Heritage Languages
My Heritage Languages
Official Heritage Languages
My heritage languages are the languages my ancestors spoke. The "official" ones are:
Reasons for inclusion on the above list is on the new Heritage Language page.The Lord's Prayer (a.k.a. the Our Father)
English
Hibbs, Roberts, Gibson, Lemmon; Howell?
Most ancestors from the 1840s on were English speaking. Only the Hibbses unequivocally came from England to America. The Gibsons and Lemmons came from Ireland, but the Gibsons probably would have been Lowland Scots in earlier generations. The Lemmons may have been originally from England before Ireland. None of my Irish ancestors seem to have been originally Irish.
Our father, who art in heaven, hollowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.*
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen.
* My mother's home church, originally Evangelical United Brethren, now United Methodist, always uses debts/debtors.
Scots
Gibson; Roberts?
There is some debate over whether Scots is a language or just a particularly divergent English dialect. I consider it a language because I can't understand it at all when someone speaks it. Even when it's written it's hard to pick out what means what. There are several dialects of Scots. I'm not sure which one this is. It should properly be Ulster Scots, I suppose.
Faither o us aa, bidin abune, thy name be halie.
Let thy reign begin.
Thy will be dune, on the erthe, as it is in Hevin.
Gie us oor needfu fendin.
An forgie us aa oor ill-deeds ilka day, e'en as we forgie thae wha dae us ill.
As lat us no loe testit, but sauf us frae the Ill-Ane.
For the croon is thine ain, an the micht, an the glorie, for iver an iver.
Gaeilge ([Irish] Gaelic)
Gibson?, Lemmon?
The Gibsons and Lemmons are my Irish ancestors. I know little about them. The Gibsons were almost certainly from Northern Ireland (Ulster). It seems all the other Irish families in Loudon Twp., Carroll Co., Ohio, were Protestant (most eventually Methodist in the United States) and from Northern Ireland (Tyrone, Antrim, or Fermanagh). The Gibsons were Protestant (Methodist) and were probably related to these Irish families. It's probably why they settled there. It seems Gibsons in Northern Ireland were originally from Lowland Scotland and came to Ireland as planters about 1610-1690. One source says they are allied to the Buchanan Clan in Scotland, that is, they are a 'sept clan' of it. The surname itself is Norman French and related to the name 'Gilbert'.
The Lemmons are even harder to pin down. They settled in Holmes County, Ohio. They were Protestant as well, thus probably from Ulster. The Lemmon surname just may be related to the River Lemon in Devon, England. So they probably were not originally Irish either. By the way, lemon here is related to a Celtic word meaning 'elm', not the citrus fruit. Remarkably, there is a man in Devon wants to revive the Celtic language in Devon. This language is little documented. I don't think he has the Lord's Prayer translated. The language (West Country Brythonic) would differ little from early forms of Cornish.
That my Irish ancestors were probably not Irish, but Scotch-Irish, presents a problem in terms of the languages they spoke. There is little that I can find concerning the extent that any of the Scotch-Irish actually adopted the Irish languge when they came to Ireland. Today, few Protestants in Northern Ireland seem to take up the study of Irish. The whole issue has been tied into the politics of Northern Ireland, at least until a decade or two ago. Further, the native dialects of Irish have died out. The 100,000 or so speakers of Irish in Northern Ireland generally speak a dialect from Donegal. And if my ancestors were originally from Lowland Scotland, they probably were not Gaelic speaking even in Scotland (in the early 1600s and before). Lowland Gaelic died out by the 1700s and is little documented. There are parts of the Lowlands that were never Gaelic speaking. Centuries ago, some may have spoken a language that was early Welsh, Cumbric, or even Pictish, but not Gaelic. That said, my Scotch-Irish ancestors were in Ireland probably at least four generations and some intermarriage with native Irish must have occurred. James G. Leyburn's The Scotch-Irish: A Social History has more details, but even he admits that little documentation can be found regarding many aspects of the social life of the Scotch-Irish in Ireland including intermarriage.
Anyway, here is the Lord's Prayer in Irish. I have not included one in (Scots) Gaelic because I am even less sure of any connection my ancestors had with Gaelic than with Irish.Ár n-Athair,* atá ar neamh, go naofar d'ainm.
Go dtaga do ríocht.
Go ndéantar do thoil ar an talamh* mar dhéantar* ar neamh.
Ár n-arán* laethúil tabhair dúinn inniu.
Agus maith dúinn ár bhfiacha, mar mhaithimid* dár bhféichiúna féin.
