Brusselian,[a] also known as the Brusselian dialect or Brusselian dialects,[b] is a grouping of several traditional dialects native to Brussels, Belgium. Belonging to a broader Franco-Flemish dialect continuum, they are distinct from standard Dutch and French, and comprise several historically and socially defined varieties, such as Flemish Brusselian (a heavily-Francisised Brabantian Dutch dialect with some Spanish loanwords), Beulemans (a distinct local form of French), Alf-en-alf (a mixed Franco-Flemish variety), and Bargades (a traditional marginal slang related to Bargoens). Marollian is also sometimes considered as a distinct variety of Brusselian.
| Brusselian | |
|---|---|
| Nativeย to | Belgium, specifically Brussels |
Indo-European
| |
| Latin script | |
| Official status | |
Recognised minority languageย in | Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium[1] |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | None (mis) |
  Brusselian | |
| Coordinates: 50ยฐ50โฒ48.05โณN 4ยฐ21โฒ9โณE๏ปฟ / ๏ปฟ50.8466806ยฐN 4.35250ยฐE | |
From the late 19th century, Brusselian was gradually replaced by French, and to a lesser extent, after the Second World War, by standard Dutch. As a result, only a small portion of the Brussels population now speaks the traditional dialects, which survive primarily among older generations and in cultural activities and folklore. Since the late 20th century, preservation efforts have been underway, and in 2021, Brusselian was included in the inventory of intangible cultural heritage of the Brussels-Capital Region.
History
editThis section needs expansion. You can help by adding missing information. (March 2026) |
On 15 December 2021, the Brusselian dialects were added to the inventory of intangible cultural heritage of the Brussels-Capital Region.[1]
The Royal Theatre Toone, a folkloric theatre of marionettes in central Brussels, still puts on puppet plays in Brusselian.[2]
Varieties
editThe Brusselian dialects are not homogeneous. They have exhibited significant variations over time and between the different neighbourhoods of Brussels. The best-identified varieties are:[4][3]
- Flemish Brusselian (French: Bruxellois flamand, Dutch: Brussels Vlaams), also known as Brussels Flemish[5][c] or Brussels Vloms (Brabantian variant of vlaams; "Flemish"). It is a heavily-Francisised Brabantian Dutch dialect[6][7] that incorporates a sprinkle of Spanish loanwords dating back to the rule of the Low Countries by the Habsburgs (1519โ1713).[2] It is distinct from written standard Dutch in vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation.[8][7]
- French Brusselian (French: Bruxellois franรงais, Dutch: Brussels Frans), also known as Brussels French[d] or Beulemans (from the title of a 20th-century popular play). It is a creole integrating French vocabulary into a Flemish grammatical structure.[3] Formerly used by the Brussels lower middle class, it is often (wrongly) considered by the French as the "Belgian" dialect.
- Alf-en-alf (Brabantian variant of half-en-half; "half-and-half") or mixed Brusselian (Franco-Flemish).[3]
- Bargades (Brabantian variant of Bargoens), old marginal and esoteric slang of criminals, tramps and travelling salesmen.[3]
Although there is no consensus, Marollian is sometimes considered by some speakers and linguists as a distinct variety of Brusselian.[9][8][10] A mixture of French, Picard and Flemish Brusselian,[3] it was widely spoken in the Marolles/Marollen neighbourhood of the City of Brussels, from which it takes its name, until the 20th century.[2] It still survives among a small minority of inhabitants called Brusseleers[2] (or Brusseleirs), many of them quite bi- and multilingual in French and Dutch.[11][12]
Examples
editThe Brusselian word zwanze is commonly applied by speakers of French and Dutch to denote a sarcastic form of folk humour considered typical of Brussels.[13][14]
References
editFootnotes
edit- ^ /หbrสsษliษn/; natively Brusseleer, Brusselair or Brusseleir; French: Bruxellois [bสyksษlwa]; Dutch: Brussels [หbrสsษls]
- ^ Natively Brusselse sproek;[2] French: Dialecte(s) bruxellois or Parler(s) bruxellois;[3] Dutch: Brussels(e) dialect(en) or Brussels(e) streektaal(-alen)[1]
- ^ Not to be confused with the colloquial Dutch/Flemish spoken in Brussels
- ^ Not to be confused with the colloquial French spoken in Brussels
Citations
edit- ^ a b c "De Brusselse streektalen โ Patrimoine - Erfgoed". erfgoed.brussels. Retrieved 27 February 2026.
