Damon Mcknight
Austria has a unique mixture of languages, with German being the official language and the lingua franca. German is the native language of about 80% of the population, and almost all of Austria's population (98%) speaks German. Austrian German is mutually intelligible with Standard German, with some differences in accent and vocabulary. The reason for German being the dominant language in Austria is because a large part of its history was tied to Germany's, and a dominant part of the Austrian populace came from German-speaking origins.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Reason for German being spoken in Austria | A large chunk of Austria's history was tied up with Germany's, as in, it was part of Germany for some time. |
| Official language of Austria | Austrian German |
| Number of German speakers in Austria | 7.3 million |
| Percentage of German speakers in Austria | 80% |
| German language in Vienna | 1.1 million out of 1.9 million residents speak German as their first language |
| Other dominant languages in Vienna | Serbian, Turkish, Arabic, Farsi, Ukrainian |
| German language in Vorarlberg | Alemannic dialect |
| Number of Alemannic speakers in Vorarlberg | 300,000-400,000 |
| Number of German speakers with German passports | 225,000 |
| Number of German speakers in Austria, Bavaria, Switzerland, Italy and Hungary | 13 million |
| Number of German speakers in Austria | 7 million |
| Percentage of Austrians who can converse in English | 75% |
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What You'll Learn
Austrian German is the official language of Austria
The history of Austria is closely tied to Germany, having been part of the Holy Roman Empire and later the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which included German-speaking territories. This historical connection is the primary reason why German became the official language of Austria. Austrian German, also known as Standard German, is mutually intelligible with Standard German spoken in Germany, although there are some differences in accent and vocabulary. Learning Austrian German will enable effective communication with German speakers worldwide.
In addition to German, Austria has several dialects and regional languages. Austro-Bavarian, a group of Upper German dialects, is the most widely spoken, with over seven million speakers in Austria. It is considered the de facto main language of the country and is spoken across Austria, except in the western state of Vorarlberg and some parts of Tyrol's Reutte District. Vorarlberg, with about 400,000 inhabitants, is the only Austrian province where Alemannic, an Upper German dialect with Swiss influences, is spoken instead of Austro-Bavarian. Alemannic is also spoken in the Reutte District of Tyrol, an Alpine region stretching from northern Italy to western Austria.
English is another significant language in Austria, with three-quarters of Austrians able to converse in it due to the country's emphasis on English education. This widespread English proficiency is particularly noticeable in major cities and tourist areas, where English-speaking visitors can often communicate effectively without needing to speak German.
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Austria's history is tied to Germany's
Austria and Germany have a long shared history, with both countries being part of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation. The Holy Roman Emperors came from the House of Habsburg, which ruled the Empire from 1440 until its dissolution in 1806. During this period, the numerous German states within the Empire often jostled for power and influence, warring against each other. Austria was the dominant state within the Empire and was the seat of power for the Habsburgs.
In the 18th century, the Kingdom of Prussia rose as another influential power within the Holy Roman Empire, becoming Austria's main rival for dominance over their neighbouring German states. In 1866, Austria was separated from Germany, and the German Confederation was dissolved. The following year, the Austro-Hungarian Empire was established, led by Austria and rivalled by the German Empire. Despite this rivalry, Austria and Germany were military allies during World War I. After the fall of the Austro-Hungarian and German Empires in 1918, Austria briefly renamed itself the Republic of German-Austria in an attempt to unite with Germany. However, this union was forbidden by the Treaty of Versailles.
During World War II, Austrian-born Adolf Hitler annexed Austria to Germany, with the support of a large majority of Austrians. After Germany's defeat in the war, the German identity in Austria was weakened, and Austria became an independent republic once again in 1955. Since then, Austria has developed a separate national identity from Germany, although the two countries continue to cooperate closely in economic and cultural fields. They are both members of the European Union and have a strong bilateral relationship, with Germany being Austria's most important economic partner.
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Austrian German is mutually intelligible with Standard German
Austrian German and Standard German are mutually intelligible, meaning speakers of these languages can understand each other. However, there are some differences in accent, vocabulary, and pronunciation. For example, in Austrian German, speakers add "-el" and "-erl" to the end of words instead of "-chen" or "-lein", and the diminutive form is also different. The vocabulary used to greet someone also differs between the two languages. While someone in Germany might say "hallo" or "guten tag", in Austria, you'd say "grüß gott" or "servus".
The differences between Austrian German and Standard German are comparable to the differences between Standard British English and Standard American English. German is often described as a pluricentric language, meaning it has more than one standard variety. The standard forms of German, Austrian German, and Swiss German are mutually intelligible to about the same degree as standard varieties of English.