Agus ná lig sinn i gcathú. Ach saor sinn ó olc.
Óir is leat féin an ríocht agus an ghlóir go síoraí.
*Another version has these differences: nAthair, dtalamh, níthear, n-áran,
a mhaithidne
Deutsch (German)
Most of my ancestors were Protestant Germans, often from northern Alsace.
Luther's Version
This is the version that probably all my German speaking ancestors used. They would have learned it at confirmation, if not at an earlier age. It's found in Luther's Small Catechism. Other versions using local dialects do exist, and I've included them below, but I can't help think that my ancestors would have thought these versions (not that they were written down at the time) would be too informal and not proper for use in church.
Vater unser, der du bist im Himmel. Geheiliget werde dein Name.
Dein Reich komme.
Dein Wille geschehe, wie im Himmel, also auch auf Erden.
Unser täglich Brot gib uns heute.
Und vergib uns unsere Schuld, wie wir vergeben unsern Schuldigern.
Und führe uns nicht in Versuchung. Sondern erlöse uns von dem Uebel.
Denn dein ist das Reich und die Kraft und die Herrlichkeit in Ewigkeit.
Elsässisch (Alsatian)
Franck (Franks)(maybe Alsatian), Haas, Bigler, Probst (Brobst), Walther (Walters), Billman, Wedrick, Myers, Stambach (Stambaugh), König (Koenig, King), Weimar(t) (Weimer)
If you added together the blood quantum of all my immigrant ancestors, perhaps 60% or more of it would be Alsatian. But it gets a little more complicated. Most, if not all of them, were from the northernmost part of Alsace where a Franconian dialect is spoken, not Alsatian. To further complicate things, the Probsts/Brobsts jumped back and forth between Alsace and what is Germany today, and were from Switzerland before that! The Königs did the same. Additional Alsatian ancestors may have had Swiss roots.
Unfortunately, I haven't found a source with the last line in it, but what I think it might be is in brackets.
Unser Vàdder wo im Himmel isch. Heilig sei dinner Nàmme.
Din Reich soll komme.
Dinner Wille soll geschehn, wie im Himmel, au uf de Ard.
Unser däjlich Brot gib uns hit.
Un vergib uns unseri Schulde, wie mir au denne vergebe wo uns schuldig sinn.
Un loss uns nitt in Versuchung komme àwwer màch uns frei von àllem wàs schlecht isch.
[Denn din isch 's Reich un de Kraft un de Herrlichkeit in Ewigkeit.]
Pälzisch (Pfälzisch) (Palatine)
Hosterman, Hamscher (Homsher), Herbach (Harbaugh)
Some Huguenots ended up in the Palatinate (the Pfalz) after fleeing France; many of my Alsatian ancestors probably spoke something closer to this than what is shown above under Alsatian
Unser Vadder im Himmel, doin Name soll heilisch soi;
Doi Kännischsherrschaft soll kumme;
Doin Wille soll gschehe uf de Erd genauso wie im Himmel.
Geb uns heit das Brot, was mer de Daach brauche.
Un vergeb uns unser Schuld genauso wie mir denne vergewwe, wo an uns schuldisch worre sin.
Un fiehr uns net in Versuchung; rett uns awwer vum Beese.
Dir gheert jo die Herrschaft un die Kraft un die Herrlischkeit bis in alli Ewischkeit.
Schwäbisch (Swabian)
Schweinhardt (Swinehart), Eckert, Steinbach, Seutz
Vatr unsr im Himml, g'heiligt sei dain Nama.
Dai Reich komme.
Dai Willa g'schehe wia im Himml, so au uf Aerda.
Unsr däglichs Brod gib eis heit.
Und vrgib eis eisere Schulda wia au mir vrgeabat eisre Schuldigr.
Und fiahr eis it* in Vrsuchung sondrn erles eis vom Besa.
Denn s'dai isch s'Reich, d'Kraft und d'Harlichkait in Ewigkait.
* Should be nit for 'not'?
Hessisch (Hessian)
Heintz (Hines), Aurandt, Gemelcks
The Heintzes and Aurandts were from Dillenburg or the Dillenburg area. Right now, without looking into the matter further, it's difficult to tell if the dialect is Hessian or Mosel Franconian from the few maps I have.
Babba Unser, der wo de biss im Himmel, geheilischt sei dei Naame.
Dei Reisch kimme.
Dei Will gescheh wie im Himmel, so uff Erde.
Unsern däglisches Broot gebb uns heit.
