netherlands as they are now. However, as Belgium was still under the rule of the (Spanish) Catholics, the “liberated” souls fled to the north, there was a “brain drain”, to use an anachronism. This event had a lot of influence over the ever-present differences between the Dutch and the Flemish.
The Flemish mentality is also very different to that of the Dutch, something that has doubtlessly influenced the language. Flemish speakers have always come into contact with French. Consequently, French influences can be found in Flemish usage. Moreover, a |
Flemish person will immediately make the effort to speak the language of a foreign interlocutor, whereas a Dutch person will only speak his or her mother tongue. Do the Flemish feel inferior for all of this? It is difficult to say. They see it as more of a positive characteristic. In general, we may say that a certain level of convergence between both types of Dutch has occurred, though a difference nevertheless remains.
Different lexicons
Differences are principally discernible in terms of pronunciation and vocabulary. For example, Flemish speakers use the word “schoon” (beautiful), where the Dutch would say “mooi”, and where the Dutch do use “schoon”, the Flemish prefer “proper” (clean), a word that stems clearly from the French, “propre”. There are many other cases similar to this, inferring French origin. The main official titles are also “Frenchified” in Flanders. Take for example the use of the word “premier” (from the French “premier ministre”) instead of “eerste minister” (prime minister).Having said this, there are cases where it is the Dutch who succumb to outside influences. For example: whilst in Flemish the abbreviation “a.u.b.” (alstublieft: thank you) is used, the Dutch have the audacity to use the French version “s.v.p.”. Last example of this converse influence: The Dutch use the term “jus d’orange”, whilst the Flemish prefer the term “fruitsap”.Explanatory Dutch dictionaries actually distinguish typically Flemish or Dutch terms.
At pronunciation level, the Flemish pronounce the [g] sound in a softer fashion than the Dutch. Flemish speakers also like to shorten their pronunciation. Example in the spoken word: “Dat kan je” (you can) is shortened by the Flemish in the oral version to “Da kunde”, where “Kunde” is a contraction of “Kunt ge”. |
De koe, hij geeft melk!
The example in the preceding paragraph illustrates that Flemish speakers always use the forms “gij” and “ge” in the spoken word. To the Dutch, these forms would appear very archaic. They have for a long time been applying the correct usage, that is to say: “jij” and “je”. Until 30 years ago, the form “gij” was still accepted in written Flemish. This is probably the reason why Flemish speakers often use the polite forms of “u” and “uw”.
This does not mean that the Flemish are any more formal than the Dutch, but in Flanders there is an indisputable confusion, as “jij” and “u” are often used in the wrong way.
Another striking difference on a geostylistic level is that the references to the feminine gender of nouns disappear in the Dutch spoken in the north of the Netherlands. In Flanders they are preserved, as in a number of dialects gender is of special importance for constructions other than demonstrative pronouns. The Dutch spoken in the south of the Netherlands still uses three genders: masculine, feminine, and neutral. In the north, however, only two are retained. This simplifies the grammatical aspect, but some sentences appear to be nonsensical, e.g. “De koe, hij geeft melk” (the cow, he gives milk). In this way, Dutch becomes a language in which it is possible to deduce the gender of nouns from the definite article: “de”means masculine, “het”means neutral.
The geostyles of the Netherlands and Flanders are thus very different. On an oral level the difference can be heard immediately. On a written level, it takes longer to perceive, unless, as a native speaker, one is familiar with the specific vocabulary. Here we have additional proof that languages need to be produced where they are spoken…
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