Alternate Names: Nordfriesisch
Dialects: Ferring (Fohr-Amrum), Helgoland, Mooringer (Mainland Frisian, Mooringa), Sölreng (Sylt). Ferring dialect is actively used. Not intelligible to East Frisian Low Saxon , of Germany or Frisian , of the Netherlands except by a few educated bilingual speakers of Frisian. Lexical similarity: 70% between the Mooringer dialect and Standard German ,, 55% with English ,, 66% with East Frisian Old Saxon ,, the Föhr dialect has 69% with Standard German, 62% with English, 68% with Frisian ,, 73% with East Frisian Low Saxon, 86% with the Mooringer dialect, 91% with the Amrum dialect; the Sylt dialect has 64% with Standard German, 61% with English, 79% with the Mooringer dialect, 85% with the Föhr dialect.
Genealogy:
Demographics: 10,000 (Stephens 1976). Ethnic population: 60,000 (Stephens 1976).
Language Use: Sölreng dialect is nearly extinct. Home. Mainly older adults. Positive attitudes. Also use English [eng], Low Saxon [nds], Standard German [deu].
Language Development: Literacy rate in L1: Few read Frisian. Bible portions: 1954.
Writing System: Latin
Nation of Origin: Germany
Other Comments: Education is in Standard German only. Commerce and religious services in German.