General
Our dialect is disappearing: 5 facts about Brabants
Research by the University of Amsterdam shows that some dialects are disappearing in the Dutch language. Brabants is one of the biggest decliners. Therefore, a few facts about the Brabant dialect, because it really shouldn't disappear!
-''Houdoe'' is probably derived from 'Houd oe (eige) goed'. Many people think it was derived from the English 'How do (you do)' during the liberation, but houdoe was already around before the liberation.
-The dialect had a great influence on the establishment of the Dutch standard language in the 16th and 17th centuries. This is because Brabant was the dominant region at that time.
-A prize is given for special achievements in the field of the Brabant regional language, this prize is called De Zachte G-prize. Erfgoed Brabant hands it out once every two years.
-Brabants is the shortest 'language' in the Netherlands. Where others would say 'you never know what the future will bring us', we simply say 'ge wit 't nie'. Instead of 'that's sad' we say 'germ'. Or "do you know?" is of course "witte geit?".
-Our province is the only province that does not have an official anthem. Previously, 'Het lied van hertog Jan' and 'het Brabantsch volkslied' were discussed as options. And in recent years, of course, 'Brabant' by Guus Meeuwis. But no anthem has ever been chosen for our province.
We hope that Brabants won’t disappear. We should be proud of our beautiful dialect and keep using it!
