Pella Dutch
Pella Nederlands
Native toPella, Iowa, United States
Language codes
ISO 639-3–
GlottologNone
Location of Pella, Iowa
Coordinates: 41°24′N 92°55′W / 41.400°N 92.917°W / 41.400; -92.917

Pella Dutch, also known as Iowa Dutch, is a dialect of the Dutch language spoken in Pella, Iowa. It is a subdialect of South Guelderish.[1]

Pella Dutch's origins began with the migration of a group of 800 Dutch settlers under the leadership of Dominee (Reverend) H. P. Scholte in 1847.

In 1860, the Pella Weekblad, Pella's first Dutch language newspaper, debuted. The paper continued to be published weekly until 1941.[2]

Language use was strongly affected by Governor William L. Harding's controversial 1917 Babel Proclamation, which banned the speaking of languages other than English in public.[2]

Semi-speakers of the dialect have been attested as recently as 2011.[3]

References

  1. ^ Webber, Philip E. (1988). Pella Dutch. ISBN 0-8138-0079-X.[page needed]
  2. ^ a b Webber, Phillip (October 8–9, 1981). "AN ETHNO-SOCIOLINGUISTIC STUDY OF PELLA DUTCH". Association for the Advancement of Dutch-American Studies: 2, 5.
  3. ^ Weber, Philip E. (2011). Pella Dutch: Portrait of a Language in an Iowa Community, An Expanded Edition. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press. ISBN 978-1-60938-066-3.
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