Deutschsprachige Regionalpresse im Ausland. Fallstudie am Beispiel der „Batschkaer Spuren“

Abstract

Abstract This paper analyzes the specific linguistic situation of print media in German language abroad based on the example of the “Batschkaer Spuren”, a regional newspaper of the German minority in Hungary. The goal is a linguistic assessment of the current manifestations of the used media language regarding its typological structures and fundamental characteristics. Additionally, journalistic possibilities and types of procedures, specifically with regards to regionalisms (informed by local dialects), multilingualism, and inter- as well as transculturality are discussed. The study identified a spectrum of minority-specific patterns und types of linguistic composition with highly variable characteristics of German. The analyzed linguistic practices of the newspaper show a type of dynamic multiliteracy that in itself causes an emergence of new patterns. The majority of findings can be attributed to multilingual or language-contact induced phenomena on different levels: from word to text/discourse (the text routines are occasionally influenced by the contact language Hungarian). The other central aspect of the analyzed text world lies in the regionalisms that are influenced by local dialects. The complete picture is determined by heterogeneity and inconsistency and presents itself as a mixture of linguistic and stylistic forms. Especially noteworthy is the established conflict between orality and scribality i.e., between a “language of proximity” and a “language of distance”. Hence, the analyzed newspaper articles present a large quantity of forms and structures of every-day written language that metaphorically can be termed “Parlando texts”.