Pennsylvania Dutch Dialect - Word Order
Word
Order Examples
Following are examples to demonstrate various word order "rules". Note the tendency for the verb to always be in second position.
Normal Word Order
<subject> <verb> <indirect object> <direct object>.
I give (to) him a book.
Ich geb ihm en Buch.
[I give to him a book.]
Inverted Word Order - Statement (emphasis on modifier)
<modifier> <verb> <subject> <indirect object> <direct object>.
Today I give (to) him a book.
Heit geb ich ihm en Buch.
[Today give I to him a book.]
Inverted Word Order - Question
<verb> <subject> <indirect object> <direct object>?
Did you give (to) him a book?
Gebscht du ihm en Buch?
[Give you to him a book?]
Gebscht ihm en Buch? (same, but "you" is omitted)
[Give to him a book?]
Inverted Word Order - Command (aka Imperative Mood)
<verb> [omit the pronoun] <indirect object> <direct object>
Give (to) him a book.
Geb ihm en Buch. (note, drop -scht ending)
[Give to him a book.]
It is worth noting on word order that in normal order, if there are more than one verb, the additional verbs go to the end of the sentence. However, in use, particularly in dependent clauses, this rule is not always followed.
Haag notes,
"However, the truth of the matter is that PG speakers many times disregard such formal "rules" and frequently place a modifier such as a prepositional phrase last..."
Or Buffington-Barba,
"The finite verb freqeuently occupies the last place in a subordinate clause... But in PG, as in Old High German, Middle High German, and modern colloquial German, greater freedom in word order prevails than in modern literary German, so that we often find in a dependent clause a modifier of the verb at the end of the clause instead of the verb itself..."
Following are examples to demonstrate various word order "rules". Note the tendency for the verb to always be in second position.
Normal Word Order
<subject> <verb> <indirect object> <direct object>.
I give (to) him a book.
Ich geb ihm en Buch.
[I give to him a book.]
Inverted Word Order - Statement (emphasis on modifier)
<modifier> <verb> <subject> <indirect object> <direct object>.
Today I give (to) him a book.
Heit geb ich ihm en Buch.
[Today give I to him a book.]
Inverted Word Order - Question
<verb> <subject> <indirect object> <direct object>?
Did you give (to) him a book?
Gebscht du ihm en Buch?
[Give you to him a book?]
Gebscht ihm en Buch? (same, but "you" is omitted)
[Give to him a book?]
Inverted Word Order - Command (aka Imperative Mood)
<verb> [omit the pronoun] <indirect object> <direct object>
Give (to) him a book.
Geb ihm en Buch. (note, drop -scht ending)
[Give to him a book.]
It is worth noting on word order that in normal order, if there are more than one verb, the additional verbs go to the end of the sentence. However, in use, particularly in dependent clauses, this rule is not always followed.
Haag notes,
"However, the truth of the matter is that PG speakers many times disregard such formal "rules" and frequently place a modifier such as a prepositional phrase last..."
Or Buffington-Barba,
"The finite verb freqeuently occupies the last place in a subordinate clause... But in PG, as in Old High German, Middle High German, and modern colloquial German, greater freedom in word order prevails than in modern literary German, so that we often find in a dependent clause a modifier of the verb at the end of the clause instead of the verb itself..."