Un vergebb uns unsern Schulde, wie aach mir vergebbe unsern Schuldnern.
Un fiehr uns net in Versuuchung sonnern erlees uns vonnem Ibbel,
Denn daanes iss des Reisch unne Krafft un de Herrlischkaat in Ewwischkaat.
Schwyzerdüütsch (Swiss German)
Weibel, Probst, other Alsatians
Apparently, only the Weibels were directly from Switzerland; all the others took a detour through Alsace for a couple of generations and then went to America.
I've resisted uploading the version of the Our Father that I have for Swiss German because it's a total mess, but until I can find something better...
Vatter Ünser, der du bist inn Himmlen,* Geheilget werd dijn Nam;
Zuo kumm uns diju** Rijch;
Gschächi dijn will, wie im Himmel, also ouch uff Erden;
Ge buns*** hüt ünser teglich Brot;
Und fergeb üns unser Schülden, als ouch wir fergend**** unsern schuldneren;
Und für uns nit in Fersuochung, sunder erlöss uns fomm Ubel.
Issues I have:
1. The inconsistent capitalizing of nouns
2. Weird use of spelling like the use of ij and ou - very strange for representing Swiss German
3. Inconsistent use of umlaut in uns and unser
Plus:
* inn Himmlen here but later im Himmel
** should be dijn
*** should be Geb uns
**** should probably be fergeben
Pennsilfaanisch Deitsch (Pennsylvania German)
Hamscher (Homsher), Schweinhardt (Swinehart), Huber (Hoover), and probably most other ancestors ending up in Pennsylvania for a few generations
A form of Pennsylvania German is still spoken by perhaps as many as 300,000 people in the United States and Canada. Almost all of them are Amish. As the Amish have moved to other countries, the language has moved with them as in Belize and Paraguay. There are still a few Mennonites who speak it. The Hamschers and, I think, the Hubers were Mennonites. The Schweinhardts lived in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, until about 1870. The Schweinhardts were originally Lutheran.
Lutherans, German Reformed, or other Protestant German denominations used it, too, and used to far outnumber the Amish speakers. The wiki on Pennsylvania German says there are still non-Amish who speak it, but I think their numbers must be very low and many of them who know it learned it as adults and not as a first language, perhaps as part of a language revival movement. A nice example of a non-Amish native speaker is here. She seems to be more fluent and used less English than the Amish speakers!
It would probably be fair to say that the main cause of decline in Pennsylvania German in non-Amish groups after (about) World War II was farm mechanization (or more broadly, urbanization). A farmer no longer needed the extra hands of all his children so they and their families often ended up in larger English speaking towns and cities.
There is some revival of the language through the Grundsau (Groundhog) Lodge.
The first example below is in a German based spelling system common in Pennsylvania. The second is in an English based one found in Ohio. I'm mostly familiar with the Ohio one through the Committee for Translation New Testament (Es Nei Teshtament mitt di Psaltah un Shpricha; ISBN: I can't find one; there is a 1993 edition and a 2002 revised edition) that I found in hardware stores (yes, hardware stores) catering to the Amish in Wayne and Holmes counties in Ohio.
In spite of being an Ohioan, I like the Pennsylvania system better. It's a lot easier to find the standard German word using the Pennsylvania system.
Unser Vadder im Himmel, dei Naame loss heilich sei.
Dei Reich loss komme.
Dei Wille loss gedu sei, uff die Erde wie im Himmel.
Unser deeglich Brot gebb uns heit.
Un vergebb unser Schulde, wie mir die vergewwe wu uns schuldich sinn.
Un fiehr uns net in die Versuchung, awwer hald uns vun Ewile.
Fer dei is es Reich, die Graft, un die Hallichkeit in Ewigkeit.
Unsah Faddah im Himmel, dei nohma loss heilich sei.
Dei Reich loss kumma.
Dei villa loss gedu sei, uf di eaht vi im Himmel.
Unsah tayklich broht gebb uns heit.
un fagebb unsah shulda, vi miah dee fagevva vo uns shuldich sinn.
Un fiah uns naett in di fasuchung, avvah hald uns fu'm eevila.
Fa dei is es Reich, di graft, un di hallichkeit in ayvichkeit.
Gaelg (Manx)
Crellin, Christian, Kaneen
Manx is spoken on the Isle of Man. For all practical purposes it had died out by the 1950s, though the last native speaker didn't die until 1974. There has been an enthusiastic revival of Manx. Now perhaps some 2,000 people have at least have some knowledge of the language - enough to carry on a simple conversation. Some children are being raised in Manx. The version below is from the Manx Bible.
