Min Modersprak

In a previous post I mentioned that my paternal grandparents spoke High German when they were young but that my maternal grandparents spoke Low German in their youth.

Quite some time ago I was in a book store in Hamburg when I saw a book of poetry written in Low German. I bought it. When I got back home I let my maternal grandmother read it and she enjoyed it quite much.

Below is one of the poems from that book:


Min Modersprak 
von Klaus Groth

Min Modersprak, wa klingst du schön!
Wa büst du mi vertrut!
Weer ok min Hart as Stahl un Steen,
Du drevst den Stolt heruf.

Du bögst min stiwe Nack so licht
As Moder mit ern Arm
Du fichelst mi umt' Angesicht
Un still is alle Larm.

Ik föhl mi as en lüttjet Kind,
De ganze Welt is weg.
Du pust mi as en Vœrjahrswind
De kranke Boss torecht.

Min Obbe folt mi noch de Hann'
Un seggt to mi: Nu be!
Un <<Vaderunser>> fang ik an,
As ik wul fröher de.

Un föhl so deep: dat ward verstan,
So sprickt dat Hart sik ut.
Un Rau vunn Himmel weiht mi an
Un Allns is wedder gut!

Min Modersprak, so slicht un recht,
Du ole framn'e Red!
Wenn blot en Mund <<min Vader>> seggt,
So klingt mi't as'en Bed.

So herrli klingt mi keen Musik
Un singt keen Nachtigall;
Mi lopt je glik in Ogenblick
De hellen Thran hendal.

It was kind of interesting to run the verses through Google Translate one at a time. Clearly, Google Translate does not have an algorithm for this dialect of Low German. But the algorithm translated parts in ways that made sense. The algorithm translated other parts that made no sense. And still other parts were left untranslated.

As I ran each verse through Google Translate, I saw that Danish, Luxembourgish, German, Dutch and Frisian were detected.