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Pennsylvania German is a variety of West Central German that developed among German-speaking settlers in Pennsylvania and has been passed down through generations, particularly among Anabaptist communities like the Amish and Mennonites. It matters because it represents a distinctive linguistic heritage that preserves historical patterns of the German language while serving as a key marker of cultural identity for these communities today.
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Pennsylvania Dutch (Deitsch, Pennsilfaanisch-Deitsch or Pennsilfaanisch) or Pennsylvania German is a variety of Palatine German spoken by the Pennsylvania Dutch, including the Amish, Mennonites, Fancy Dutch, and other related groups in the United States and Canada. There are approximately 300,000 native speakers of Pennsylvania Dutch in the United States and Canada.
The language traditionally has been spoken by the Pennsylvania Dutch, who are descendants of late 17th- and early to late 18th-century immigrants to Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, and North Carolina, who arrived primarily from southern Germany and, to a lesser degree, the regions of Alsace and Lorraine in eastern France, and parts of Switzerland.
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Accuracy disputes from March 2024Amish in CanadaAmish in the United StatesCentral German languagesChristian liturgical languagesDiaspora languagesFusional languagesGerman-American culture in IndianaGerman-American culture in OhioGerman-American culture in PennsylvaniaGerman-American historyGerman-Canadian culture in Ontario