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Stadsfries () or Town Frisian ( fy, Stedsk, link=no, ) is a set of dialects spoken in certain cities in the province of
Friesland Friesland (, ; official fry, Fryslân ), historically and traditionally known as Frisia, is a province of the Netherlands located in the country's northern part. It is situated west of Groningen, northwest of Drenthe and Overijssel, north of F ...
in the northern
Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Neth ...
, namely
Leeuwarden Leeuwarden (; fy, Ljouwert, longname=yes /; Town Frisian: ''Liwwadden''; Leeuwarder dialect: ''Leewarden'') is a city and municipality in Friesland, Netherlands, with a population of 123,107 (2019). It is the provincial capital and seat of th ...
,
Sneek Sneek (; fy, Snits) is a city southwest of Leeuwarden and the seat of the former municipality of Sneek in the province of Friesland, Netherlands. As of 2011 it is the seat of the municipality of Súdwest-Fryslân (Southwest Friesland). Th ...
,
Bolsward Bolsward (, West Frisian: ''Boalsert'') is a city in Súdwest-Fryslân in the province of Friesland, the Netherlands. Bolsward has a population of just under 10,200. It is located 10 km W.N.W. of Sneek. History The town is founded on thr ...
, Franeker,
Dokkum Dokkum is a Dutch fortified city in the municipality of Noardeast-Fryslân in the province of Friesland. It has 12,669 inhabitants (February 8, 2020). The fortifications of Dokkum are well preserved and are known as the ''bolwerken'' (bulwarks) ...
, Harlingen,
Stavoren Stavoren (; fry, Starum; previously Staveren) is a city in the province of Friesland, Netherlands, on the coast of the IJsselmeer, about 5 km (3.1 mi) south of Hindeloopen, in the municipality of Súdwest-Fryslân. Stavoren had a population ...
, and to some extent in
Heerenveen Heerenveen (, fry, It Hearrenfean ) is a town and municipality in the province of Friesland (Fryslân), in the Northern Netherlands. In 2021, the town had a population of 29,790 (1 January) while the municipality had a population 50,859 (1 July ...
. For linguistic reasons, the outlying and insular dialects of Midsland (
Terschelling Terschelling (; fry, Skylge; Terschelling dialect: ''Schylge'') is a municipality and an island in the northern Netherlands, one of the West Frisian Islands. It is situated between the islands of Vlieland and Ameland. Wadden Islanders ar ...
), Ameland,
Het Bildt Het or HET may refer to: Science and technology * Hall-effect thruster, a type of ion thruster used for spacecraft propulsion * Heavy Equipment Transporter, a vehicle in the US Army's Heavy Equipment Transport System * Hobby–Eberly Telescope, ...
, and Kollum are also sometimes tied to Stadsfries. The vocabulary of Stadsfries is derived primarily from
Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People ...
. The dialects began in the late 15th century, when
Frisia Frisia is a cross-border cultural region in Northwestern Europe. Stretching along the Wadden Sea, it encompasses the north of the Netherlands and parts of northwestern Germany. The region is traditionally inhabited by the Frisians, a West Ge ...
lost its political independence to the Netherlands. For many living in Frisia, learning Dutch became a necessity. The result was a mixture of
Hollandic Hollandic or Hollandish ( ) is the most widely spoken dialect of the Dutch language. Hollandic is among the Central Dutch dialects. Other important language varieties of spoken Low Franconian languages are Brabantian, Flemish (East Flemish, ...
dialect vocabulary and West Frisian grammar and other language principles. Since this process began, the West Frisian language itself has evolved, such that Stadsfries is further away from modern Frisian than it is from
Old Frisian Old Frisian was a West Germanic language spoken between the 8th and 16th centuries along the North Sea coast, roughly between the mouths of the Rhine and Weser rivers. The Frisian settlers on the coast of South Jutland (today's Northern Fri ...
. Norval Smith states that Stadsfries is a Frisian–Dutch
mixed language A mixed language is a language that arises among a bilingual group combining aspects of two or more languages but not clearly deriving primarily from any single language. It differs from a creole or pidgin language in that, whereas creoles/pidgin ...
. p. 373. The name of the dialect group, ''Stadsfries'', is not an
endonym An endonym (from Greek: , 'inner' + , 'name'; also known as autonym) is a common, ''native'' name for a geographical place, group of people, individual person, language or dialect, meaning that it is used inside that particular place, group, ...
but is instead a Dutch term for the language. ''Stad'' (German: Stadt) is a Germanic term for "city" or "town", seen in English place names such as "Hempstead". In Stadsfries, the term for the dialect group is ''Stadsfrys'' or ''Stads'', or each dialect is known simply by a name derived from the particular city name, such as ''Liwwarders'' for the dialect of Leeuwarden. In West Frisian, the dialects are known as ''stedsk'' ("city-ish"), which does not indicate the idea that Stadsfries is a form of Frisian.


