I didn't realize Swiss German was so different, and now I am worried
#If I learn German to a C1 level, how long should it take to do the same for Swiss German?
solemn patrol
main star
good question, and yeah. from what I've also learned it's quite different. I once said on here to not use swiss YouTube channels to learn because it's not the same thing
livid quest
Once you're really comfortable speaking German, probably not all that long. Swiss German speakers usually also speak Standard German, it's just that they obviously prefer to speak their own language. To my knowledge, there are also courses for Swiss German in Switzerland -> wouldn't worry too much. IMO, becoming fluent in Standard German should be your priority. ;)
solemn patrol
But if you had to give a time frame, what would it be?
My goal is to go to uni in Switzerland
livid quest
I assume lectures will be held in Standard German.
solemn patrol
The one I specifically aim for is ETH, I tried to look up what dialect they use but the most I found is this-
so I assume they use Swiss
I can't find out more because they don't have an email address
fathom cove
it says right there that they use English
formal sedge
yeah
don't be stressed about learning swiss german quickly
your actual education isn't on the line
just talking to people who already speak standard german and english
solemn patrol
it says right there that they use English
for most Master's, for the Bachelor's I want they use German
solemn patrol
your actual education isn't on the line
wdym
formal sedge
wdym
even if you know 0 swiss german when you get there you'll still be able to understand the lectures and textbooks
solemn patrol
Hmm, because from looking online I saw that most native German speakers said Swiss was really hard or near impossible to understand at time
formal sedge
actually it could be possible that professors would speak in swiss while teaching
but anything written is 100% going to be in standard german
solemn patrol
why are you so sure about that?
solemn patrol
Even if the books are in standard German I would still like to understand the lectures
anyways I am asking to know if I need to start learning Swiss straight away or only after knowing German already
livid quest
anyways I am asking to know if I need to start learning Swiss straight away or o...
After you're fluent in German.
solemn patrol
why?
why not Swiss straight away, what are the downsides
sorry if I am annoying or anything, I just need to plan the next few years during the next couple of months and I really want to make sure I understand everything
livid quest
why?
Because a) you will still have to be able to write your exams/essays/whatever in Standard German b) roughly 98% of the grammar is identical. The main problem will be understanding spoken Swiss German, because it's the pronunciation where it differs most. And for that, it will help immeasurably if you're already fluent in Standard German. Think of it like this (bad comparison, but still): learning what "dunno" and "aint no" mean is a piece of cake once you know "don't know" and "is no/aren't".
livid quest
hmm
Trust me, I needed to learn a pretty... interesting variation of Spanish, and I shudder to think what an awful task that would have been if I hadn't learnt Castellano/Castilian Spanish first.
lunar thistle
standard German is the tool for official communication, education, science, media ... in all of the German speaking world. people will still use their dialect but they all know how to communicate in standard German. no need to worry.
on top of that zürich is a very international city. among your peers it's likely that you'll often speak English.
formal sedge
why are you so sure about that?
because all books are written in standard german
huh, i found this video of a lecture that seems to be from that university and at the start the professor says he's speaking standard german because he wants to upload the video to youtube (so presumably lectures are usually in swiss german) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KmdiGQDYPrI&ab_channel=RubuZofi
so yeah it is necessary from the looks of it after all
lunar thistle
this is standard german
formal sedge
yes i know
read what i said one more time
it's standard german because it's being recorded, so usually he would speak swiss german
lunar thistle
sounds very cute either way, it's a funny dialect
formal sedge
yeah didn't know they had such a thick accent even when speaking standard german
lunar thistle
it's standard german because it's being recorded, so usually he would speak swis...
could aswell mean that he's sprinkling in a few swiss german words here and there usually
i'd highly doubt that lectures are giving in anything else but standard german or english tho
like, really really highly
if you have to make sure ask the university, but you should know that even within switzerland, the dialects very to an extend that could make it hard to understand someone even if you are coming from the same Kanton (like federal state) but they're living in a different region
it's simply impractical to use dialects, so therefore i really doubt it's what usually will be done, but in the every day language (and that includes maybe smaller lectures or workshops, tutorials) there'll be local words or word variants for sure, but this you'll have everywhere no matter where you go in the german speaking world
and it's also not something to worry about, it will not hinder your success as long as you understand standard german well enough