Ayr ain, t'ayns niau: casherick dy row dty ennym.
Dy jig dty reeriaght.
Dty aigney dy row jeant er y thalloo, myr te ayns niau.
Cur dooin nyn arran jiu as gagh laa.
As leih dooin nyn loghtyn, myr ta shin leih dauesyn ta jannoo loghtyn nyn 'oï.
As ny leeid shin ayns miolagh, agh livrey shin veih olk.
Son lhiat's y reeriaght as y phooar as y ghloyr son dy bragh as dy bragh.
Old West Norse
Christian (apparently was originally Kristin centuries ago when the Vikings controlled the Isle of Man; Isle of Man historian A.W. Moore says the name is directly from Iceland), Crellin (Crellin can come from Rögnvaldr but it also can have a Celtic origin.)
I orginally had a Norse version, which I thought was a more general form of Norse, from the Convent of Pater Noster, but found this one labeled as "Old West Norse" at Wikipedia. Old West Norse is a more direct ancestor of Icelandic, Faroese, and some forms of Norwegian, and it was spoken closer to the time my ancestors came to the Isle of Man. In any case it varies little from the Convent of Pater Noster version.
Faþer vár es ert í himenríki, verði nafn þitt hæilagt.
Til kome ríke þitt,
værði vili þin sva a iarðu sem í himnum.
Gef oss í dag brauð vort dagligt.
Ok fyr gefþu oss synþer órar, sem vér fyr gefom þeim er viþ oss hafa misgert.
Leiðd oss eigi í freistni, heldr leys þv oss frá ollu illu.
Íslensk (Icelandic)
Christian (from Kristin)
Faðir vor, þú sem ert á himnum, helgist þitt nafn.
Til komi þitt ríki.
Verði þinn vilji, svo á jörðu sem á himni.
Gef oss í dag vort daglegt brauð.
Fyrirgef oss vorar skuldir, svo sem vér og fyrirgefum vorum skuldunautum.
Og eigi leið þú oss í freistni, heldur frelsa oss frá illu.
Því að þitt er ríkið, mátturinn og dyrðin að eilífu.
Français (French)
Cordier, Grosjean, Vieillard, Le Fevre, Ferré (Ferree), Warembourg - all were Huguenots
All of my French ancestors ended up in Germany before coming to America. Apparently, they did not give up the French language completely and switch to German, although they did marry into German families in Germany and Pennsylvania.
The LeFevres especially seem to have held onto French. Isaac LeFevre brought his French Bible to America with him. Birth entries were still being written in French in the Bible. Not only this, but Rev. Charles Louis Boehme gave sermons in French as late as 1775 at the First Reformed Church in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, where Le Fevre and Ferree descendants were members.
Notre père, qui es aux cieux: que ton nom soit sanctifié.
Que ton règne vienne.
Que ta volonté soit faite sur la terre comme au ciel.
Donne-nous aujourd'hui notre pain quotidien.
Et pardonne-nous nos offenses, comme nous pardonnons à ceux qui nous ont offensés.
Et ne nous induis point en tentation, mais délivre-nous du mal.
Car c'est à toi qu'appartiennent le règne et la puissance et la gloire aux siècles des siècles.
Picard
Apparently Marie (de la) Warembourg was from Picardy. But she, or her ancestors, may have had a connection to Waremme in Belgium. Waremme is Borgworm in Flemish. See below for the Flemish section.
Unfortunately, I don't have the last line.
Vous no Pa, qu' vos ètes ô Cièl, qu' vo nom sunche sanctifieu.
Qu' vo rin.gne ariviche.
Qu' tout chô qu' vos voleuz sunche fét dôchi, come é ôt.
Douneuz-nous ôjordwî eùl pin qu' nos d' avons danjeu tous lès joûs.
Pardouneuz-nous chô qu' nos avons fét d' mô dë l' min.me maniêre quë nos pardounons à lès ciuns qui nos ont fét du tôrt.
Èt fètes quë nos n' sunche gneu ratireus pô djâle, mès dèlèbèreuz-nous dou mô.
Wallon (Walloon)
Warembourg
Marie de la Warembourg may have had a connection to Waremme/Borgworm, Belgium. But any connection she has with the town is quite a stretch. People in Waremme speak the Eastern Walloon dialect. Unfortunately, few people in Belgium can speak Walloon today—only about 600,000. There are many people who are working to revive it. Below is the Lord's Prayer in Eastern Walloon. It does not have the last line. I did a little editing, but I am still mystified by some elements of these lines. It seems to be a very loose translation.
