Plattdüütsch

Low German

Germanic

FamilyGermanic Speakers~5M ScriptLatin CountriesGermany (north), Netherlands (eastern) Official inGermany (recognized as regional language) Vitalitysafe ISO 639-3nds

Low German (Plattdüütsch / Plattdeutsch) is a West Germanic language with ~5M speakers — northern Germany (Niedersachsen, Schleswig-Holstein, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern) and eastern Netherlands (Lower Saxon dialects). Sister to Dutch and English (West Germanic outside High German), descended from Old Saxon. Recognized as regional language under European Charter (Germany 1999). Mennonite-Plautdietsch diaspora globally.

Where it is spoken

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87 core words in Low German

Water

Water

vɑːtɐ

Fire

Füer

fyːɐ

Sun

Sünn

zʏn

Moon

Maan

maːn

Star

Steern

steːrn

Night

Nacht

naxt

Rain

Regen

ˈreːɡn̩

Snow

Snee

sneː

Wind

Wind

vɪnt

Earth

Eer

eːɐ

Stone

Steen

steːn

Mountain

Barg

barx

Sea

See

zeː

Mother

Moder

moːdɐ

Father

Vader

fɑːdɐ

Daughter

Dochter

dɔxtɐ

I

ik

ɪk

You

du

duː

We

wi

viː

Name

Naam

naːm

Person

Minsch

mɪnʃ

Head

Kopp

kɔp

Eye

Oog

oːx

Ear

Ohr

oːr

Nose

Nees

neːs

Mouth

Muul

muːl

Tooth

Tähn

tɛːn

Tongue

Tung

tʊŋ

Hand

Hand

hant

Foot

Foot

fɔʊ̯t

Heart

Hart

haɐt

Bone

Knaken

ˈknaːkən

Blood

Bloot

bloːt

Poop

Schiet

ʃiːt

Love

Leev

leːf

Tree

Boom

boːm

Dog

Hund

hʊnt

Cat

Katt

kat

Fish

Fisch

fɪʃ

Bird

Vagel

ˈfaːɣəl

Butterfly

Sommervagel

ˈzɔmɐfaːɣəl

Egg

Ei

ai

Bear

Boor

boːr

Horse

Peerd

peːrt

House

Huus

huːs

Milk

Melk

mɛlk

Honey

Honnig

ˈhɔnɪç

Salt

Solt

zɔlt

Wine

Wien

viːn

Rice

Ries

riːs

Chocolate

Schokolaad

ʃokoˈlaːt

Iron

Iesen

ˈiːzn̩

Wheel

Rad

raːt

Silk

Sied

ziː

Book

Book

boːk

Eat

eten

eːtn̩

Drink

drinken

drɪŋkn̩

Sleep

slapen

ˈslaːpn̩

One

een

eːn

Two

twee

tveː

Three

dree

dreː

Four

veer

feːɐ̯

Five

fief

fiːf

Hundred

hunnert

ˈhʊnɐt

Hello

Moin

mɔɪn

Thank you

Dankschöön

daŋkʃøːn

Good

goot

ɡoːt

New

nee

neː

Red

root

roːt

White

witt

vɪt

Black

swart

svart

Green

gröön

ɡrøːn

Blue

blau

blaʊ

Cuckoo

Kukuk

ˈkuːkuk

Computer

Computer

kɔmˈpjuːtɐ

Sushi

Sushi

ˈzuʃi

Tea

Tee

teː

Coffee

Koffie

ˈkɔfi

Sugar

Sucker

ˈzʊkɐ

Orange

Apelsien

apəlˈziːn

Ninety-nine

negenunnegentig

ˈneːɡn̩ʊnˌneːɡn̩tɪç

Dopamine

Dopamin

dopaˈmiːn

Sources

Words compared

Compared with languages in the same classification: Germanic

Meaning Low GermanPlautdietschLimburgishKölschAustrian GermanBelgian DutchLuxembourgish German
Water Water /vɑːtɐ/ Wota /vɔta/ water /vatər/ Wasser /vasɐ/ Wasser /vasɐ/ water /waːtər/ Wasser /vasɐ/
Fire Füer /fyːɐ/ Fia /fia/ vuur /vyːr/ Füer /fyːɐ/ Feuer /fɔɪɐ/ vuur /vyːr/ Feuer /fɔɪ̯ɐ/
Sun Sünn /zʏn/ Sonn /zɔn/ zón /zɔn/ Sonn /zɔn/ Sonne /sɔnə/ zon /zɔn/ Sonne /zɔnə/
Moon Maan /maːn/ Mon /moːn/ maon /maːʊn/ Mond /moːnt/ Mond /moːnt/ maan /maːn/ Mond /moːnt/
Star Steern /steːrn/ Stearn /stæːɾn/ sjter /ʃtɛr/ Stään /ʃtɛːn/ Stern /ʃtɛrn/ ster /stɛr/ Stern /ʃtɛʁn/
Night Nacht /naxt/ Nacht /naxt/ nach /nax/ Naach /naːx/ Nacht /naxt/ nacht /nɑxt/ Nacht /naxt/
Rain Regen /ˈreːɡn̩/ Rejen /ˈɾɛɪjən/ Rään /rɛːn/ Räje /ˈʁɛːjə/ Regen /ˈreːɡn̩/ regen /ˈreːɣən/ Regen /ˈʁeːɡn̩/
Snow Snee /sneː/ Schnee /ʃneː/ sjnee /ʃneː/ Schnei /ʃnaɪ/ Schnee /ʃneː/ sneeuw /sneːw/ Schnee /ʃneː/
Page 1/11

Word order compared

Compare with major world languages

I want to try on a suit I saw ‌in a shop across from the hotel
Ich möchte einen Anzug anprobieren den ich in einem Geschäft gegenüber vom Hotel gesehen habe
Low German
Ik will en Antog anproberen den ik in en Laden gegenöber von Hotel sehn heff
मैं होटल के सामने एक दुकान में देखा सूट को पहनकर देखना चाहता हूँ
私は ホテルの 向かいの お店 で 見た スーツを 試着 したいです
我 想 试穿 酒店 对面的 商店 里 看到的 那套西装
أنا أريد أن أجرب بدلة رأيتها في محل مقابل الفندق
Я хочу примерить костюм который я увидел в магазине напротив отеля

Compare with languages in the same classification

I wanna try on a suit I seen ‌in a shop across from the hotel
Ek wil 'n pak aanpas wat ek gesien het ‌in 'n winkel oorkant die hotel
I want to try on a suit I saw ‌in a shop across from the hotel
Jeg vil prøve et jakkesæt som jeg så i en butik overfor hotellet
Low German
Ik will en Antog anproberen den ik in en Laden gegenöber von Hotel sehn heff

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