Hello Gloria, thanks for this very interesting post. The paper you mentionned is worth reading. Niederrroedern is at the south limit of Franconian linguistic area in Alsace. It is therefore likely that your ancestors spoke the Franconian form of Alsatian, which is related to others dialects spoken in Palatinate. Moreover, there is probably some mutual understanding throughout the Franconian area. Etienne > Date: Wed, 19 Nov 2008 10:46:36 +0900 > From: gbishida <gfb-ishida@gol.com> > Subject: [A-L] Language in Alsace > > Regarding the languages used in Alsace, I got to thinking. My great- > great grandmother Catherine Jacob from Niederroedern immigrated to > Ohio in 1854/55 I believe (am trying to verify) she stayed with > another NR family who had come the year before. She married in 1856 > Philip Bingel who had also come about the same time; Bingel was from a > small village on the Lahn River west of Coblenz. I have Grandmother > Bingel's Bible and hymnal which are in German. The only chance she > would have had to continue to speak Alsatian would have been with the > families in the area who were from Alsace. The home language, I know > was German although I'm sure the family picked up English. (Church > services continued in German, however). > > This set me to wondering about education in Alsace when gg grandmother > was growing up (born 1833). I did find the following which is very > interesting and did throw some light on the subject under the section > marked "Past History". > > The following rather answers my question about my NR ancestor who, I'm > pretty sure did not go farther than elementary school. > > The practical effects in Alsace of the school system reform of > December 1793 > (every commune in France had to provide a French language primary > school > education at no cost), were small mainly because of the lacking of the > basic > prerequisites ? sufficient teachers and students mastering the French > language. > On the other hand, French substituted German as the language of > instruction in > high schools and universities in 1808. Thus, although the role of > French in > primary schools remained marginal for a long time, in high schools and > universities it acquired a strong position during the first third of > the 19th century. > > But the whole paper is also very interesting because it has a > contemporary focus. Last year when I visited, the local pastor was > speaking to her young children in French and Alsatian. > > See the following for the complete paper: > > "French-German Bilingual Education in Alsace" > > http://www.multilingual-matters.net/beb/001/0003/beb0010003.pdf > > Etienne, anything further on the subject, even your personal > experience? Thanks for all your input that helps us understand our > ancestors. > > Gloria

Hi Gloria & Etienne, I found the paper to be very interesting and the points quite valid concerning bilingualism. Thank you for the link, Gloria. Beginning when children are small is the single best way to ensure true bilingualism. In our home, we speak English. When our children were small we always spoke with them in English while their Costa Rican aunts and uncles and grandparents, etc., always spoke to them in Spanish. By the time they started school at the age of 3, they could speak English well and understood Spanish well but didn't really speak it. We put them into a bilingual school (English/Spanish) in which at least 50% of the instruction was in Spanish to ensure that they would know their native tongue as they should. The results are that my children are fully and completely bilingual, speak both languages flawlessly and interchangeably. So obviously the best way to bring back Alsatian before it disappears completely would be to expose children to it in school at an early age and also in social situations continuing throughout their education. Linda in Costa Rica Monroe County, NY Records and Family Genealogy http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~monroenys/ Monroe County, NY History http://freepages.history.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~monroenys/ ----- Original Message ----- From: Etienne Herrbach To: alsace-lorraine@rootsweb.com Sent: Saturday, November 22, 2008 3:54 AM Subject: Re: [A-L] Language in Alsace Hello Gloria, thanks for this very interesting post. The paper you mentionned is worth reading. Niederrroedern is at the south limit of Franconian linguistic area in Alsace. It is therefore likely that your ancestors spoke the Franconian form of Alsatian, which is related to others dialects spoken in Palatinate. Moreover, there is probably some mutual understanding throughout the Franconian area. Etienne > Date: Wed, 19 Nov 2008 10:46:36 +0900 > From: gbishida <gfb-ishida@gol.com> > Subject: [A-L] Language in Alsace > > Regarding the languages used in Alsace, I got to thinking. My great- > great grandmother Catherine Jacob from Niederroedern immigrated to > Ohio in 1854/55 I believe (am trying to verify) she stayed with > another NR family who had come the year before. She married in 1856 > Philip Bingel who had also come about the same time; Bingel was from a > small village on the Lahn River west of Coblenz. I have Grandmother > Bingel's Bible and hymnal which are in German. The only chance she > would have had to continue to speak Alsatian would have been with the > families in the area who were from Alsace. The home language, I know > was German although I'm sure the family picked up English. (Church > services continued in German, however). > > This set me to wondering about education in Alsace when gg grandmother > was growing up (born 1833). I did find the following which is very > interesting and did throw some light on the subject under the section > marked "Past History". > > The following rather answers my question about my NR ancestor who, I'm > pretty sure did not go farther than elementary school. > > The practical effects in Alsace of the school system reform of > December 1793 > (every commune in France had to provide a French language primary > school > education at no cost), were small mainly because of the lacking of the > basic > prerequisites ? sufficient teachers and students mastering the French > language. > On the other hand, French substituted German as the language of > instruction in > high schools and universities in 1808. Thus, although the role of > French in > primary schools remained marginal for a long time, in high schools and > universities it acquired a strong position during the first third of > the 19th century. > > But the whole paper is also very interesting because it has a > contemporary focus. Last year when I visited, the local pastor was > speaking to her young children in French and Alsatian. > > See the following for the complete paper: > > "French-German Bilingual Education in Alsace" > > http://www.multilingual-matters.net/beb/001/0003/beb0010003.pdf > > Etienne, anything further on the subject, even your personal > experience? Thanks for all your input that helps us understand our > ancestors. > > Gloria -- Resources for Alsace-Lorraine list members: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~valorie/Alsace-Lorraine-L.htm ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to ALSACE-LORRAINE-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message