Vos, nosse Pére qu'est la-hôt, qui vosse nom seûye bèni cint côps.
Qui l' djoû vinse qu'on v' ricnohe come mêsse.
Qu'on v' hoûte sol tére come å cîr.
Dinez-nos oûy li pan po nosse djoûnêye.
Fez 'ne creûs so tos nos pètchîs come nos l' fans ossu so lès pètchîs dès-ôtes;
Ni nos leyîz nin toumer dvins l'invèye di må fé mins tchessîz l' må lon d' nos-ôtes.
Jèrriais (Jersey French)
Ferré (Ferree)
Daniel (John) Ferree may have been a descendant of a certain knight named Robert Ferré, probably from the small town of Torchamp (or Torchamps, not Forchamps) in the canton of Passais (also known as Passais-la-Conception), in the arrondissement of Alençon, in the département of Orne, in the région of Normandie.
I can't find the Lord's Prayer in Norman French, but Norman French is still spoken, in a sense, in the Channel Islands. Below is the Jersey (Jèrriais) version.
Nouot' Péthe qu'es au ciel, qu'Tan nom sait sanctifié.
qu'Tan règne veinge,
qu'Ta volanté sait faite sus la tèrre coumme au ciel.
Baille-nouos aniet not' pain d'la journée.
Et nouos pardonne nouos offenses coumme nou pardonne les cheins tchi nouos ont offensé.
Et n'nouos mène pon dans la tentâtion mais délivre-nouos du ma.
Car à Té est lé regne, l'pouver et la glouaithe au siècl'ye des siècl'yes.
Latin
Cordier, Grosjean, Vieillard, Le Fevre, Ferré (Ferree), Warembourg
Perhaps Latin was the mother tongue of no ancestors. My ancestors' exposure to Latin would be limited to city records (wills and so on) and the Church. In fact, the surname Ferré is found first in a Latin record as Ferratus. It's difficult to know how much of the mass they would have understood, and I am not clear on how much education any of my ancestors would have had. If they had some education in this period, the classics would have been a part of that education. After the Reformation, the amount of Latin would have diminished. Part of the popularity of Luther's German Bible was that it was in a language that people could understand. One ancestor, Wendel Hieronymus, who lived in the early 1600s, perhaps knew Latin well. He was a judge, it seems, or had some kind of legal background.
A lot of people had Latin in school, of course. My grandmother took a couple of years of it.
French descends from Latin as spoken in France centuries ago. My ancestors would have spoken a form of Old French, and before that probably Gaulish, a Celtic language. Vulgar Latin was essentially imposed on Gaul. Some of them may have had Roman ancestors, but, even then, this was not the Classical Latin we know today.
Pater noster, qui es in caelis, sanctificetur nomen tuum.
Fiat voluntas tua,
sicut in caelo, et in terra.
Panem nostrum quotidianum da nobis hodie,
et dimitte nobis debita nostra, sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris.
Et ne nos inducas in tentationem,
sed libera nos a malo.
Cymraeg (Welsh)
Madoc (Mattox); Heuel, Hywel (Howell)?
The Mattoxes are definitely Welsh. The Howells maybe are as well. Although Howell can be an English name, my Howell married an Englishman from Dean Forest which is right on the Welsh border. There is not much Welsh in me. Probably less than 0.78125%! What there is is way back in the 1700s or even the 1600s. Unfortunately, there is little documentation of my Welsh ancestors.
Welsh is now being revived and has made something of a comeback. At least 500,000 can speak Welsh now. You can even watch Welsh soap operas on the Welsh language channel.
Below is a 1988 version.
Ein Tad yn y nefoedd, sancteiddier dy enw.
Deled dy deyrnas.
Gwneler dy ewyllas, ar y ddaear, fel yn y nef.
Dyro inni heddiw ein bara beunyddiol,
a maddau inni ein troseddau, fel yr ym ni wedi maddau i'r rhai a droseddodd yn ein herbyn;
a phaid â'n dwyn i brawf, ond gwared ni rhag yn Un drwg.
Oherwydd eiddot ti yw'r deyrnas a'r gallu a'r gogoniant am byth.
Here's a slightly older version that current Welsh speakers may be little more familiar with:
Ein Tad, yr hwn wyt yn y nefoedd, sancteiddier dy enw;
deled dy deyrnas;
gwneler dy ewyllas, megis yn y nef, felly ar y ddaear hefyd.
