VOWELS IN STANDARD AUSTRIAN GERMAN - Acoustics ...

Sylvia Moosmüller
This unifying function is often misconceived as a production criterion, i.e. the standard
language is assumed to have no regional characteristics in order to be able to fulfill its
unifying function. Apart from the fact that within such a framework the standard
language is allowed to show social characteristics, since standard languages are usually
spoken by the elites of a given speech community, supraregionality is in most cases
unrealistic, given the regional diversities in most political entities. Therefore, in
historically grown standard languages, the standard language is either the result of a
counterbalance of the political and cultural elites, as e.g. in Dutch (Haar 2001), or the
variety of those holding the political power, see e.g. Queen’s English (Schröder 2001).
Or, the standard language is completely left to the social elites, irrespective of their
regional background, as is the case for Dansk (Zynt-Dyhr 2001). Modern Standard
Albanian, a young standard, is primarily based on the Tosk variety favoured by the
political powers of the time. However, counterbalancing strategies of the social and
cultural elites can be observed as well (Moosmüller & Granser 2006). Therefore, a
standard language is neither supraregional nor suprasocial in production, it is however,
supraregional in acceptance.
Dittmar (1997) names six criteria 23 necessary for defining a variety as a standard;
of these, Standard Austrian German lacks the first, the written codification. Especially
Coulmas (2000) emphasises the necessity of a codified reference variety for the
development of a standard language. Nevertheless, the great majority of Austrians hold
the opinion that an independent standard exists for Austria, and they are, moreover,
quite consistent in what this standard variety looks like (Moosmüller 1991). Assessment
tests performed by Moosmüller (1991) reveal that the phonology of Standard Austrian
German is based on the Middle Bavarian varieties and is spoken by the educated people
with a social background of the upper and middle social classes. Regionally, the
23 The six criteria are: written codification, supraregional spread and acceptance, usage in
formal contexts, difference to everyday usage, sanctions in case somebody does not know
the standard language, and high prestige.
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