Vocabulary

The vocabulary of Stadsfries is mainly Dutch though the West Frisian language influence is notable. Furthermore, a set of word forms are used that are clearly West Frisian, not Dutch. Examples: The language also has typical West Frisian words that don't exist (in that sense) in Dutch, usually this concerns domestic words and words from the mainly West Frisian language agricultural sector. Examples: Other differences between Dutch and West Frisian can be traced back to the Dutch dialect of the 16th century. Example: Finally, several words have survived in the Stadsfries language due to Dutch influence that have since disappeared from the West Frisian language. Examples:


Grammar

Stadsfries
phonology Phonology is the branch of linguistics that studies how languages or dialects systematically organize their sounds or, for sign languages, their constituent parts of signs. The term can also refer specifically to the sound or sign system of a ...
deviates from Dutch in the absence of the
voiced Voice or voicing is a term used in phonetics and phonology to characterize speech sounds (usually consonants). Speech sounds can be described as either voiceless (otherwise known as ''unvoiced'') or voiced. The term, however, is used to refe ...
sounds /v/ and /z/ at the beginning of words. Dutch words like this often have an equivalent Stadsfrisian translation that instead starts with the
unvoiced In linguistics, voicelessness is the property of sounds being pronounced without the larynx vibrating. Phonologically, it is a type of phonation, which contrasts with other states of the larynx, but some object that the word phonation implies v ...
sounds /f/ and /s/. The Dutch sounds sequence /sx/ does not exist in Stadsfries, but is often replaced with /sk/. Stadsfries has these properties in common with West Frisian, as well as several Dutch dialects. The
plurals The plural (sometimes abbreviated pl., pl, or ), in many languages, is one of the values of the grammatical category of number. The plural of a noun typically denotes a quantity greater than the default quantity represented by that noun. This ...
match West Frisian ''(skip-skippen)'', as do the
diminutives A diminutive is a root word that has been modified to convey a slighter degree of its root meaning, either to convey the smallness of the object or quality named, or to convey a sense of intimacy or endearment. A ( abbreviated ) is a word-forma ...
''(popke, autootsje, rinkje)'', except those in Stavers ''(poppy, autootsy, rinkje)'', where Hollands rules are followed. The
verbs A verb () is a word (part of speech) that in syntax generally conveys an action (''bring'', ''read'', ''walk'', ''run'', ''learn''), an occurrence (''happen'', ''become''), or a state of being (''be'', ''exist'', ''stand''). In the usual descrip ...
are missing two West Frisian weak classes, but do use West Frisian rules for forming past participles: they never get the affix ''ge- (ik hew maakt; hest dou dat sien?)''. Stadsfrisian kept the West Frisian pronouns ''do, jo and jimme'' (informal you, formal you, plural you), although ''do'' and ''jo'' are almost always written as ''dou'' and ''jou. '' These words can in fact be used as criteria for deciding whether a
Hollandic Hollandic or Hollandish ( ) is the most widely spoken dialect of the Dutch language. Hollandic is among the Central Dutch dialects. Other important language varieties of spoken Low Franconian languages are Brabantian, Flemish (East Flemish, ...
-West Frisian mixed dialect can still be considered Stadsfries. The Dutch dialect called "West Frisian" spoken in the West Friesland region of
North Holland North Holland ( nl, Noord-Holland, ) is a province of the Netherlands in the northwestern part of the country. It is located on the North Sea, north of South Holland and Utrecht, and west of Friesland and Flevoland. In November 2019, it had a ...
for example does not have these words and is therefore considered Hollandic.


Spelling

There is no standardized, officially recognized spelling for Stadsfries. The very few authors that write in it each use their own spelling conventions. The most commonly used spelling is that in the ''Woordenboek fan ut Liwwarders'' (
Leeuwarden Leeuwarden (; fy, Ljouwert, longname=yes /; Town Frisian: ''Liwwadden''; Leeuwarder dialect: ''Leewarden'') is a city and municipality in Friesland, Netherlands, with a population of 123,107 (2019). It is the provincial capital and seat of th ...
Dictionary). This spelling convention is closely related to, but more phonetic than West Frisian, and does not use the letter ''û''.


Speakers

The use of Stadsfries is declining rapidly, especially in
Leeuwarden Leeuwarden (; fy, Ljouwert, longname=yes /; Town Frisian: ''Liwwadden''; Leeuwarder dialect: ''Leewarden'') is a city and municipality in Friesland, Netherlands, with a population of 123,107 (2019). It is the provincial capital and seat of th ...
. No more than a quarter of the city's population (approximately 20,000 people) speaks the language, although that percentage is higher in smaller towns. In the first half of the twentieth century the town of
Heerenveen Heerenveen (, fry, It Hearrenfean ) is a town and municipality in the province of Friesland (Fryslân), in the Northern Netherlands. In 2021, the town had a population of 29,790 (1 January) while the municipality had a population 50,859 (1 July ...
had a local strand of Stadsfries known as Haagjes Fries, spoken especially around Oranjewoud, near the country home of the Frisian stadhouder. Use of most
dialect 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 ...
s (as well as the West Frisian language) is declining, but because West Frisian is considered prestigious and even recognized as a Dutch national language, Stadsfries has become a
sociolect In sociolinguistics, a sociolect is a form of language ( non-standard dialect, restricted register) or a set of lexical items used by a socioeconomic class, profession, an age group, or other social group. Sociolects involve both passive acquis ...
of the lower classes, especially in the cities. The transition from dialect to sociolect happened primarily in the 20th century. Around 1900, the Stadsfries dialects were still considered regional strands of Dutch and given a much higher status than Frisian. With the rise of
Standard Dutch Dutch ( ) is a West Germanic language spoken by about 25 million people as a first language and 5 million as a second language. It is the third most widely spoken Germanic language, after its close relatives German and English. ''Afrikaans' ...
in society's upper classes, brought on particularly by education and mass media, Stadsfries stopped being considered a strand of Dutch. Since the lower classes had less exposure to Standard Dutch, they remained as some of the only speakers of Stadsfries.


References


External links

* http://lowlands-l.net/anniversary/stadsfrys-info.php * http://www.lowlands-l.net/talk/nld/index.php?page=stadsfries {{Languages of the Benelux West Germanic languages Languages of the Netherlands Mixed languages