What if I told you there was a remnant of 7th, 8th, and even 10th-generation ASSIMILATED German-Americans who can still speak the dialect of their 18th-century immigrant ancestors? It’s true! Come along and enjoy a gathering of Pennsylvania’s "Fancy Dutch”- descendants of Lutheran and Reformed German immigrants who settled in southeastern Pennsylvania prior to the Revolutionary War. Lehigh County natives Paul and Jean Schneck, who are 93, and their daughter, Darlene, age 67, visited “Grundsau Lodsch Nummer Ains an da Lechaw” in Macungie, Pennsylvania, on February 2, 2024 (Groundhog Lodge #1 on the Lehigh). Groundhog Lodges were created in the 1930s by Fancy Dutch communities as a way to preserve the Pennsylvania Dutch culture and dialect. At one time, there were 18 active Lodges in eastern Pennsylvania. Meetings were originally men-only, however, some, including Lehigh Lodge #1, have opened their meetings to women.
For those who want to experience more of the evening’s festivities, here is a link to an EXTENDED VERSION! • We're NOT Amish But We...
A BIT OF HISTORY: In colonial days, Pennsylvania Dutch people were once a third of Pennsylvania’s population. More than 90% of them were Lutheran and Reformed (UCC). These were informally known as the “Fancy Dutch.” The rest were Anabaptists such as Amish, Mennonite, and Brethren. Those were called the “Plain Dutch.” In colonial days, all Germanic immigrants arriving at the port of Philadelphia were called "Dutch" by the English inhabitants, and this name has stuck.
The Pennsylvania Dutch dialect is a uniquely American dialect formed by these immigrants who were primarily from southwest Germany, Alsace, and Switzerland. By the turn of the 19th century, their regional dialects had blended into the dialect known today as Pennsylvania Dutch.
Today, the “Fancy Dutch” are sometimes overlooked because they’ve been assimilated into the larger culture. But many descendants of the original settlers still live here in Pennsylvania, and the dialect can still be heard in certain places where there was a high concentration of Fancy Dutch (such as the Lehigh Valley, where this was recorded). From folks who learned it from their native Dutch-speaking parents or grandparents - to others who are now learning it through online Zoom classes - this dialect is not going away, not among the Fancy, nor among the Plain! As of 2024, there are more than 300,000 native speakers of Pennsylvania Dutch in the USA.