A vitalidade linguística da língua alemã ao longo do Rio Uruguai no oeste de Santa Catarina

Abstract

This study investigates the language vitality of spoken German in the municipalities of Itapiranga/São João do Oeste (ITA/SJO), Mondaí (MON), Palmitos (PAL), and São Carlos (SCA), located along the Uruguay River in western Santa Catarina, Brazil. In these communities, although German is no longer the exclusive language of communication, it remains present in diverse and dynamic social practices, reflecting both the persistence of tradition and adaptation to new sociolinguistic realities. The study is guided by the following research question: how do speakers maintain, use, and perceive the German language in contact with Portuguese? The main objective is to research the vitality of spoken German based on the perceptions of its speakers. To achieve this goal, the study aims to: a) verify how speakers name the languages they speak; b) analyze the use of spoken German in contact with Portuguese across the four research sites — ITA/SJO, MON, PAL, and SCA — considering the diagerational, diastratic, diasexual, and religious dimensions; c) describe speakers’ perceptions and beliefs regarding spoken German in their communities; and d) identify actions aimed at maintaining the German language in the investigated localities. This sociolinguistic study is grounded in the assumptions of Pluridimensional and Relational Dialectology (Thun, 1998, 2005). Data were collected through participant observation and 32 interviews conducted in German with speakers selected according to diatopic, diastratic, diagerational, diasexual, and religious dimensions. Documentary sources and metalinguistic comments were also considered, encompassing the metareferential dimension. The results indicate that the majority language is predominantly referred to as Brasilionisch, whereas the minority language is identified as Deitsch and Deutsch, terms mainly associated with Catholic and Lutheran speakers, respectively. Regarding language use, the findings reveal greater use of German among younger speakers and among less educated participants, especially in contexts such as local government offices and commerce. Greater linguistic vitality was also observed in ITA/SJO and SCA, where Catholic speakers were interviewed. Concerning language perceptions, German is regarded as a prestigious language; however, many speakers point to its ongoing replacement by Portuguese. Only one of the investigated locations, São João do Oeste, currently presents institutional language policies aimed at maintaining German, such as language co-officialization and its inclusion in the school curriculum.