Pennsylvania Deitsch
| Regions with significant populations | |
|---|---|
| United States, especially Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, West Virginia; Canada, especially Ontario (Kitchener, Waterloo, Cambridge, Markham, Stouffville and Pickering) | |
| Languages | |
| English, Pennsylvania German | |
| Religion | |
| Lutheran, Reformed, Evangelical, Catholic, Moravian, Church of the Brethren, Mennonite, Amish, Schwenkfelder, River Brethren, Yorker Brethren | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| German American, Swiss American, French American, Dutch American |
The Pennsylvania Dutch (Pennsilfaanisch Deitsch, 
listen ) are a cultural group formed by early German-speaking immigrants to Pennsylvania and their descendants. The word "Dutch" does not refer to the Dutch people (Nederlanders) or their descendants, but to German people whose ethnonym in their own language is Deitsch (in dialectal German) or Deutsch (in standard German). Most emigrated to the U.S. from Germany or Switzerland in the 17th and 18th century. Over time, the various dialects spoken by these immigrants fused into a unique dialect of German known as Pennsylvania German or Pennsylvania "Dutch". At one time, more than one-third of Pennsylvania's population spoke this language.
The Pennsylvania Dutch maintained numerous religious affiliations, with the greatest number being Lutheran or German Reformed, but also with many Anabaptists, including Mennonites and Amish. The Anabaptist religions promoted a simple lifestyle, and their adherents were known as Plain people or Plain Dutch. This was in contrast to the Fancy Dutch, who tended to assimilate more easily into the American mainstream. Other religions were also represented by the late 1700s, in smaller numbers.
Pennsylvania German (Deitsch, Pennsylvania Deitsch, Pennsilfaanisch Deitsch, listen ; usually called Pennsylvania Dutch) is a variety of West Central German spoken by the Amish and Old Order Mennonites in the United States and Canada, closely related to the Palatine dialects.
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