The Marchian dialects (named after the
March of Brandenburg; also called Brandenburgian
[e.g. Michael .Clyne: ''The German language in a changing Europe.'' 1995, p. XV] or Brandenburgish; German: ''Brandenburgisch'') are
dialect
A dialect is a Variety (linguistics), variety of language spoken by a particular group of people. This may include dominant and standard language, standardized varieties as well as Vernacular language, vernacular, unwritten, or non-standardize ...
s of
Low German
Low German is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language variety, language spoken mainly in Northern Germany and the northeastern Netherlands. The dialect of Plautdietsch is also spoken in the Russian Mennonite diaspora worldwide. "Low" ...
, more precisely
East Low German, spoken in
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
in the northern and western parts of
Brandenburg
Brandenburg, officially the State of Brandenburg, is a States of Germany, state in northeastern Germany. Brandenburg borders Poland and the states of Berlin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony. It is the List of Ger ...
(
Uckermark
The Uckermark () is a historical region in northeastern Germany, which straddles the Uckermark (district), Uckermark District of Brandenburg and the Vorpommern-Greifswald District of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Its traditional capital is Prenzlau.
...
,
Prignitz and
Mittelmark regions) as well as in northern
Saxony-Anhalt
Saxony-Anhalt ( ; ) is a States of Germany, state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of
and has a population of 2.17 million inhabitants, making it the List of German states ...
(
Altmark).
The language area can be further divided into North-Markish (
Stendal,
Wittenberge,
Prenzlau) and Middle-Markish (
Brandenburg an der Havel
Brandenburg an der Havel (; ) is a town in Brandenburg, Germany, which served as the capital of the Margraviate of Brandenburg until it was replaced by Berlin in 1417.
With a population of 72,040 (as of 2020), it is located on the banks of the ...
).
The modern South-Markish (also called South Brandenburgian) dialects of southern Brandenburg and Berlin, however, are not Low German but Central German dialects. With the development of the Berlin metropolitan area, the original Low German Brandenburgish of Berlin developed into
Berlinerisch, the local High German dialects, which today are considered an East Central German subgroup. The spread of High German into the Brandenburgish language area is an ongoing process.
References
Low German
German dialects
Brandenburg
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