Gronings is the collective name for the Friso-Saxon dialects spoken mainly in the Dutch province of Gronningen, and in nearby parts of Drenthe and Friesland in the north of the Netherlands. In 2009 there were about 262,000 speakers of Gronings. Gronings is classified as Dutch Low Saxon in the Netherlands, and as a variety of Low German / Low Saxon by German linguists. It could also be said to be part of a dialect continuum between Low German varieties and East Frisian varieties.
Dialects of Gronings include: Kollumerpompsters, Westerkwartiers, Stadjeders, Hogelandsters, Oldambtsters, Westerwolds, Veenkoloniaals and Noord-Drents.
Gronings is spoken mainly by older people in rural parts of Groningen. Younger people tend to speak a mixture of Gronings and Dutch, and the youngest inhabitants of Groningen are more likely to speak only Dutch.
Gronings is used in local radio and television in Groningen. It is used to some extent in other media, taught in some schools and universities, and used in songs and poems.
A standard way of spelling Gronings started to emerge in the 1950s, and has developed since then. However, there are variations in how the Gronings dialects are written.
Download an alphabet chart for Gronings (Excel)
As noa n haile laange winter
deu-wéér de snijbrud verjuig;
en astoe langzoamaan kwietroakst
hou stief of de kòlle die pluig
den wordst weer smui in de hakken
en t haart mokt muziek:
Information about Gronings | Numbers
Information about Gronings
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Languages written with the Latin alphabet
Page last modified: 03.06.21
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