Pennsylvania Dutch Dialect - Noun Genders
Following are some tips to help remember the genders of groups of nouns (most adopted with permission
from Peter Schroeder's old website (gone from geocities).
Most of these rules from Standard German apply, however, some (like
words ending in -en) are
difficult to apply since the Pennsylvania German dialect has dropped
the trailing -n.In many cases, I've used the same words in case you want to compare/contrast the Pennyslvania German word with the Standard German equivalent.
- Compound Words Take the Gender of the Last Noun in the Chain
- Nouns that Refer to People or Animals Often Refect Biological Gender
- Names of Months are Masculine
- Nouns Refering to Precipitation are Masculine
- Nouns Ending in -el, ich are Usually Masculine
- Names of Trees are Usually Feminine
- Names of Flowers are Usually Feminine
- Nounds Ending in -oog, -ei, -ie, -heit, -keet, -keit, -schaft, -ung are Almost Always Feminine
- Nounds Starting with Ge- are Often Neuter
- Nouns with Diminutive Endings (-li, -xin) are Always Neuter
Compound Words Take
the Gender of the Last Noun in the Chain
- der Baam -> der Beintbaam (the pine -> the pinetree)
- der Woi -> der Hinkelwoi (the hawk -> the chickenhawk)
| Masculine |
Feminine |
||
| der
Bruder |
(the
brother) |
die
Schweschder |
(the
sister) |
| der
Daadi |
(the
father) |
die
Mudder |
(the
mother) |
| der
Groossdaadi |
(the
grandfather) |
die
Groossmammi |
(the
grandmother) |
| der
Soh |
(the
son) |
die
Dochder |
(the
daughter) |
| der
Onkel |
(the
uncle) |
die
Aent |
(the
aunt) |
| der
Tietscher |
(the
teacher - male) |
die
Tietschern |
(the
teacher - female) |
| der
Schneider |
(the
tailor) |
die
Frackmachern |
(the
dressmaker-female) |
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Masculine
| der
Yenner |
January |
| der
Hanning |
February |
| der
Maz |
March |
| der
Abrill |
April |
| der
Moi |
May |
| der
Yuni (Tschuun) |
June |
| der
Yuli (Tschulei) |
July |
| der
Augscht |
August |
| der
September |
September |
| der
Oktower |
October |
| der
Nowember |
November |
| der
Disember |
December |
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| der Newwel | the fog |
| der Regge | the rain |
| der Schee | the rain |
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| der Leffel | the spoon |
| der Hunnich | the honey |
| der Essich | the vinegar |
| der Keenich | the king |
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Feminine
| die Asche | the ash |
| die Baerke | the birch |
| die Buche | the beech |
| die Linne | the linden |
| die Tanne | the fir |
| die Weide | the willow |
However, there are exceptions (der Meebel, the maple).
The names of some trees are coupled with the masculine word Baam (tree), example der Beintbaam (the pine tree)
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| die Daalerros | the aster |
| die Dollebaan | the tulip |
| die Gerranne | the geranium |
| die Gungelrieb | the orchid |
| die Maulros | the hollyhock |
| die Maerzeblumm | the violet |
| die Ros | the rose |
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| die Woog | the balance |
| die Freierei | the courtship |
| die Grankheit | the illness |
| die Lidderlichkeet | the dissoluteness |
| die Raarichkeet | the rarity, scarcity |
| die Schicklichkeit | the tact |
| die Briederschaft | the brotherhood |
| die Rechning | the account, bill |
| die Wohning | the dwelling |
Neuter
| es Gebei | the building |
| es Gebund | the bundle |
| es Geheil | the weeping |
| es Gelechter | the laughter |
| es Geshrei | the shout |
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| es Eise | the iron |
| es Gold | the gold |
| es Kubber | the copper |
| es Mess | the brass |
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| es Bobbeli | the baby |
| es Hundli | the puppy |