„Sorvete un Tema is nich Dütsch“

Abstract

This article analyzes the lexicon of 129 speakers of German dialects in Southern Brazil, who translated 46 Portuguese stimulus sentences into Mennonite Low German, Pomeranian, or Hunsruckisch. By comparing the number and phonetic shape of the Portuguese loanwords and by analyzing the hesitation phenomena that occurred during the translation task, we can gain valuable insights into the informants’ storage of lexical items. While the overall rate and shape of the borrowed elements are largely determined by the informants’ origin, age, sex, and competence in the contact languages, (un)filled pauses, segment lengthenings, and break-offs are more frequent among speakers of Mennonite Low German. Initially, this is puzzling, since the Mennonites are as proficient in Portuguese as their Pomeranian- and Hunsruckisch-speaking counterparts, while their dialect knowledge and especially their knowledge of Standard German is actually better. However, taking into account that the overall number of loanwords in Mennonite Low German is lower, it stands to reason that the Mennonites’ German and Portuguese mental lexica have converged less than the lexica of the Pomeranians and Hunsruckers. Consequently, the Mennonites are faced with more competition during lexical access and retrieval.