History, Wonder Tales, Fairy Tales, Myths and Legends The Flemish | Page 106

THE FLEMISH LANGUAGE
Flemish is by some considered a separate language, mostly for what amounts to
political reasons. In reality, Flemish and Hollandic do not exis as a language, but are
Dutch dialects
The Flemish dialects are subdivided into Eastern Flemish and Western Flemish.
Eastern Flemish varieties are used in most of the Belgian province of Eastern
Flanders and also in parts of the Netherlands’ province of Zeeland-Flanders. The
boundaries and characteristics of this group are not very clearly defined, mostly due to
a complex mixture of Flemish substrates, Brabantish superstrates and Standard
Dutch, French, German and Spanish influences.
The West Flemish varieties, on the other hand, are fairly clearly defined and are less
influenced, except by French, and this has been the basis of claims of separate
language status. It is used mostly in Western Flanders and in French Flanders, being
severely endangered in the latter.
Like Low Saxon, Western Flemish and some neighboring varieties of Zeeland are
phonologically rather conservative in that the have not participated in certain shifts
from long vowels to diphthongs.
Flemish exerted some influence on Scots and Scottish English and also on some
English dialects of Northern England, due to Flemish textile workers having
immigrated to Lowlands Scotland and Northern England, many of them via Wales. An
apparent example of a Flemish borrowing in Scots is tae keek ‘to take a peek’; cf.
Flemish kiek’n (['ki:kŋ], Dutch kijken ['kaı:ke], Low Saxon kieken ['khi:kŋ]) ‘to (take a)
look’.

106