German language

German (Deutsch, pronounced [dɔʏtʃ] ⓘ) is a <a href="/facts/West_Germanic_language/PbeIH9Jz">West Germanic language</a> in the <a href="/facts/Indo-European_language_family/L34TfgSr">Indo-European language family</a>, mainly spoken in <a href="/facts/Western_Europe/YmWlV59w">Western</a> and <a href="/facts/Central_Europe/VdxzSbJz">Central Europe</a>. It is the majority and <a href="/facts/Official_language/yCH2URym">official</a> (or co-official) language in <a href="/facts/Germany/paluuWBX">Germany</a>, <a href="/facts/Austria/4qWIMIyc">Austria</a>, <a href="/facts/Switzerland/LcGuxeTe">Switzerland</a>, and <a href="/facts/Liechtenstein/dPnsqDnS">Liechtenstein</a>. It is also an official language of <a href="/facts/Luxembourg/vRN04l7f">Luxembourg</a>, <a href="/facts/German-speaking_Community_of_Belgium/nM9TgpuS">Belgium</a> and the Italian autonomous province of <a href="/facts/South_Tyrol/KRMwFeWs">South Tyrol</a>, as well as a recognized <a href="/facts/National_language/QtJmz1H4">national language</a> in <a href="/facts/Namibia/ahXuaypy">Namibia</a>. There are also notable German-speaking communities in other parts of Europe, including: <a href="/facts/Poland/eXJ7fd0D">Poland</a> (<a href="/facts/Upper_Silesia/NHm8MPN6">Upper Silesia</a>), the <a href="/facts/Czech_Republic/vJYLD66Q">Czech Republic</a> (<a href="/facts/North_Bohemia/AzevV2JH">North Bohemia</a>), <a href="/facts/Denmark/KVtykzsw">Denmark</a> (<a href="/facts/South_Jutland_County/KYX9mNt6">North Schleswig</a>), <a href="/facts/Slovakia/gmJwpwM3">Slovakia</a> (<a href="/facts/Krahule/qocU2Gur">Krahule</a>), <a href="/facts/Germans_of_Romania/Lyu6fUBG">Romania</a>, <a href="/facts/Hungary/YRedQLtI">Hungary</a> (<a href="/facts/Sopron/dhrb9LK8">Sopron</a>), and <a href="/facts/France/CxIeIKM3">France</a> (<a href="/facts/European_Collectivity_of_Alsace/e2AmMMjy">Alsace</a>). Overseas, sizeable communities of German-speakers are found in the Americas.
German is one of the <a href="/facts/Global_language_system/rCVNfA6d">major languages of the world</a>, with nearly 80 million native speakers and over 130 million total speakers as of 2024. It is the most spoken native language within the <a href="/facts/European_Union/6GYcR8qM">European Union</a>. German is the second-most widely spoken <a href="/facts/Germanic_language/BxAJX3Kf">Germanic language</a>, after English, both as a <a href="/facts/First_language/1yK3tnLb">first</a> and as a <a href="/facts/Second_language/aUqAzeNK">second language</a>. German is also widely taught as a <a href="/facts/Foreign_language/gdYbMzts">foreign language</a>, especially in <a href="/facts/Continental_Europe/EXR4F23f">continental Europe</a> (where it is the third most taught foreign language after English and French) and in the United States (where it is the third <a href="/facts/List_of_most_commonly_learned_second_languages_in_the_United_States/77BkHfY4">most commonly learned second language</a> in K-12 education and among the most studied foreign languages in higher education after Spanish and French). Overall, German is the fourth most commonly learned second language globally. The language has been influential in the fields of philosophy, theology, science, and technology. It is the second most commonly used <a href="/facts/Languages_of_science/Nht6AaJ9">language in science</a> and the <a href="/facts/Languages_used_on_the_Internet/YVfKb7CU">third most widely used language on websites</a>. The <a href="/facts/List_of_countries_and_territories_where_German_is_an_official_language/amtemvdH">German-speaking countries</a> are ranked fifth in terms of annual publication of new books, with one-tenth of all books (including e-books) in the world being published in German.
German is most closely related to other West Germanic languages, namely <a href="/facts/Afrikaans/jYqEPHmA">Afrikaans</a>, <a href="/facts/Dutch_language/yIB5lbsx">Dutch</a>, <a href="/facts/English_language/tpkxGt7b">English</a>, the <a href="/facts/Frisian_languages/vEAn7PrD">Frisian languages</a>, and <a href="/facts/Scots_language/0qPof8oC">Scots</a>. It also contains close similarities in vocabulary to some languages in the <a href="/facts/North_Germanic_languages/zocYfWp8">North Germanic group</a>, such as <a href="/facts/Danish_language/sTcGXTMJ">Danish</a>, <a href="/facts/Norwegian_language/TGEyeerM">Norwegian</a>, and <a href="/facts/Swedish_language/1DkSIXkH">Swedish</a>. Modern German gradually developed from <a href="/facts/Old_High_German/Vr3YC8sW">Old High German</a>, which in turn developed from <a href="/facts/Proto-Germanic/LJrKRx5A">Proto-Germanic</a> during the <a href="/facts/Early_Middle_Ages/9FrTq3rt">Early Middle Ages</a>.
German is an <a href="/facts/Inflected_language/VHVxrPAv">inflected language</a>, with four <a href="/facts/Grammatical_case/5caTQalU">cases</a> for nouns, pronouns, and adjectives (nominative, accusative, genitive, dative); three <a href="/facts/Grammatical_gender/2hEshpnP">genders</a> (masculine, feminine, neuter) and two <a href="/facts/Number_(grammar)/zzs5AV6v">numbers</a> (singular, plural). It has <a href="/facts/Germanic_strong_verb/mzXNH3Mn">strong and weak verbs</a>. The majority of its vocabulary derives from the ancient Germanic branch of the Indo-European language family, while a smaller share is partly derived from <a href="/facts/Latin/pM3Kge85">Latin</a> and <a href="/facts/Greek_language/pzDd6eIz">Greek</a>, along with fewer words borrowed from <a href="/facts/French_language/qe1DnaQh">French</a> and <a href="/facts/Modern_English/etWbLYRj">Modern English</a>. English, however, is the main source of more recent <a href="/facts/Loanword/PWGYczgY">loanwords</a>.
German is a <a href="/facts/Pluricentric_language/438epUjl">pluricentric language</a>; the three standardized variants are <a href="/facts/German_Standard_German/uyFDjn8G">German</a>, <a href="/facts/Austrian_German/295QUGfF">Austrian</a>, and <a href="/facts/Swiss_Standard_German/FT7mqjLl">Swiss Standard German</a>. <a href="/facts/Standard_German/9qsa3C2S">Standard German</a> is sometimes called <a href="/facts/High_German/DhyaoTdm">High German</a>, which refers to its regional origin. German is also notable for <a href="/facts/German_dialects/e6W9NA9g">its broad spectrum of dialects</a>, with many varieties existing in Europe and other parts of the world. Some of these non-standard varieties have become recognized and protected by regional or national governments.
Since 2004, <a href="/facts/Meeting_of_the_heads_of_state_of_German-speaking_countries/oCrb4Ppf">heads of state of the German-speaking countries have met</a> every year, and the <a href="/facts/Council_for_German_Orthography/GKJnebP8">Council for German Orthography</a> has been the main international body regulating <a href="/facts/German_orthography/wRfTdcfG">German orthography</a>.

German language open-in-new

German language