Is Flemish like English?

Vocabulary. West Flemish inherited many words from Saxon settlers and later on had English loanwords from the wool and cloth trades. Both categories differ from Standard Dutch and show similarities with English and so is difficult to separate both categories.

Is Flemish like German?

There is no such thing as the Flemish language or dialect, and there is no one overall dialect spoken in Belgium, or the Netherlands. Like German, Dutch is a dialect-continuum. Generic Dutch (Algemeen Nederlands) is the standard language in both the Netherlands and Flanders.

Is Dutch the same as Flemish?

The Dutch language is a West Germanic language that is the national language of the Netherlands and, with French and German, one of the three official languages of Belgium. Dutch is also called Netherlandic or Dutch Nederlands; in Belgium it is called Flemish or Flemish Vlaams.

What is the difference between Flemish and Dutch language?

For instance, while the Dutch might use loanwords like maréchaussée (military police) from French, überhaupt (after all) from German, or recyclen (recycle) from English, the Flemish will less easily do so. Today, the Flemish still often act as language purists.

What is the official language of Flanders?

In theory, there is none. There is no such thing as the Flemish language or dialect, and there is no one overall dialect spoken in Belgium, or the Netherlands. Like German, Dutch is a dialect-continuum. Generic Dutch (Algemeen Nederlands) is the standard language in both the Netherlands and Flanders.

Why is the Dutch language not spoken in Belgium?

This is due to the fact that during the 19th century and until the first 50-60 years of the 20th century, French was considered as the ‘high’ language variant and Dutch as the ‘low’ one in Belgium. As a consequence, Dutch was absent from official life even though it was being spoken by half of the population.