Factors of frequency and productivity of diminution in early German dialect surveys

Abstract

This paper examines the productivity of diminution – mainly on the noun – in two large-scale surveys of German dialects of the 19th and early 20th centuries. The starting point is the basic question whether German dialects use differently dimintutive suffixes and which dialect uses diminutives more frequently than others. In addition to morphological and semantic aspects, this question is linked to numerous sociolinguistic, methodological, and phonotactic factors. This leads for example to the general problem, to what extent dialect stereotypes influence classical dialect surveys. The approach is strictly empirical: The data discussed first are translations of the „Parable of the Prodigal Son“ (Luke 15:11–32) into German dialects from the early 19th century are examined (Radlof 1817; Stalder 1819). Subsequently an abbreviated sample of dialect translations of the 40 Wenker sentences from the late 19th and early 20th century is analyzed. Based on these datasets, different influencing factors are discussed that guide the use (and non-use) of diminutives.