Limburgish
| Limburgish | |
|---|---|
| Limburgan, Limburgian, Limburgic, East Low Franconian, South Low Franconian | |
| Limburgs, Lèmburgs | |
| Pronunciation | [ˈlɪm˦bʏʀ(ə)xs, ˈlɛm˦-] |
| Native to | Netherlands |
| Region | Limburg (Netherlands) Limburg (Belgium) |
Native speakers | 800,000 (2025) unknown number in Germany |
| Latin | |
| Official status | |
Recognised minority language in | Netherlands
– Statutory provincial language in Limburg Province (1996, Ratification Act, ECRML, No. 136), effective 1997. |
| Regulated by | Veldeke Limburg (unofficial), Raod veur 't Limburgs (unofficial) |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-1 | li |
| ISO 639-2 | lim |
| ISO 639-3 | lim |
| Glottolog | limb1263 Limburgan |
| Linguasphere | 52-ACB-al |
Limburgish (Limburgs [ˈlɪm˦bʏʀ(ə)xs] or Lèmburgs [ˈlɛm˦-]; Dutch: Limburgs [ˈlɪmbʏr(ə)xs]; also Limburgian, Limburgic or Limburgan) is the collective designation for a group of closely related language varieties spoken in most of Belgian and Dutch Limburg and in the adjacent areas of North Rhine-Westphalia.
The Limburgish dialects lack a standardized form and instead comprise multiple varieties, each with its own distinctive features. A characteristic feature of many dialects of Limburgish is the occurrence of a lexical pitch accent (Franconian tone accent), which these dialects adopted from and share with the adjacent Central Franconian dialects of German.
In the Netherlands, Limburgish has been officially recognized as a regional language by the Dutch government since 1997. In Belgium and Germany, Limburgish dialects have no formal legal status.