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The Franconian Dictionary (WBF)

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The Franconian Dictionary focuses on collecting, analysing, safeguarding and sharing the cultural asset represented by dialect. In a first step already completed, questionnaires and index cards were scanned to secure the inventory which is now being integrated in a database that facilitates extensive research. Below please find a tabular presentation of the most important milestones followed by a graph displaying the surveys performed.

Short History

1912

The Royal Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities and the Imperial Austrian Academy of Sciences and Humanities decide to cooperate in developing a dictionary of the Bavarian dialect.

1913

Project work begins with launching its first questionnaire. The Munich office thereby also includes those Bavarian regions where no Bavarian dialect is spoken – which included Franconia.

1915

World War I interrupts the survey work.

1927

New start: Sending out questionnaires geographically allocating vernaculars „Mundartgeographischen Fragebögen“.

1932

Friedrich Maurer, professor of German studies in Erlangen, starts his own research on the Franconian dialect, sending out his questionnaire, the so-called „Maurer-Bogen“.

1933

The Academy establishes the East Franconian Dictionary office in Erlangen (Ostfränkisches Wörterbuch), supervised by Friedrich Maurer. Introduction and development of the Central Catalogue (Zentralkartei). Lemmatizing of documents has started in 1913 and is being continued until 2001.

1941

World War II interrupts the survey work.

1960

New Start: Siegfried Beyschlag, a philologist from Erlangen, arranges a revival of the surveys. New questionnaires, the so-called „Nachkriegsbögen“ are sent out every four months. Hundreds of volunteers complete the questionnaires.

1963

The Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities (BAdW ) establishes a permanent post for an editor in the Erlangen office. Erich Strassner becomes editor.

1963-2001

Survey work with questionnaires and oral interviews in 1967 (  Mündlichen Befragungen).

1967

Eberhard Wagner becomes editor.

2001

End of questionnaires mailings.

2003

The Commission for Vernacular Research at the BAdW decides to forego the printed version of the Franconian Dictionary for the benefit of a digital dictionary. Alfred Klepsch becomes editor.

2012

Cooperation agreement between the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities (BAdW ) and the FAU Erlangen. Mechthild Habermann, scholar of German studies in Erlangen, becomes project director.

The „East Franconian Dictionary” becomes the „ Franconian Dictionary “.

2013

Financially supported by the Franconian regional districts, questionnaires and index cards are being scanned.

 

2015

Alfred Klepsch and Almut König have equal share of the editor position.

 

 

Future Development: E-Lexicography (german)

Die im Jahr 2012 vertraglich geregelte Kooperation der Bayerischen Akademie der Wissenschaften und der Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg gibt dem Projekt Fränkisches Wörterbuch neue Impulse. Das WBF erfasst den Belegbestand digital, um ihn schließlich als Online-Wörterbuch zu veröffentlichen. Dies erfordert einen großen Arbeitsaufwand, vor allem für die Eingabe der handschriftlichen Originalbelege.

Damit Franken nicht mehr nur als weißer Fleck der Dialektlexikographie zwischen dem Südhessischen, dem Thüringischen, dem Schwäbischen und dem Bayerischen Wörterbuch existiert, bedarf es eines Kraftakts, der momentan noch gelingen kann. In der Öffentlichkeit besteht aber weiterhin ein lebhaftes Interesse an den im Norden Bayerns gesprochenen Dialekten. Zudem existieren Personen, deren Dialektkompetenz für die Eingabearbeit fruchtbar gemacht werden kann, und schließlich ermöglichen die zunehmend besseren Methoden der EDV eine zügigere Bearbeitung, Sortierung und Klassifikation des vorliegenden Materials.