Wymysorys language
Wymysorys (Wymysiöeryś, pronounced [vɨmɨˈsʲøːrɪɕ, vɨmɨˈɕœ̯ɛrɪɕ]), also known as Vilamovian or Wilamowicean, is a West Germanic language spoken by the Vilamovian ethnic minority in the small town of Wilamowice, Poland (Wymysoü in Wymysorys), on the border between Silesia and Lesser Poland, near Bielsko-Biała. It is considered an endangered language, possibly the most so of any of the Germanic languages. There are probably fewer than 20 native users of Wymysorys, virtually all bilingual; the majority are elderly.
| Wymysorys | |
|---|---|
| Vilamovian | |
| Wymysiöeryś | |
| Pronunciation | IPA: [vɨmɨˈsʲøːrɪɕ] |
| Native to | Poland |
| Region | Wilamowice, Silesian Voivodeship, Poland |
| Ethnicity | Vilamovians |
Native speakers | 20 (2017) |
Indo-European
| |
| Latin | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | wym |
| Glottolog | wymy1235 |
Wymysorys is classified as Critically Endangered by the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger | |
Wymysorys Wymysorys | |
| Coordinates: 49.92°N 19.15°E | |
The status of Wymysorys is complex because, genealogically, it belongs to the East Central dialect group of High German. Nevertheless, based on the self-identification of users as a group separate from the Germans and the existence of a literary language (or, more precisely, a microlanguage), it can be considered a separate language.
It belongs to the dialect group of the former Bielsko-Biała language island, which includes the Alzenau dialect.