History and Related Languages
Hutterite German is descended from the German which was spoken in Carinthia, in Austria, in the mid-18th century, a Bavarian-Austrian language. It is only 50% intelligible to a speaker of Pennsylvania German, as the latter variant is based on dialects spoken around the Electorate of the Palatinate. Hutterite German is more closely related to Austro-Bavarian (Bavaria and Austria), Cimbrian and Mócheno (the latter two are dialects spoken in Italy).
Although the Hutterites once spoke Tirolean German, they no longer do. The switch among Hutterites from Tirolean German to Carinthian German occurred during years of severe persecution in Europe when Hutterite communities were devastated and survival depended on the conversion of many Austrian Protestant refugees to Hutterite anabaptism.
The language has since adopted some Slavic as well as English loan words, which are the result of Hutterite migrations into eastern Europe and now North America.
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