High Germany is a geographical term referring to the mountainous southern part of Germany. The term is first found in medieval Latin as , for example in chapter 23 of the ''Imago mundi'' of
Honorius Augustodunensis
Honorius Augustodunensis (c. 1080 – c. 1140), commonly known as Honorius of Autun, was a very popular 12th-century Christian theologian who wrote prolifically on many subjects. He wrote in a non-scholastic manner, with a lively style, and his wor ...
(12th century,
Regensburg): , "From the Danube to the Alps is High Germany".
In German
In German, the term ''Hochdeutschland'' to mean Alpine Germany was not uncommon in the 16th century, and was still so used by the Brothers Grimm in the 19th, but has largely fallen out of use. However, when the Republic of Austria was founded in 1918, ''Hochdeutschland'' was one of the proposals made for a name for the new country.
[Ernst Bruckmüller in: Österreichische Galerie Belvedere, Günter Düriegl (Hrsg): ''Das neue Österreich. Die Ausstellung zum Staatsvertragsjubiläum 1955–2005'', Wien 2005, , S. 242ff.]
The adjective ''hochdeutsch'', meaning Southern German, is most commonly used in the context of language:
High German
The High German dialects (german: hochdeutsche Mundarten), 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 ...
refers to all dialects of the German language spoken south of the
Benrath line. However, since the standard German language grew mostly out of a High German dialect, modern colloquial German often uses the word ''Hochdeutsch'' to mean official language as opposed to any dialect (even those dialects which linguists call "high German"). As a result, the nouns ''Hochdeutscher'' and ''Hochdeutschland'' can occasionally be heard in German used jokingly to refer to the political establishment, or to the region around
Hannover
Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...
which is often associated with the standard language, despite belonging to the traditional
Low German area and having an appropriate
Northern regiolect
The term dialect (from Latin , , from the Ancient Greek word , 'discourse', from , 'through' and , 'I speak') can refer to either of two distinctly different types of linguistic phenomena:
One usage refers to a variety of a language that is a ...
.
In English
In English, the term ''High Germany'' is rather dated as a geographical term, but it is still familiar from the traditional song "
High Germany
High Germany is a geographical term referring to the mountainous southern part of Germany. The term is first found in medieval Latin as , for example in chapter 23 of the ''Imago mundi'' of Honorius Augustodunensis (12th century, Regensburg): , "Fr ...
", which refers to the
War of the Spanish Succession
The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict that took place from 1701 to 1714. The death of childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700 led to a struggle for control of the Spanish Empire between his heirs, Phil ...
.
See also
{{Portal, Germany
*
High German
The High German dialects (german: hochdeutsche Mundarten), 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 ...
*
High Germany (folk song)
References
Geographic history of Germany