Languages of Austria
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Languages of Austria | |
|---|---|
| Official language(s) | German (>90%) (Austrian German) |
| Significant unofficial language(s) | Allemanic Austro-Bavarian |
| Regional language(s) | Croatian, Slovene, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, Romani |
| Minority language(s) | Turkish |
| Main foreign language(s) | English (58%) French (10%) |
| Sign language(s) | Austrian Sign Language |
| Common keyboard layout(s) |
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| Source | ebs_243_en.pdf (europa.eu) |
The Languages of Austria include German, the official and most widely spoken language, and several minority languages.
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[edit] German
German is the only nationally official language, and the language spoken by the largest proportion of Austrians. A number of dialects are spoken. Austrian German is the catch-all term for German in Austria, which can differ from Standard German to the many local vernaculars.
[edit] Alemannic
Alemannic dialects are mainly spoken in Vorarlberg, and are quite divergent from Standard German. The Alemannic spoken in Vorarlberg can be further divided into the High Alemannic variety.
[edit] Austro-Bavarian
The majority of Austrian German-speakers speak dialects belonging to the Austro-Bavarian group, and there is little linguistic barrier between Austrians and those living in southern Germany.
[edit] Minority languages
A number of minority languages are spoken in Austria, some of which have official status.
[edit] Turkish
Turkish is the largest minority language, in a situation mirroring that of Germany, spoken by some 2.3% of the population, mostly immigrants.
[edit] Serbian
Serbian is the second most spoken minority language, with usage by 2.2% of Austrians.
[edit] Croatian
Croatian, an official language in Burgenland, is spoken by 1.6% of Austrians, and Croatians are recognized as a minority and have enjoyed special rights following the Austrian State Treaty (Staatsvertrag) of 1955.
[edit] Hungarian
While little spoken today, Hungarian has traditionally held an important position in Austria (or, more correctly, Austria-Hungary). Today, Hungarian is spoken by around 20,000 people (.05% of the Austrian population) in Burgenland.
[edit] Bosnian
The least spoken of Austria's minority languages, the Bosnian language is spoken by some .04% of the Austrian population.
[edit] Slovenian
Slovenian, an official language in Carinthia, is spoken by 0.3% of Austrians.
[edit] References
This article contains material from the CIA World Factbook (2006 edition) which, as a US government publication, is in the public domain.
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