Drèents dialects

{{Short description|Westphalian dialects of Drenthe, Netherlands}} {{refimprove|date=May 2024}} {{Infobox language |name=Drents |altname=Dreins |nativename=''Drèents'' |states=Netherlands |region=Drenthe and a strip of Overijssel just south of Drenthe |speakers=255,000 |date=2009 |ref=e25 |familycolor=Indo-European |fam2=Germanic |fam3=West Germanic |fam4=North Sea Germanic |fam5=Low German<ref name="e25" /> |fam6=Low Saxon |fam7=Westphalian{{citation needed|date=July 2023}} |nation=Netherlands (as part of Low Saxon) |agency=Provincial States of Drenthe (spelling) |iso3=drt |glotto=dren1238 |glottorefname=Drents |map=Drèents.png |mapcaption= Map showing the provinces of Drenthe (most of the area in green tones) and Overijssel (mostly grey; with small regions in dark green south of Drenthe) }}

'''Drèents''' (also '''Dreins''', '''Dreints''', '''Drents''', '''Drints'''; {{langx|nl|Drents}}) is a collective term for Westphalian dialects spoken in Drenthe, a province of the Netherlands. They are spoken by about half of the population of the province.

== Phonology == === Consonants === {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" ! colspan="2" | !Labial !Alveolar !Retroflex !Dorsal !Glottal |- ! rowspan="2" |Stop !voiceless |{{IPA link|p}} |{{IPA link|t}} |{{IPA link|ʈ}} |{{IPA link|k}} | |- !voiced |{{IPA link|b}} |{{IPA link|d}} |{{IPA link|ɖ}} |{{IPA link|ɡ}} | |- ! rowspan="2" |Fricative !voiceless |{{IPA link|f}} |{{IPA link|s}} |{{IPA link|ʂ}} |{{IPA link|χ}} | |- !voiced |{{IPA link|v}} |{{IPA link|z}} |{{IPA link|ʐ}} | |{{IPA link|ɦ}} |- ! colspan="2" |Nasal |{{IPA link|m}} |{{IPA link|n}} |{{IPA link|ɳ}} |{{IPA link|ŋ}} | |- ! colspan="2" |Trill | |{{IPA link|r}} | | | |- ! colspan="2" |Approximant |{{IPA link|ʋ}} |{{IPA link|l}} |{{IPA link|ɭ}} |{{IPA link|j}} | |}

==Dialects of Drèents== The dialects from the north and the east (see below: 'Noordenvelds' and 'Veenkoloniaals') are somehow more related to Gronings (a Northern Low Saxon dialect), the dialects from the south-west are 'Stellingwerfs', and the dialects in a few villages along the southern border with the ''Grafschaft'' Bentheim (Germany) are considered to be Sallaans (because they have an umlaut in the diminutives).

The ''Stichting Drentse Taol'' (''Drèents Language Foundation'') distinguishes seven main variants of Drèents within the province, based on the research done by G.H. Kocks, the main editor of the ''Woordenboek der Drentse Dialecten'' (Dictionary of the Drèents Dialects): * ''Noordenvelds'' * ''Veenkeloniaols'' * ''Zuudoost-Zaand-Drèents'' * ''Zuudoost-Veen-Drèents'' * ''Midden-Drèents'' * ''Zuudwest-Noord-Drèents'' (Also see Stellingwarfs) * ''Zuudwest-Zuud-Drèents'' It also can be divided into Midden-Drents and Zuid-Drents.

==Examples of usage==

{| | Emmen dialect: | We moet'n nie zo haast'n. |- | Standard Dutch: | Wij hoeven ons niet zo te haasten. |- | English: | We do not have to hurry. |}

{| | Northern Drenthe: | ien | twei | dreei | vier | vief | zes | zeum | aacht | neegn | tien |- | Southwest Drenthe: | iene | tweie | dreie | veere | vieve | zesse | zeum | achte | neegn | tiene |- | Standard Dutch: | een | twee | drie | vier | vijf | zes | zeven | acht | negen | tien |- | English: | one | two | three | four | five | six | seven | eight | nine | ten |}

{| | Drenthe: | Ie kunt wel geliek hebb'n. |- | Standard Dutch: | U kunt gelijk hebben. |- | English: | You can be right. |}

==References== {{Reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dreents}} Category:Languages of the Netherlands Category:Dutch Low Saxon Category:Westphalian dialects Category:Culture of Drenthe Category:Culture of Overijssel