https://github.com/solidsnack/codex-vox-turici

Notes on the Zurinese language, a variety of German in the Alemannic dialect family.
https://github.com/solidsnack/codex-vox-turici

Last synced: about 1 month ago
JSON representation

Notes on the Zurinese language, a variety of German in the Alemannic dialect family.

• Host: GitHub
• URL: https://github.com/solidsnack/codex-vox-turici
• Owner: solidsnack
• Created: 2013-02-16T16:13:40.000Z (almost 12 years ago)
• Default Branch: master
• Last Pushed: 2013-02-16T16:13:57.000Z (almost 12 years ago)
• Last Synced: 2023-04-09T12:18:34.183Z (over 1 year ago)
• Size: 102 KB
• Stars: 0
• Watchers: 2
• Forks: 0
• Open Issues: 0
• Metadata Files:
  • Readme: README

Awesome Lists containing this project

README

        
These are my notes on the Zurinese language, a variety of German in the

Alemannic dialect family.

# Organization of Notes

The notes are organized into simple "linguistic scenarios", like going out for

coffee or buying tissues in a shop. As the manner of speaking varies quite a

bit from place to place in Switzerland, and anecdotally even within the canton

of Zürich, each dialogue is presented with some approximate place information.

The scenarios contain "stage directions" in English but dialogue is in

Zurinese and is generally presented without translation.

Perhaps some day, the material could be presented in a comic book format,

without stage directions. It would then function as a translation-free primer

in Zurinese, documenting actual linguistic performances and providing a guide

to situation-appropriate word choice. To the author's mind, exposure to whole

language is the best and most accurate way to present another culture's use of

language, both with an eye to cultural appreciation as well as correct word

choice, grammar and intonation. Grammars and dictionaries are helpful for

understanding utterances, but are of little use in constructing them; they

suggest a space of valid utterances which contains far more utterances than

are actually in use. Grammars and dictionaries provide a way to tune an almost

correct utterance or adapt an utterance for a related purpose, assuming the

speaker has one in mind to begin with. 

# Orthography

There is a growing body of instructional material and people regularly write

text messages and emails in Zurinese. Spelling is based on actual spellings as

I have discovered them, in correspondence, in written notes I have taken in

the presence of Zurinese speakers and in reference material, normalized as so

far as I have been able.

One notable point of contention between my tutors, reference works and online

sources is when to use 'e' and when to use 'ä'.