- ^ a b c d e Evans 2008, p.ย 71.
- ^ a b c d e f "Les parlers bruxellois โ Patrimoine - Erfgoed". patrimoine.brussels. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
- ^ Vanden Branden, Jean-Pierre (23 August 2014). "Les quatre dialectes de Bruxelles". Hu(mลur)s bruxelloises โฆ Brussels zwanze โฆ - Regard amoureux sur le parler bruxellois (in French). La Boรฎte ร Pandore.
- ^ De Vriendt, Sera (2000). Berns, J.B.; Goossens, J.; van Hout, R.; Niebaum, H.; Ryckeboer, H.; Scholtmeijer, H.; Taeldeman, J. (eds.). "Diminutieven in het Brussels" [Diminutives in the Brussels Flemish dialect]. Taal en Tongval (in Dutch). 52 (2). eISSNย 2215-1214. ISSNย 0039-8691. Archived from the original on 28 February 2026 โ via Digitale Bibliotheek voor de Nederlandse Letteren.
- ^ Baerten 1982, p.ย 887โ897.
- ^ a b De Vriendt 2003, p.ย 7โ8.
- ^ a b De Vriendt, Sera; de Keyser, Jef; Doms, Raymond; Depoorter, Raymond; de Schrijver, Marcel (2004). van der Sijs, Nicoline (ed.). Brussels [Brusselian] (in Dutch). Lannoo. ISBNย 90-209-5857-7. Archived from the original on 28 February 2026. Retrieved 27 February 2026 โ via Digitale Bibliotheek voor de Nederlandse Letteren.
- ^ Jeanine Treffers-Daller, Mixing Two Languages: French-Dutch Contact in a Comparative Perspective (Walter de Gruyter, 1994), 25.
- ^ Aron, Paul (June 2015). "L'invention du marollien littรฉraire". Le Carnet et les Instants (in French). 186.
- ^ Johan Winkler (1874). "De stad Brussel". Algemeen Nederduitsch en Friesch Dialecticon (in Dutch). Digitale Bibliotheek voor de Nederlandse Letteren. pp.ย 264โ272. Archived from the original on 7 January 2005. Retrieved 16 January 2009.
- ^ Treffers-Daller, Jeanine (1994). Mixing Two Languages: French-Dutch Contact in a Comparative Perspective. Walter de Gruyter. p.ย 300. ISBNย 3110138379. Retrieved 26 April 2013.
- ^ State 2004, p.ย 356.
- ^ "ZWANZE: Dรฉfinition de ZWANZE". www.cnrtl.fr (in French). Retrieved 2 February 2018.
Bibliography
edit- Baerten, Jean (1982). "Le franรงais ร Bruxelles au Moyen-รge. Une mise en garde". Revue belge de Philologie et d'Histoire (in French). 60 (4). Brussels: 887โ897. doi:10.3406/rbph.1982.3399.
- De Vriendt, Sera (2003). Grammatica van het Brussels (in Dutch). Ghent: Academie voor Nederlandse Taal- en Letterkunde. ISBNย 978-90-72474-51-3.
- Evans, Mary Anne (2008). Frommer's Brussels and Bruges Day by Day. First Edition. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons. ISBNย 978-0-470-72321-0.
- State, Paul F. (2004). Historical dictionary of Brussels. Historical dictionaries of cities of the world. Vol.ย 14. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press. ISBNย 978-0-8108-5075-0.
