Rotwelsch
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Rotwelsch (, "beggar's foreign (language)") or Gaunersprache ( "crook's language") also Khokhmer Loshn (from Yiddish "", "tongue of the wise") is a secret language, a cant or thieves' argot, spoken by groups (primarily marginalized groups) in Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and Bohemia. The language is based on a mix of Low German, Yiddish, Hebrew, Romani, Latin, and Czech with a High German substrate.
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Article
12 sectionsContents
- Name
- History
- Examples
- From Feraru's ''Muskel-Adolf & Co.''
- Current status
- Code
- In arts
- See also
- Notes and references
- References
- Further reading
- External links
Rotwelsch (, "beggar's foreign (language)") or Gaunersprache ( "crook's language") also Khokhmer Loshn (from Yiddish "", "tongue of the wise") is a secret language, a cant or thieves' argot, spoken by groups (primarily marginalized groups) in Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and Bohemia. The language is based on a mix of Low German, Yiddish, Hebrew, Romani, Latin, and Czech with a High German substrate.
== Name == Rotwelsch was first named by Martin Luther in his preface of Liber Vagatorum in the 16th century. Rot means "beggar" while welsch means "incomprehensible" (cf *Walhaz): thus, rotwelsch signifies the incomprehensible cant of beggars.
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