Bavarian

language

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Last updated

June 22, 2026

Quick Summary

Bavarian refers to two things: a native or inhabitant of Bavaria, and a dialect of the High German language spoken in southern Bavaria and Austria. Bavarian is part of the High German dialect group, which emerged around the 6th century CE as distinct from other Germanic languages.12

The German language belongs to the West Germanic group of the Indo-European language family. It is an inflected language with a rich history, spoken by over 90 million people worldwide and serving as a major cultural language in the Western world.2

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Germany
Languages of Germany
The Bavarian dialect, with its many local variations, is spoken in the areas south of the Danube River and east of the Lech River and throughout all of Austria, except in the state of Vorarlberg, which is Swabian in origin.
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The Bavarian dialect, with its many local variations, is spoken in the areas south of the Danube River and east of the Lech River and throughout all of Austria, except in the state of Vorarlberg, which is Swabian in origin.
Read More