The Walser language or Walscher language, in German Walserdeutsch, is a groups of Swiss German highest-Alemannic dialects spoken by the Walser in parts of Switzerland, Italy, Liechtenstein, and Austria.
It is possible to point out whether specific Walser dialects have originated in the Eastern dialects of the Wallis canton or in the Western dialects. Conservative Walser dialects are more similar to the respective groups of dialects of the Wallis than among each other.
Settlements that have been isolated within Romance regions have preserved a very archaic language. Settlements in German regions have linguistically assimilated to their neighbors, but these dialects still show certain similarities to the ones spoken in the Wallis.
The total number of speakers in all countries is reported to be 20,000 to 40,000, including 10,000 to 20,000 speakers in Switzerland, out of a population of 21,900 (1980 C. Buchli), 3,400 in Italy (1978 Fazzini), 1,300 in Liechtenstein (1995 C. Buchli), and 5,000 to 10,000 in Austria (1995 C. Buchli). (Source: www.ethnologue.com)
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Last updated: 10-25-2005 02:18:35