Dyro i ni heddyw ein bara beunyddiol,
a maddeu* i ni ein dyledion, fel y maddeuwn ninnau i'n dyledwyr.
Ac nac arwain ni i brofedigaeth, eithr gwared ni rhag drwg.
Canys eiddot ti yw y** deyrnas, a'r nerth, a'r gogoniant, yn oes oesoedd.
*or: maddau
**or: ti yw'r
Here's a 1713 version that my Welsh ancestors may have been more familiar with:
Ein Tâd yr hwn wytl yn y nefoedd, sancteiddier dy enw.
Deued dy deyrnas.
Bid dy ewyllys aryddaiar, megis y mae yn y nefoed.
Dyro i ni heddyw ein bara beunyddiol,
amaddeu i ni ein dyledion, fel a maddeuwn ni in dyledwyr.
Ac nar arwain ni i brofe digaeth, eithr gwared ni rhag drwg.
Canys eiddot ti yw'r deyrnas a'r gallu a'r gogoniant yn oes oesoedd.
Slavic - Upper Sorbian, Lower Sorbian, Polabian, (or some unwritten Slavic language)
Bohnacy? Panewić? von Pannwitz? (Bonnawitz, Bonewitz)
The name Bonewitz is a German spelling of a Slavic name. There are several ways my ancestors could have ended up with this name although it is impossible to say anything definitive about it.
It may have had to do with bohna, meaning 'swamp' in Sorbian. That is, they were from a swampy place.
Or it may be related to the name Panewicz (or Panewić?), who was a knight centuries ago. The surnames Panewicz, Panowicz, Panewic, and Panowic do exist.
The Bonewitzes were apparently German speaking when they arrived in Pennsylvania in the 1700s. The process of Germanization of Slavic peoples has been going on for centuries in eastern Germany. The name may be related to a village name. There is a town called Bonnewitz near Dresden. They may or may not be from there. I can't tell when that town ceased to be Sorbian speaking but in a nearby town to the east, Stolpen, it was necessary for the German aristocracy to hire Sorbian speaking foremen in the 1580s to speak to the workers. Sorbian was spoken only a few miles farther east than Stolpen until the 1850s.
There are other towns in (formerly) Sorbian speaking areas with similar names: Binnowitz, Bennowitz, Bannowitz. The most interesting is Pannewitz, which is still Sorbian speaking and Lutheran. Its Sorbian name is Banecy.
It may be they were German but took the name of the town they settled in or owned as a surname. But then I would expect it would be 'Bonnawitzer'. Or it could be von Pannwitz. This name also exists.
Or it could be short for Rabinowitz. The first syllable is sometimes dropped when the stress isn't on the first syllable as in Bastian (<Sebastian). This would be very interesting to me. Although the Bonnawitzes were Lutheran, Jewish immigrants are not unknown among the Pennsylvania Germans.
Bonewitz family historians have found the name in Coburg in the 1800s, but Coburg isn't particularly close to even formerly Sorbian speaking areas. If they are ever located in Germany, I have a feeling they will be found emigrating from the usual suspects— the Palatinate, Alsace, or Württemberg.
Hornjoserbšćina (Upper Sorbian)
The people of Bonnewitz (the village) would have spoken some form of Upper Sorbian. Only about 15,000-40,000 people speak Upper Sorbian today.
Naš wótče, kiž sy ty w njebjesach, swjećene budź twoje mjeno.
Přińdź k nam twoje kralestwo.
Twoja wola so stań, kaž na njebju, tak tež na zemi.
Naš wšědny chlěb daj nam dźensa.
A wodaj nam naše winy, jako my wodawamy našim winikam.
A njewjedź nas do spytowanja, ale wumož nas wot teho złeho.
Přetož twoje je to kralestwo a ta móc a ta česć haš do wěčnosće.
Dolnoserbšćina (Lower Sorbian)
Only about 7,000-15,000 people speak Lower Sorbian.
Wosć naś, kenž sy na njebju, huswěśone buźi twojo mě.
Twojo kralejstwo pśiźi.
Twoja wola se stani, ako na njebju tak tež na zemi.
Naš wšedny klěb daj nam źěnsa.
A wodaj nam naše winy, ako my wodawamy našym winikam.
A njewjeź nas do spytowanja, ale humož nas wot togo złego.
Pśeto twojo jo to kralejstwo a ta moc a ta cesć do nimjernosći.