Dialects within Austria and Germany can also vary greatly and cause difficulties in understanding. For example, the Viennese dialect is more challenging for German speakers to understand. Additionally, Austrians in the rural west of the Austrian Alps sound very different from those in Vienna. Similarly, in Germany, northern Germans may struggle to understand certain Swiss radio programs.
Despite these variations, Standard German is widely spoken and understood in Austria. Learning Standard German will equip individuals with the skills to communicate with German speakers worldwide, including Austria, as the language is accommodating of accents and imperfections.
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Austria is home to many other languages and dialects
German is the official language of Austria, and nearly all Austrians speak it. However, Austria is home to many other languages and dialects. The territory that is now Austria has been German-speaking since the emergence of the German language. The German language evolved from older Germanic languages during the Great Migration Period. Austria was controlled by a tribe known as the Bavarii, who displaced and mingled with Slavic and Rhaeto-Romansch groups in the area, forming a culture that spoke a proto-Germanic language.
The variety of German used in Austria, Austrian German, is influenced by the Austro-Bavarian dialect. In everyday life, most Austrians speak one of several Upper German dialects, including Bavarian and Alemannic, which are rarely written. The Alemannic dialect is spoken by about 300,000 people, mostly in Vorarlberg, and is very difficult for most German speakers to understand. The Central Austro-Bavarian dialects are more intelligible to speakers of Standard German than the Southern Austro-Bavarian dialects of Tyrol. The Viennese dialect, spoken in Vienna, is seen by many in Germany as quintessentially Austrian. The people of Graz, the capital of Styria, speak a dialect that is more easily understood by people from other parts of Austria than by other Styrians.
Austria ratified the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages in 2001 for several languages in respect of specific Länder. Minority languages in Austria include Hungarian, Slovenian, Burgenland-Croatian, Czech, Slovak, Romany, and sign language. In the mixed-language districts of Carinthia, Slovene is also considered an official language. In some districts of Burgenland, Hungarian and Croatian have equal status to German as an official language. Serbo-Croatian is the largest minority language in Austria, spoken by more than 4% of the population. Turkish is the second-largest minority language, spoken by 2.3% of the population.
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Austria's dominant power within the Austro-Hungarian Empire led to German being spoken
The territory that is now Austria has been German-speaking since the emergence of the German language. The German language itself evolved from older Germanic languages during the Great Migration Period. The Bavarii, a tribe that controlled the area that is now Austria, spoke a proto-Germanic language.
Following the Austro-Prussian War of 1866, the Austrian and Hungarian states were co-equal in power. The two countries conducted unified diplomatic and defence policies. Austria-Hungary, also known as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, was a multinational constitutional monarchy in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was a military and diplomatic alliance consisting of two sovereign states with a single monarch who was titled both the Emperor of Austria and the King of Hungary.
Austria-Hungary was the last phase in the constitutional evolution of the Habsburg monarchy. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867 in the aftermath of the Austro-Prussian War, following wars of independence by Hungary in opposition to Habsburg rule. It was dissolved shortly after Hungary terminated the union with Austria in 1918. One of Europe's major powers, Austria-Hungary was geographically the second-largest country in Europe and the third most populous.
Language was one of the most contentious issues in Austro-Hungarian politics. All governments faced difficult and divisive hurdles in deciding on the languages of government and instruction. The minorities sought the widest opportunities for education in their own languages, as well as in the "dominant" languages—Hungarian and German. By the "Ordinance of 5 April 1897", the Austrian Prime Minister Count Kasimir Felix Badeni gave Czech equal standing with German in the internal government of Bohemia; this led to a crisis because of nationalist German agitation throughout the empire.
Until 1918, the spoken standard in Austria was Schönbrunner Deutsch, a sociolect spoken by the nobility of Austria-Hungary and the imperial Habsburg family. It is a variety of Standard German influenced by Viennese German and other Austro-Bavarian dialects spoken in eastern Austria.
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Frequently asked questions
German is the official language of Austria and is spoken by around 98% of the country's population. It became the official language in the 18th century when Empress Maria Theresa and her son, Joseph II, introduced compulsory schooling in their multilingual Habsburg empire. German was the chosen language.
Aside from German, other languages spoken in Austria include Croatian, Hungarian, Slovenian, Slovak, Czech, and Turkish.
The main dialects of German spoken in Austria are Austrian German, which is the standard form, and Austro-Bavarian, which is the main dialect outside of Vorarlberg. Another dialect is Alemannic, which is the main dialect in Vorarlberg and is very difficult for most German speakers to understand.
Austrian German has some differences from German spoken in Germany due to Austria's exclusion from the development of a German nation-state in the late 19th century. There are also distinct regional dialects within Austria that differ from German spoken in Germany.
