Belgian/Dutch at the border
I am English, living in Maastricht at the border of both countries and very near Germany and hear many local accents/dialects from the Dutch province of Limburg and local Belgian accents from across the border every day. I cannot distinguish between different Belgian accents, but there is a lovely twang to the language, and far more French influence in the vocabulary than in Dutch. Dutch Limburgers are very proud of their language and even consider it a separate language to 'real' Dutch. However, local dialects have an enormous variation in pronunciation, spelling and vocabulary and I imagine that it is no different across the border in Belgium. Each village here has its own language variations, being influenced by the (Belgian) French and German speakers nearby. For what it's worth, in any TV language quiz held between the two countries, the Belgians win 99% of the time.
Sent by: Sam
Comments
No comments have been submitted