Polabane? (Polabian)
Bohnacy? (Bonewitz)?, Branibor (Brandenburg, Brandeberry)?
Polabian was spoken up to the 1750s southeast of Hamburg. It's interesting, genealogically speaking, that many germanized Polabian place names end in -(e)witz. So the Bonewitzes could just as easily have been Polabian, I suppose. I just learned that Brandenburg, a name of a city and a state in Germany, was originally branibor ('guard[man]'s wood/forest') from Polabian. So maybe ancestor Alexander Brandenburg had Polabian ancestors. Yes, that's quite a stretch.
Anyway, many dead or dying languages in Europe have revival movements, but Polabian doesn't seem to have any organized supporters.
There are several versions of the Lord's Prayer recorded. The orthography I'm using is more or less what Vladislav Knoll uses. He seems to be one of the few doing anything in or about Polabian.
Nos fader, tå tåi jis wå nĕbiśai, sjąta wårda tüji jaima.
Tüja rik koma.
Tüja wiľa šińot, kok wå nĕbiśai, tok kak no zime.
Noséj wésedanesna sťaibe doj-nam dans.
Un witedoj-nam nos grech, kak moi witedojime nosem gresnarüm.
Un ni brinďoj nos kå farsükońe, tåi lözoj nos wit wésokag ch’audag.
It is interesting to see how much German shows up even in the Lord's Prayer: 'fader' < Vater, 'wiľa' < Wille, 'rik' < Reich, 'koma' < kommen, 'farsükońe' < Versuchung.
Here's another version from Wikipedia. Its orthography is a little problematic - especially the final ą's and ę's. I left those alone. They seem to be used for nasals in some places but reduced vowels in others. I did change all the â's to å's to conform to the spelling above. This version does have the last line.
Aita nos, tå toi jis wå nebesai, sjętü wordoj tüji jaimą;
tüji rik komaj;
tüja wüľa mo są ťüńot kok wå nebesai tok no zemi;
nosę wisedanesnę sťaibę doj nam dåns;
a wütådoj nam nose greche, kok moi wütådojeme nosim gresnarem;
ni bringoj nos wå warsükongę; toi losoj nos wüt wisokag chaudag.
Pritü tüje ją tü ťenądztwü un müc un cåst, warchni Büzac, nekąda in nekędisa.
Vlaamsch (Flemish) or Nederlands (Dutch)
Roberts?, Warembourg? Herbach (Harbaugh)? Hickmann (Hickman)?
Evidence of Flemish (Dutch, Netherlandic) ancestry is pretty scant. Elizabeth Roberts and Isaac Hibbs were married in an Old Dutch Reformed Church. The early members were Dutch as in windmills, tulips, and wooden shoes, not Dutch as in Pennsylvania Dutch, that is, German. Since the Hibbses were English Quakers, it seems the Robertses were possibly Dutch. On the other hand, Roberts as a Dutch name is rare; and, according to the church history, it seems the Dutch members were overwhelmed by Scotch-Irish settlers moving into the area, so Roberts as Scotch-Irish makes more sense.
Concerning Warembourg the connection is even more tenuous and circuitous: There is a town and (formerly)
a river called Waremme in French (Walloon) Belgium. In
Flemish the river was called the Worm. (Now it's called the Jeker.)
It is very interesting to note that the Flemish
version of the name of the town is Borgworm - (maybe meaning) the fortress on the Waremme River. Borgworm is just "Waremmeborg" backwards.
It's very near the Flemish-Walloon linguistic border.
On the other hand, the surname Warambourg/Warembourg is still found in the area of Saint-Omer, France. Today this area is just outside of the Flemish-speaking part of France, in the northernmost part where they speak Frans-Vlaams (French- Flemish) or West Flemish. When my ancesters left France, this area was was Flemish speaking.
The Harbaughs present another problem. Although they migrated from Germany to America, they earlier seem to be from someplace else. At least a German researcher thinks so. Some sources say the Netherlands. But it's not clear what is meant by the Netherlands. It can mean the areas near the North Sea which are low in elevation and are politically part of Germany today. No one really seems to know for sure. At least one source says they were from Switzerland!
I just learned that another ancestor named Hickman may have been from Holland. A DAR descendant said he was. The problem here is that Hickmans usually show up as English and end up in the South on Ancestry.com's Worldconnect and on Google. But Hickmann is inevitably northern German if you check in databases—mostly from East Frisia, Schleswig-Holstein, and Lower Saxony. The name Hackmann is found almost exclusively in East Frisia. We may have another situation in which this ancestor was actually from the low areas of northern Germany and not from the Netherlands, per se. If he was Mennonite (and I think some descendants married into Mennonite families) then he may very well have been from North Holland, communities near the IJssel River, or Friesland. At least, these are the areas Dutch Mennonites live today.
Below is the Lord's Prayer in standard Dutch.
Onze vader, die in de hemelen zijt; Uw naam worde geheiligd.
Uw koninkrijk kome.
Uw wil geschiede in den hemel alzoo ook op de aarde.
Geef ons heden onze dagelijks brood.
En vergeef ons onze schulden, gelijk ook wij vergeven onzen schuldenaren.
En leid ons niet in verzoeking; maar verlos ons van de booze.
Want uw is het koninkrijk en de kracht en de heerlijkheid in der eeuwigheid.
West-Vlams (West Flemish)
Warembourg?
The Warembourg surname is clearly not French, but it does occur in France, almost exclusively in the départments of Nord and
Pas-de-Calais. These areas were West Flemish speaking. Documentation linking me to my ancestor Marie de la Warembourg is very weak.
Although there are some one million people
who speak West Flemish, fewer and fewer in France can—only about 20,000. It is under much pressure from French, as
are all the regional languages in France.
Uze Vader die in den hemel zyt, da Jou name illig es.
Da Je keuninkryk komt.
En da Je wille meuge gebeurn up d'êerde lik in den hemel.
Gif uus vandage uus dageliks brood.
En vergif uus uze schuldn lik da me ook vergeevn an uze schuldenaars.
En briengd uus nie in bekorienge moa red uus van 't kwoade.
Van va Joun es 't keuninkryk, en de kracht, en de glorie toe an den êêuwigheid.
Frysk (Westlauwersk Frysk) (West Frisian)
Herbach (Harbaugh)?
The Harbaughs may have been something other than Lutheran or Reformed. If they were Mennonite and from the Netherlands, they were then probably from Friesland. That's where many Mennonites were from.
(West) Frisian (also "Friesian") is spoken in Friesland in the Netherlands (north of Amsterdam). Although there are some people in Friesland who speak a Dutch dialect heavily influenced by Frisian ("Town Frisian"), Frisian itself is an independent language. It has about 600,000 speakers. Friesian is the language that is most closely related to English, if one doesn't include Scots as a separate language. It may be fair to say that Frisian is what English would have become if it were not for the Norman Invasion into England in 1066. The Normans brought in many French words with them when they invaded. I've always thought Frisian was a neat language because of that. I don't know Frisian at all but I took a stab at a word-for-word translation below. Some words don't have an English equivalent. Some have one but are different in meaning today (krêft=craft). The Norman influence in English is probably best seen in the last line. I'll have to get my hands on a Frisian dictionary!
Us Heit yn 'e himel, lit jo namme hillige wurde.
Our Father in the heaven, let your name holy be.
Lit jo keninkryk komme.
Let your kingdom come.
Lit jo wil dien wurde op ierde likegoed as yn 'e himel.
Let your will done be on earth as in the heaven.
Jou ús deistich brea
Give us daily bread
en ferjou ús ús skulden sa't wy ús skuldners ek ferjûn hawwe;
and forgive us our (debts?) as we our (debtors?) forgiven have;
en lit ús net yn fersiking komme, mar ferlos ús fan 'e kweade,
and let us not in(to) temptation come, but (deliver?) us from the evil,
want jowes is it keninkryk en de krêft en de hearlikheid oant yn ivichkeid.
for/because yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory [?] in(to) the "everness" (eternity).
Numbers
| English | German | Manx | French | Welsh | Upper Sorbian |
Lower Sorbian | Polabian |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| one | eins | nane | un | un | jedyn | jaden | jadån |
| two | zwei | jees | deux | dau | dwaj | dwa | dåwo |
| three | drei | tree | trois | tri | tři | tśi | tåri |
| four | vier | kiare | quatre | pedwar | štyri | styri | citer |
| five | fünf | queig | cinq | pump | pjeć | pěś | pąt |
| six | sechs | shey | six | chwe(ch) | šěsć | šesć | sist |
| seven | sieben | shiaght | sept | saith | sydom | sedym | sidem |
| eight | acht | hoght | huit | wyth | wósom | wosym | wisem |
| nine | neun | nuy | neuf | naw | dźewjeć | źeẃeś | diwąt |
| ten | zehn | jeih | dix | deg | dźesać | źaseś | disąt |
